Atlanta trio SATMC is more than a band, it is a seance that conjures and exorcises all forms of possession when you are under their spell. It has been a happening that, for some years now, has stalked every punk house, dive bar, and witch hut hidden throughout this American geography like the knowing ghost of humanity waiting to see its reflection in you.

In light of their sophomore release, So Happy, It's Sad, Spirits and The Melchizedek Children (SATMC) earned the designation of being the "Southern Sigur Rós" from AV Club. Their Daytrotter performance from a juggernaut tour in support of So Happy gained enough traction to boot The National from the top spot of Daytrotter's most listened to sessions.

In their third full-length offering, Idiopathic and Essential, SATMC pick up where they left off without looking back. Recorded in one full take with minimal overdubs in a (reputedly haunted) tobacco factory in Winston Salem, NC, Idiopathic achieves something unique for any modern musical outfit -a seamless balancing act between unmitigated extremes of clairvoyant knowing, and sheer terror, whispered secrets and raging torrents of swan song epiphanies. This is not music for the faint of heart -it is a sonic baptism staged at the base of Niagara Falls.

Replete with a sense of dynamism and tonal sorcery that would make any die-hard Smashing Pumpkins fan forget all about their infinite sadness, bassist Nathan Sadler, drummer Bryan Fielden (Tortoise, Peter Buck), and ex-missionary turned punk rock prophet, Jason Elliott (vocals, guitar, arrangements) prove that there is still potential in the tried and true formula of power trios in amplified music. Through the help of endorsements from BLK TRI pickups, CnC Drums, and Black Arts Tone Works pedals, and a solid 2 years of touring this record as an uninterrupted suite, SATMC offer Idiopathic as a mirror for gazing far beyond the veil, and straight through the bullshit.

-Greg Bortnichak, Olympia, WA, 2016