Author&Punisher : " Women & Children"

O.k... with no time to grow on me and fresh out of a nap I decided the most jarring way to review this new Author&Punisher is just in real time as I hear it like a virgin for the very first time. This is Tristan Shone's fifth album as the one man industrial monolith, I can say from the first song , the albums title track that his sense of dynamics and song writing have improved , this one moves at the speed of explosive hot lava that is melting a robot invasion. Big robots like the kind coming in Pacific Rim, doom for the Decepticon's. Did I even spell that write I'm not a Transformers fan but the dino-bots were kinda cool and I think they would dig this album. Where the first song kinda brought to mind Ministry's cover of Lay Lady Lay, "In Remorse: at first recalls Skinny Puppy's more melodic moments before crashing down on planet cyber-sludge.

From what I'm hearing so far in the first two songs, a lot of my gripes about the first album are being cleared up, there's more melody and dynamic without sacrificing the mechanical crushing, who said electronic music has to be for pussies. Where a lot of industrial tends to fall into two big holes, they are either a metal band with a drum machine or a electronic band playing guitar hero metal karaoke, this is legit futuristic robotics in the chaos of action.

the vocals are the biggest improvement and here is a sure way to win me over or turn me off, I like variety, here there's what could constitute as real singing, at least on par with Justin Broadrick, but there is still moments the more distorted harsher tones emerge, on "Melee" the song structure changes and wanders off from the build to even more crushing pattern he tends to establish. This album works well when I listen to it while watching the "Maniac" remake with the sound off...yes they re-made it, it stars Elijah Wood.

The dark melodic nature of "Tame as a Lion" comes from a place almost like Final Cut- era Pink Floyd before the robots get possessed and sound sorta like David Vincent. So think Pink Floyd meets the more robotic elements of Morbid Angel. "Fearce" most closely reminds me of the previous album. The fuzzed out machine punches and chants return for revenge, though it's syncopation is more varied rhythmically, and less monotonous, even when Shore is in the process of pounding the point home. This album is more richly layered, and goes to darker depths while still being less claustrophobic than the last, I don't maybe I'm just in a better head space to receive this one with open ears.

"Miles From Home" begins more like something from the Tron sound track, layers of Tangerine Dream like synths. This drones on for the first three minutes, the beat slowly rumble up from its cosmic slumber beneath it, this dies down like the foreboding of a horror soundtrack and leaves room for vocals to call out from a worm hole of reverb. While I like this one its the most obvious filler interlude considering the caliber of the other songs he has been throwing at us thus far.

On the last song we wind back down into Pink Floyd's zip code with morose crooning over piano that begins to build until its takes goes to take a more sinister turn and he fakes a left turn back into the piano ballad. The pay off for this one is in the last minute when the heavy comes back leading up to this something about the melody reminds me of Neurosis. So all and all I'm pretty pleased with Mr. Shore on this one I'll round it up to a 9 because I'm not totally awake yet and have only one cup of coffee in me at four thirty but the two songs which felt more like filler the last two actually still had some cool moments and sounds I just think they dont stand up to the other songs on the album but are still interesting and might need time to grow on me.