2014 7 Mai
Und hier das nächste opus magnum, das bald ein Klassiker sein wird, wie der Vorgänger, besonders zu empfehlen die Vinylausgabe, am besten spät abends hören, und sehr laut, weil diese Art des Epischen nichts für Anhänger des Tageslichts ist, die Pferde mit den Hufen scharren, die Liebe besungen wird wie lange nicht mehr, und Michael Gira seit “The Seer” in der Form seines Lebens ist: der mittelalte Mann und die Rockmusik – diese Spielart des Archaischen ist ein Fest, und auch ohne zartes Geklampfe erinnern wir uns gerne an „old true love“, an die Asche all unserer Lagerfeuerererlebnisse, die dunkel-flackernden Gesichter der Gegangenen, ohne Arg, ohne Falsch kommt diese rollende Woge (Roll & Surf) daher – zwischendurch das Gelächter, nicht von Meditierenden, vielmehr von einer verschworenenen Bande, und wer die Swans live sehen kann, schätze sich glücklich! Ladies and Gentlemen, dear aliens – es ist angerichtet!
von: Manafonistas Filed under: Blog | TB | 2 Comments
2 Comments
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Michael Engelbrecht:
Thank you, Anna Wilson, for this vertigo-inducing review:
„Swans’ previous album, 2012’s ‘The Seer’ (Spotlight feature), was monumental, a behemoth of bleakness and self-flagellation, a meditation on the sublime from which these songs were directly born.
A harsher parent is hard to imagine, but while its progeny hasn’t fallen far from the tree, ‘To Be Kind’ is altogether more colourful, an expansive record – fleshier, bloodier and lusciously psychedelic.
Where ‘The Seer’ gazed deep into the void, this sets its sights on the stars. It’s ‘kosmische musik’ in every sense, utilising the talents of several guest musicians, labelmate Cold Specks, previous collaborator Little Annie and the imperious St Vincent.
‘Screen Shot’ is a cyclical, insistent opening, hypnotic and distant. A sinister tribute to Howlin’ Wolf, ‘Just A Little Boy (For Chester Burnett)’, is Delta blues through a David Lynch filter: dirty, disconcerting and darkly feral.
The sickly, influenza-wheezing funk of ‘A Little God In My Hands’ (below) is a relative breeze at just over seven minutes. It’s a breather before ‘Bring The Sun’: an epic sonic baptism of shamanistic, trance-inducing, ‘Ummagumma’-era Pink Floyd instrumentation and cacophonous incantation.
The call-to-arms of ‘Toussaint L’Ouverture’, named after the Haitian revolutionary, is a brutal yet buoyant celebration, while the lean ‘Oxygen’ is super tight, a funk-based post-rock propulsion of big ballooning sound punctuated by brass. Later, ‘Nathalie Neal’ is a haunting mélange of vibraphones and spoken-word.
Frontman Michael Gira’s ever-abstract lyrics give plenty of room for interpretation throughout. Imagine Karlheinz Stockhausen’s jarring classicism, Captain Beefheart’s twisted blues, and the industrialism of Einstürzende Neubauten coalescing into a swirling musical miasma. Near perfection.“
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Michael Engelbrecht:
Experimental rockers Swans release another relentlessly punishing record in To Be Kind, blending noise-rock, funk grooves and long, jamming gothic rock into a cohesive and beautiful, if intimidating, sound. The record flies by, despite lasting over two hours, yet its length, and its noise passages and repletion-as-ideal riffs, will surely alienate many. For those who give it the chance it deserves, magic will be found. To Be Kind is a masterwork of the highest order, one of 2014’s finest releases, and a highlight from a 30-year-plus discography.