Horror Vacui : "Shadows Sanctuary"

 

This marks the third time I have reviewed these guys. I appreciate their dark take on punk that flirts with deathrock. They move further in that direction on this album. The vocals are more muted and more of an angular groove forming rather than just bashing out the chords, with some reverb lacing the chords. The less refined punk elements is the factor that has kep the band hovering around an 8 every time I rate one of their albums. The first song brings more promise. The more post-punk turn on "Writing on the Wall". I had to dig back into this dive back in at 'Midnight". The vocals have improved on this album but are not the band's strength; the bass playing is. 

Their drummer is also on point as the tribal beat that opens "Skyless Eyes" compensates for when the vocals kind of wander off into an Iggy Pop-like ranting, though I do like the more aggressive punk touches that come in. Their take on post-punk becomes more upbeat on  "A Sunny Day". The vocals remain almost as brooding despite this. They are more powerful and less pitchy than they used to be, which aids in my enjoyment of the album.  'Even tide " has a more melancholic atmosphere to the guitars that is not unlike the Cure, though the vocals are not as introspective or emotive. 

The pace picks back up for "Another Sleepless Night"; the drums and bass are locked in to bring a thundering feel behind the post-punk tension that gives a little more of a Killing Joke feel. The tones shift to a darker mood for the title track. He proves himself capable of being a more dynamic singer not only on this song, but on this album as a whole, which is the piece that needed tweaking earlier in their careers. I will give this a 9; it gets them to where they need to be and is their most enjoyable release so far.Released on Artoffact Records.

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Horror Vacui : " New Wave of Fear"

This was released April 15 with little buzz. I guess the death rock revival is not getting much hipster press these days and going back underground where it belongs. Fine with me as the music is better for it if judging by the opening track of this band from Italy's new album. The guitar tone lightens into a shade of gray on the title track. The vocals are really showing the most improvement moving down into almost a Sister's of Mercy like croon. The guitar mix is a little murky like the effects could stand to be slightly compressed. "Forward" finds the guitar riffs beginning to get a little uniform, thankfully they switch it up when the vocals come in . "We Are The Ones" finds the guitar tone continuing to makes things bleed together. I think they needed to spend a little more time with giving things space in the mix when it comes to post- production. Things are beginning to get a little monochrome in their dynamic flatness.

There is a little bit of a darker groove to "On the Other Side". Tempo wise it pretty much falls in line with the rest of the album up to this point. :Behind" gets a little more aggressive , but aside from that doesn't really stand out from the other song and races long the same panic pace of the others. Its the increased growled grit of the vocals that makes this stand out more than the guitar. The bass coming up in the mix helps "Don't Dance With Me". If these songs gave themselves more room to expand and contract the melodic touches that are buried under the wall of redundant guitar might work better. The vocals remind me a little more of Iggy Pop on this song.

The effects on the vocals at the beginning of "Upside Down" work really well and display what this album could have been if more attention to detail had been given in the production end. They do have more atmosphere on this song, though drone a little more. I'll round this down to an 8, because it's a mixed bag. I think the songs work more often than not, but the sound is not really dialed in and it could use more clarity in the mix . Live I can see how if this is as good as it gets mix wise then it would be a loud punk blur.


 

Horror Vacui: "Return of the Empire"

Here's the new one from some favorites of the death rock revival. it's a step forward from their first album.The guitar sounds is an improvement as is the over all sound quality. The one reason this band from Italy band never stuck with me was the vocals . I have been listening to more punk in recent years so perhaps it won't be as much of a turn off, but by the opening song/ title track I can tell he has improved to the point of being acceptable. Little more death rock in approach, it all is coated in early 80's with a solid dash of rock to it. "5000" finds the guitars hitting the perfect balance between the Cure and a harder rock sound... I suppose like the Cult.

 The harder drive to this album and the depth of song writing that still has teeth to it, is a welcome relief as this whole post punk resurgence has been heavy handed on the whole Joy Division thing, and though I love Ian and the boys, it's nice to get good and gothy up in here with some vampiric horror punk that's overly Misfits either. The singers voice still holds some of it's bite when he barks out some of the choruses. The bass is right where it should be on an album of this ilk. It's not unlike "Time" that they step back into the sound I normally associate with them. The maturity to use restraint in order to form lush melodies is where the band has grown "Til the Last Drop" is evidence of that. The Cure like single note guitar lines and the heavily effect tone of the guitar help set this in motion. Sometimes this is made creepier than other moments, a nice fiendish tone is set for "Light of Darkness" and then they race off with it at a punk pace.This almost comes across sounding like the Dead Kennedys.

By 'Screen of Infamy" the band has begun to descend back into the more punk sound of their earlier work.They regain a little of the more subtle touch on "Opus Tenebris"."Desperate Adelia" carries a similar pace, though the guitar hook haunts you a little longer.the punk momentum does barrel the album ahead of it's self missing opportunities to show the finely tuned ears for song writing they previously showed us. Most of these are compressed into the standard just over three minute range. They touch on the more Bauhaus flavor of jerky punk on "Underworld" that also had the darker Idiot era Iggy feel to it.

"The Fall of the Empire" is the first taste of the ian curtis influence. This also feels more like a clash of death-rock with hardcore, but the more monotone tension to the vocals gives it the more Curtis like feel, though spat with hardcore aggression.

I'll round this  album up to an 8 which is the highest recognition this band has gotten from me, they are now poised to hold their own with the likes of Bellicose Minds and have really come into their own as a band, but still carry some rough punk sloppiness that allows the momentum of what they do to send them running faster down hill than their legs can keep up with.
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