Gothtober - Nox Novacula : "Feed the Fire"

 During this month, I dig into every corner of every subgenre. I am more active in hunting down death rock since that is my favorite goth subgenre. In doing so I always stumble over a variation of what is going on here. This band is one of the more noticeable names in the current wave of death rock, though it sounds more like early Siouxsie. There is a punk energy to things tempered with a darker groove. This band has nailed the authentic sound, but it feels like once they are hooked in a riff they do not want to ease off and allow themselves to take this in their own direction, as if they will lose what they have captured here. The result is something that sounds good but is not all that original. 

They give "Flood' a little more room to breathe which works well. More of an electronic pulse thumps under the song. More of a post-punk tension possesses the tension riff that is the backbone of "No Forgiveness" . They are more relaxed, without reaching the Cure level of ambiance on "Stay".  "Wolves" is a little catchier but all the songs are beginning to run together. The vocals have a set way of doing things that does not stray far from being a Siouxsie imitation. This could account for all the albums beginning to sound the same. 

"Cursed" charges in heavier. The bass line takes on the kind of deliberate thump you expect from this sort of thing, with the drum laying into the floor toms to add to the stomp. The last song finds them getting even more aggressive, which works well enough though it feels like this album can't run off sheer energy alone and needed a little more hook in terms of the vocal melody. While their singer does everything to fit into the template of what works for a band like this, the factor that would make them a great band rather than just your standard 2024 take on death rock would have been to think out of the box more and create melodies that would have made me want to give this repeat listens. However, my gentle reader, you might not have grown up listening to Cristian Death in high school and everything sounds new to your virgin ears, in that case, it might be more impressive to you.  I think an 8 is generous in terms of originality but fitting for execution. This was released on Artofact Records.

pst477