HEALTH : 'Conflict DLC"

 

Opening with "Ordinary Loss" they tap into their balance of vulnerability and hammering industrial march, though with much more space given to the vocals that sit more forward in the mix for something that is not as dark as we have heard from these guys in the past, despite the barrage of metallic guitar. Lyrically, it expresses the same desperate and deprecating sentiments. 'Burn the Candles" might take a few listens for it to grow on me. While it works off a very high-energy propulsion beat-wise, there is a little more hope than I am used to hearing from them. The vocals sit back into the wall of sound a little more on the chorus, which is weird for them. It modulates into a pretty awesome groove. 

"Vibe Cop" was the lead single, which works off a familiar formula. His androgynous vocals haunt from within the cogs of the industrial machine churning forward. The pulse of "Trash Decade" is more along the lines of what long-time fans expect from these guys. Lyrically, it is also one of the album's stronger songs so far. "Anidote" is a sign of positive change, while it is written more like a pop song is finds them digging into deeper melodies and giving themselves the sonic space to do so. The songs fall within the accessible three-minute range. I think if they were going to break into the mainstream, it would have been before they were 6 albums into their career. But it should secure them as a more noted name in the circles they traverse. There is a subtle hook in "DARKAGE" that works wonders. 

'Shred Envy" is not about shredding guitar, but rather wishing he had never been born. There are plenty of crunch guitars and screaming mixed into the background. "You Died" has an interesting, almost witch house beat to it. The vocals sit in a more subtle place, with the lyrics cutting through to deliver their lamentations of heartbreak in the big city. There is a pop sensibility to it without selling out. "Thought Leader" finds them taking you down the sad boy path that works so well. The guitar sound is tweaked a bit on this album. I think staying on tour has played in their favor as a band. 

"Don't Kill Yourself" is another really emotionally powerful song, despite their knack for sounding disassociated from their emotional turmoil; the self-loathing is dialed up even from the outside looking in. They sound more like a band than they look like a band that might struggle with gender identity. The haint ones body feels very in line with this. There is almsot a more Depeche Mode feel to the last song. I will give this album a 10 and see how it grows on me, some of the production choices have to grow on me but they give me eno.ugh darkness to hit the place I want from them, which is somewhere in the sweet dystopian sound of self-loathing.  It is out on December 11th on Lorna Vista.

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Chelsea Wolfe : " She Reaches Out To She Reaches Out To She"

 

Wolfe's 8th album, yes we are counting "Mistake in Parting" finds her diving into more of a trip-hop feel. That is trip-hop that is thicker on the trip than the hop. Tv on the Radio guitarist Dave Sitek is the wild card in the creation of this album. It opens with  "Whispers in the Echo Chamber", which is less of a surprise than the tempo drive to "House of Self Undoing". This gives it more of a 90s feel like recall bands like Curve. "Everything Turns Blue" was also released ahead of the album, so it was less than a surprise as well. Her voice is front and center, and it is yet another song that is bound to draw comparisons to Portishead. 

The most conventional approach to songwriting she takes thus far can be heard in "The Luminal". It holds a steady groove, and melodic hook without descending into the kind of murky ambiance that is this album's calling card. Both choices are equally effective here. Things do not get really experimental until "Eyes Like Nightshade". Her fragile vocals drift over an assortment of sounds that might even feel avant-garde on a Bjork album. This is a purposefully disjointed excursion into playing with sounds. One that might even have to grow on me, though I appreciate her willingness to experiment.   

A song like "Salt' resonates with me more, as the vocal melody is solid enough to warrant a more minimalist accompaniment. There remains a languid desperation in her voice that really sells me on it. I really like the exotic grandiosity of "Unseen World" that really grabs you. She wanders off into an almost Tori Amos-like balladry for "Place in the Sun". The album closes with "Dusk" which she released back in September. It's a great song that needed a second to listen to fully click, though the guitar solos at the end are cool. 

This album flows with her body of work. Nothing feels out of her wheelhouse. It is going to take a few listens for the more experimental moments to really click with me, but the moods she invokes are once again welcome. I will round this up to a 10, I foresee it getting a great deal of play from me, and have already sat with the lead singles for some time, so none of this was a surprise except for the deeper cuts. 

 

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HEALTH : "RAT WARS"

 While searching for this album online today I saw a comment on Reddit that described it as 'The Downward Spiral" for people with two monitors, which made me laugh. I heard the bulk of these songs as they were released, and hearing the band's full vision unfolded in this manner is even better. The album opens with "DEMIGODS" which is both more melodically atmospheric and heavier than previous releases, with a bit of a synth wave vibe haunting it. The metallic guitar has more drive than what we have heard from these guys. There is a more deliberately industrial beat that drives "FUTURE OF HELL".  Jake Duzsik's trademark androgynous coo, hovers around the music, as it has typically done with Demi Lovato producer Stint giving the vocals more attention than they received from past releases. 

The groove of the synth propelling "HATEFUL" works really well to create an ambiance that is both tense and explosive. "OF ALL ELSE'" works off of a throb that is similar to that of the previous song. The vocals are mixed further in the background. Its experimental drone is the first weak spot we have heard from them in some time, though it still makes for interesting listening. The dynamic guitar forward "CRACK METAL" has a more manic underpinning. "UNLOVED" moves in a darker direction that is shrouded in steamy synths,. The detached mood the vocals convey is more pronounced here. It makes things feel like a metal version of the Pet Shop Boys. 

"CHILDREN OF SORROW" has an absolute ripper of a riff that kicks the song into motion. "Sicko" is even more crushing as they collaborate with Godflesh. "ASHAMED" is the album's poppiest moment, but also a perfectly crafted song that makes the pop sensibilities their strength. 'DSM-V" taps into the despondency reflected back into society as the lyrics take the familiar turn into their typical sardonic musing in this regard. The album closes with the closest I have heard them come to dipping into a ballad. This time it makes me think of Placebo. I will round this up to a 10, as there are some elements of the more ambient portions like "OFF ALL ELSE" that feel more like interludes which I can see growing on me, but everything else is the refinement of perfection. This album is out on Lorna Vista.