Seductive Sprigs

When people talk about extreme music, they usually mean something very loud, very abrasive or both. But Seductive Sprigs achieve white-knuckle intensity through compositional brilliance rather than brutal presentation. “The Next Stab,” from the local duo’s self-released two-song CD-R, is strangely mannered despite its laserlike focus. The lyrics describe a child sealing his playmate inside a cardboard box and “stabbing the box with scissors over and over and over and over and over again.” While you’d expect this horror story to be set to frenzied metal, the music, played on two clean-toned electric guitars, is closer to thorny modern classical. What’s more, the lyrics aren’t screamed or grunted, but intoned in an immaculate choral style. Onstage, the two musicians—Charlie Looker and Matthew Hough, both of whom sing—perform seated; they grimace in concentration but don’t otherwise emote.

Perhaps in acknowledgment of their music’s rigor, Seductive Sprigs dole it out in small doses. The ten-minute CD-R (available at myspace.com/seductivesprigs) is so dense that it practically deserves an intermission. “The Next Stab” lives up to its narrative, with the guitarists plucking a relentless series of off-kilter accents, while “The First Thing You Need to Do” features an a cappella section that’s calm but unnervingly exacting. The duo’s performances, which last about 20 minutes, are brain-bendingly potent—the persistent headiness can make you feel like the kid trapped in the cardboard box. But the purity of this band’s craft provides a unique visceral thrill.—Hank Shteamer