Unless we're talking about Gilgamesh or Faith No More's big hit single, the word "epic" should be given its denotative due and used sparingly. Still, it's hard to think of a better word to describe what mr. Gnome is after on its latest album, Madness in Miniature. The Cleveland-based duo (Nicole Barille on guitar and vocals and Sam Meister on drums) makes a big, knotty, righteous sound with a few parts. "House of Circles" moves from a breakbeat rhythm and Barille's disembodied vox to Black Mountain-esque levels of martial heaviness and whip-smart riffage. If the word "epic" is off the table, then words like "badass" will have to suffice.
GnomeTV: If the song "House of Circles" suggests its own little universe, it's nothing compared to the batshit video that mr. Gnome made for it — picture a green-screened steampunk fairy tale mixed with live-action anime, and you're a quarter of the way there.
