The 1987 is a study in comparative religion. It opens with a sample of a televangelist talking about hell. "Song of Songs" kicks things off. It's a more refined and almost pop-focused approach to the songwriting. Valor's vocals carry more of a purr and become more distinguished rather than jsut trying to fill the Rozz Williams void; Gitane is belting in the background. It's the most upbeat thing they have done up to this point, but still works within their identity. There is a weird new wave take on punk that I guess makes sense for 1987 when it comes to "Vanity". It feels less focused than the first song.
"Four Horsemen" finds them returning to the more languid, narcotic creep that unfolds in many of their more surreal moments. There is some great guitar playing on this album, and this song serves as an example of this fact, even if they bounce into the more quirky pogo hop , similar to what they did on the previous song here. I like the dramatic nature of his vocals here. They cover Jimi Hendrix's "1983," which shows you the influence of psychedelic music and highlights my previous statement about how great the guitar playing was on this album. The curveball they throw is having Gitane take the mic for this one. Not the best mix, but it is 1987, so not really holding the production under a fine-tooth comb. They jam this one out for ten minutes, upholding the vibe of the original.
"Omega Time' works at a more deliberate march to establish tension similar to a horror movie. It is a little more on their abstract side. "Ringing in their Ears' is more of a noisy interlude. "Golden Age" is a piano ballad that Gitane sings. An almost folky, normal moment before the samples come in to take things in a weird Swans direction. It builds into a choir. "Alpha Sunset" feels like something Psychic TV might do. "Spilt Blood" brings back the marching drum pattern. It's more of an interlude of sound than a song. "Raw War" tumbles out of this. It has a more deconstructed rock feel. She has grit to her belt.
"Reflections" is a long six minutes of experimental modern classical music, or so I'd say. They remember they are a rock band of sorts on "Jezebel's Tribulation," which might not be the darkest song on the album but it is well written and worked for the time it was released while holding up well enough today, though the guitar tones have not aged as well. The last song is darker and, unlike the previous song, has no Van Halen in it; the guitar being used here sits back in the mix. If you are tripping on Halloween and this song comes on, it might work, but it's more about a creepy soup of sound than a song you would return to otherwise. I will give this album an 8.5, an interesting listen but not one I would return to as often as the previous album, which has held up against the legacy better.
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