Echo Park’s Nick Koenigs, songwriter/guitarist/vocalist for biker-psych trio Daughters of the Sun, has gathered all his excess roadside imagery into a familiar but more minimalist side project under the alias Filthy Huns. Last month, Filthy Huns released their second full-length Leopard on My Right, the title presumably a reference to the Doors lyric.
While Daughters of the Sun’s tracks tend toward the slow-burning and bombastic, the Filthy Huns record is self-described “kickin dust” music, presenting a grittier, more pared-down approach to psychedelia. On “Ancient Hell”, Koenigs has culled the power of sparsity to produce a harsh impact. The track starts out with a steady, booming drum machine beat that provides the backbone for a subtle electric drone, a mean guitar riff, and the occasional jangle of another guitar. Koenigs’ voice swims among these sounds, lingering around the same note with plenty of delay. It’s difficult to make out the drawn-out lyrics through all the heated reverb—they become a mirage in the midst of the bare-bones rock anthem. Filthy Huns does desolation well.
Leopard on My Right is out now on cassette via Not Not Fun.
