I made the mistake of going into this album thinking I knew what to expect. The mix is what caught me off guard as it has all the elements you expect Steven Austin to use, but he bizarrely arranges these sounds that make me think of the Butthole Surfers, even amid the clanging of the almost industrial manner. The eerie calm of the vocals makes it creepier. "I Got Nothin" is driven by a synth, with whispered vocals coasting over the static pulse. The chorus finds things to get into a more aggressive feeling.
The oddly angular "Intentional Psychological Warfare" finds his harsher vocals collide with a narrative that reflects on how a car wreck changed his life. The guitar splits the difference and goes with an 80s punk feel. It all comes together to make sense of this chaos. Title track jangles like something King Missloe might have done in the 90s, but is attacked by layers of Austin's more scathing vocal assaults. I have grown warmer to horns, if they are used in dark music, and Mac Gollehon, who once played for David Bowie, makes a stronger argument for them, as things unwind with fiendish dissonance on "Secret Police".
His more spoken vocal approach led the way into "Psychic Wound" before the more psychotically snarled vocals come in for the chorus. This song works for what it is, but so far is the first song that might need to grow on me a bit, pretty strong start considering we are now six songs into the album. More frantic drumming drives the sonic exploration that is "The Choice is Yours." It is one of the album's more metallic moments when it comes together.
"Pain and Frustration" finds an out-of-key piano clashing against drums and electronic oddities that are haunting the background. It's a much more convincing picture of mental illness than what other bands like to toy with, as his demons come sneering out of the mirror at him on this one. It builds into a heavier dynamic that is executed with unconventional instrumentation. The album closes with "The Cleansing," a song that finds the drone of a simple yet hypnotic guitar pattern as the perfect accompaniment to his suicidal musings. I will give this album a 9.5, as it's going to take time to grow on me since I went in expecting over heaviness and came away with introspective heaviness. But I like depressing music so this album will win me over.It drops on October 3rd
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