CONSTANTLY AWESOME

Boston’s Constants occupy that gray area between rock and metal that’s likely to alienate both fan-bases rather than bridge them together, but like so many unclassifiable bands their particular brand of spacey indie/alt/metal/rock/whatever inspires a devoted pack of die-hards that absolutely adore the band for being so unique. Count Vince Neilstein as one of those fans.

With their swirling atmospheric guitar work and slow headbang grooves, Constants would fit right in on a tour with bands like Dredg or Maserati, but they’d easily be the heaviest band on the bill. Take their cover of Type O Negative’s “Love You to Death” (currently the 3rd song down on their MySpace page) with its monstrous, downtuned, fuzzed-the-fuck-out guitar riff beneath singer Will Benoit’s soaring, soothing voice. While the giant-sized guitar might turn off indie fans and the clean singing might make tr00 metal fans wince, the combination is precisely what grabs me. It’s rare these days that you find a truly unique band; Constants are truly one-of-a-kind, and they’re really making a name for themselves.

Constants’ new album If Tomorrow the War is out now via Science of Silence Records, and it was produced by Godflesh/Jesu mastermind Justin K. Broadrick. The album is only available on vinyl and digitally (via iTunes and Amazon), but if you order a vinyl you get an instant digital download as well for free. There are only a few copies left, so order yours now.

-VN