Few bands are as underrated as Los Angeles heady kings of post-apocalyptic soundtracks, Red Sparowes. The insanely talented group scores Armageddon with their instrumental rock fugues composed of heavy bass, dynamic drumming and the crystalline pedal steel guitar. If there ever was a darker heir to Godspeed You Black Emperor!, Red Sparowes is it. The band plays the Echoplex on Saturday and will undoubtedly crack open minds with their psychedelic video show and their introspective, brooding rock. Think Earth meets Pelican, with a touch of Mogwai. Their newest album, Fear is Excruciating, But Therein Lies the Answer, delves into complex, moody textures and was helmed by Toshi Kasai, the mastermind engineer behind hardcore icons the Melvins, Tool, and Big Business. Red Sparowes is in good company. Their cerebral sound comes from their cadre of accomplished musicians assembled from cult favorites of hardcore, The Vss, Pleasure Forever, and the much lauded champions of super heavy soundscapes, Isis.

After the jump we beak down Red Sparowes, and look at the parts that make this dark machine run.

The present and past members of Red Sparowes have made boundary-breaking music with their other projects. Here are some of them.

Isis:

The VSS from 1995

Neurosis

Pleasure Forever:

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