Lustmord Lombardo : "The Pulse of Atoms"

 

Dave Lombardo is one of my favorite drummers. Lustmord is the other side of this equation, as someone I respect, since he has worked with some of my favorite artists. Granted, he has always added experimental ambiance to those collaborations. This one is no different in that regard. Post-Slayer, Lombardo has been more experimental, or he has played punk, too, at the extremes of sonics. This album lies at the fringe of experimentation. When the label sent me tis I told them not to expect a quick turnaround, as I knew it would be something I  would have to have a stoned rainy day to listen to. I knew it would push the limits of my sound vs. song rule, as this is all sound. The opening track finds Lombardo's contribution very limited. Not even like he is warming up. 

This is referred to as industrial music; it is in the Coil sense, though even more ambient and less song-focused than that. There are more percussive elements in the second track than the third, but not by a great deal. Is it enough to take up 9 minutes of time is the next question that begs to be asked here. The answer was not really, but it was better than the first track. I was watching Hammer Studios' "Frankenstein and the Monster From Hell" while this played in the background, and it helped the movie's mood greatly. Three tracks in, we get a burst of actual drumming from Lombardo. 

The fourth track is most likea song thanks to the krautrock synths that come in. It saves it from being a formless void of sound." The Desolate Shore' is the most fitting song title on this album. In fact, it describes how most of the songs made me feel; Lombardo's drumming slowly appears on this one. Jazzy flourishes. It does find a syncopation that begins to establish more structure.  The "Emergence" portion of the Desolate Shore sags sounds like a foghorn is being blown as someone walks up stairs in the distance. Things crash, cymbals ring out; creepy sounds are made. Is there a reason for the last song, "the Abyssal Deep," to be drawn out for a ten-minute drone? Only for the sake of drone alone. Lombardo's cpntributions couldd have been boiled down into three three-minute songs; better EP than album I will give it a 7. 

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