Whatever else you can say about them,
SAVAK are a band who are willing to do the work. They formed in 2015, and 2022's
Human Error/Human Delight is their fifth full-length release. In an era where it's not at all unusual for bands to go three or four years between albums, that suggests they have a pretty impressive degree of hustle in them. The group didn't even let a little thing like a global pandemic stop them, and
Human Error/Human Delight was written and recorded while the members --
Sohrab Habibion on vocals, guitars, and percussion; Michael Jaworski on vocals, guitars, bass, keys, and percussion;
Matt Schulz on drums and percussion; and no fewer than six ringers playing bass -- could only communicate via Zoom. Despite the physical distance,
SAVAK sound tight and unified on this album. While they've maintained their core strengths (the edgy back-and-forth between
Habibion's and Jaworski's guitars and the lean, muscular force of the rhythms), they've been growing as songwriters, and
Human Error/Human Delight feels tuneful and engaging in fresh new ways for this band. "My Book on Siblings" and "Baltimore Moon" reflect what
SAVAK have always done well, and the bleating sax on "Set Apart" adds a touch of no wave skronk that's made to order for them. At the same time, there's a poppy energy to "Empathy" and "Trashing the Ghost" that infuses some expressive jangle into their sound, the
Neil Young-influenced guitar and sweetly mournful harmonies on "Dealers" suggest somebody's been listening to their old
Buffalo Springfield records, and "Dumbiance" and "Oddsmaker" show they've learned how to turn down their amps and let dynamics add welcome tension to the songs.
Geoff Sanoff's production and mix are clear and forceful without sounding heavy-handed, and make this sound like the work of a band with a sense of unity and purpose, even if they were all in different places as they were recording.
SAVAK know how to work hard under difficult conditions, and in this case it's paid off --
Human Error/Human Delight is their most solid and effective album to date. ~ Mark Deming