On Dancing with the Devil, Vienna-based collective Small Souki & The Big Trouble Band, formed in 2021, deliver a dark, theatrical and deeply atmospheric experimental rock album. Grunge, post-punk, psychedelia, jazz, folk and spoken word coexist in music that resists easy categorisation and seeks to envelop the listener.
The album opens with “Stadtpark”, which begins with a subdued grunge sound before quickly drifting into darker post-punk territory. Ethereal, highly theatrical vocals float over dense instrumentation, creating an almost claustrophobic feeling: rather than observing the song from the outside, you find yourself trapped within it. The atmosphere complements lyrics dealing with urban decay, collective guilt and environmental collapse.
The post-punk influence is even more evident on “Q.O.S.”, short for “Queen of Sadness”. The vocals take on a ghostly quality, while an insistent, repetitive rhythm section conveys the emotional anxiety running through the lyrics. Subtle guitar accents add a touch of twang and an almost jazz-like fluidity.
“Whale (A Journey Through the Mediterranean Sea)” is arguably where the band’s experimental instincts come through most clearly. Its dreamlike opening places the instruments and synthesiser in the foreground. At times, the combination of vocals, violin and theatrical intensity recalls Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, particularly Warren Ellis’s expressive approach. The song unfolds through successive crescendos, as the violin heightens its mournful character and the vocals gradually shed their ethereal fragility to become darker, more menacing and increasingly furious.
“Masturbation Song” is pure sonic theatre, with echoes of Siouxsie at her darkest. Its slow pulse evokes the tension of a crime novel, while voices, silences and layered instrumentation transform insomnia and compulsion into a dramatic scene. The violin propels the finale towards an apocalyptic climax.
The fourteen-minute “Satan” encapsulates the album’s ambition. After a long instrumental introduction coloured by folk nuances, the track moves through spoken word, post-punk, psychedelia and experimental rock, interspersed with moments of jazz-inflected calm.
More than a collection of songs, Dancing with the Devil traces a journey through different shades of darkness: social, political and personal. It is a demanding, unpredictable and visceral record that makes experimentation a vehicle for unease, confrontation and critical reflection.
Find Small Souki & The Big Trouble Band on YouTube | Bandcamp