Thursday, September 22, 2011

Total Control // Henge Beat


One of my favorite rock albums to be released in the past decade is Eddy Current Suppression Ring's Primary Colours. It's a feisty piece of Aussie garage rock, with tinny guitar licks and warm bass grooves. This incredible guitar sound is what got Mikey Young behind the mixer of the latest UV Race album, Homo. This collaboration didn't end with release of Homo. Instead, Mikey Young and UV Race's Daniel Stewart and Alistair Montfort collaborated along with bassist Zephyr Peavy and drummer James Vinciguerra (The Collapse, AIDs) to form Total Control.

Henge Beat is a definite change in pace from the garage rock sound attributed to Eddy Current Suppression Ring and UV Race. This record combines elements of No Wave greats like Suicide and Theoretical Girls with Post Punkers like Joy Division. Henge Beat jumps to a quick start with "Carpet Rash," where the garage rock tendencies of previous releases are still apparent. Stewart stumbles through the vocal track until Young unleashes a guitar riff that could have been taken straight from an Eddy Current record. Total Control's new-wave feel isn't apparent until the drum machine driven second track, "The Hammer," where Young trades his signature guitar riffs for spacey synth leads.

"Meds II" is an eerie story that creeps through one's dependence on, of course, meds. The degree of repetition used on this track creates a level of anxiety that is suddenly appeased when it explodes with feedback, soaring guitars, and buzzing synthesizers. Stewart's vocal preformance on "Retiree" reminds me of Ice Age's much loved debut, New Brigade. "See More Glass" contains a synth line so ominous, you would swear it was produced by Martin Rev himself. It begins to build as additional synth and guitar lines are added but is suddenly cut off by the minimal electronic beat of "Shame Thugs." "Stonehenge" is a self-contained rocker that boils with energy and leads to this album's swan song, "Sunday Baker," which, strangely enough, is another minimal electronic beat. This one, however, is a bit more developed than "Shame Thugs," and leaves the listener in a dream-like state.

Henge Beat is a very diverse record. It contains bits of new-wave, garage rock, punk, minimal electro, and even no-wave. There is something here for everyone. It's fun and upbeat one second, then dark and dreary the next. Henge Beat seems to end on a somewhat sudden note, leaving the listener disoriented, yet yearning for more.

Highly Recommended.

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