Cougar Microbes

Two years after the release of their smash-and-grab debut Crystal Castles resurfaced in 2010. By naming this follow up ‘Crystal Castles‘ as well the duo were inevitably going to draw comparisons but the good news is that CC (II) cranks up on everything its predecessor offered. Better still the Canadian band succeeded in creating a record which is as good as, if not better than, their first release. 

Despite embodying a “fuck off” attitude the duo can’t help themselves when it comes to planting lingering melodies. Under a barrage of Gameboy sounds Alice Glass sounds ferocious and yet her unique star quality is evident even at times when her voice manipulation is pushed to the max.

Back in May Cougar Microbes caught the band live in London which brought Zuri to exclaim:

“Crystal Castles might play a dance based, retro-futuristic 8 bit version of noise music, but make no mistake: this is a hard-boiled punk band through and through.”

TRACKS:

Next: #19 Cougar Microbes Top Albums of 2010: Frightened Rabbit: The Winter Of Mixed Drinks

Postponed due to Icelandic volcano activity, fans were put on tenterhooks in anticipation of the Crystal Castles‘ live appearance at London‘s Heaven on 19th June. And their fans are very die-hard, to put it mildly, piling up as close to the stage as possible two hours before the set began as if waiting for the messiah.

The MESSIAH crawled on stage on all fours with a savage expression on her face; part woman, part beast, part machine. Disciplined by the stern beats of ‘Fainting Spells‘, the opener from the Castles‘ self-titled second album, the creature arose to euphoric applause and started to thrash about like a harpooned shark. It was Alice Glass, the humanoid CC singer – would she dive into the crowd despite plenty of frictions with bouncers and broken up gigs in the past?

It’s fair to say that Alice spent more time crowd surfing than she did on stage. The crowd were grateful, passing her around and holding her up like the female Iggy Pop incarnation that she was. Producer and synth player Ethan Kath is the glue that prevents it all from falling apart, motionlessly hunching over his synthesisers and exercising a somewhat sinister authority over the proceedings.

Crystal Castles might play a dance based, retro-futuristic 8 bit version of noise music, but make no mistake: this is a hard-boiled punk band through and through. Coupled with their epilepsy-inducing lightshow, the manner in which they thrash through material such as the mighty ‘Crimewave‘ or the more Ladytronesque ‘Celestica‘ is of such intensity this author can only imagine it’s like a Stooges gig circa 1970.

Ultimately, Alice Glass‘s not-of-this-earth stage persona is a wonderful testimony to the power of human expression. Catch them live if you can!

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Guest post by the enthused Zuri Zurowski

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TRACKS:

Crystal Castles – Celestica

At her slaytanic majesty’s request, the new Slayer album is finally out. Many bands have attempted to play faster – usually to comedic effect – but when it comes to sheer heaviness, finesse and relentless single-mindedness, Slayer remain the true destructors.

‘World Painted Blood’ lives off the tension between raving chaos and the most rigid discipline. On breakbone thrash tracks such as ‘Psychopathic Red’ or straight-up hardcore punkers like ‘Snuff’, the band toe the party line by offering a roller-coaster ride through arbitrary tempo changes and precise metallic sculptures, once again reaffirming their status as the devil’s prime musical architects. Elsewhere, there are ‘Seasons In The Abyss’ style hints at melody – just enough to add some subdued Sabbath spookiness, but not enough to repel Slayer fundamentalists.

Ever since Slayer’s inception, rumours were that the band held right-wing sentiments. ‘Americon’, a monolithic mid-tempo grinder, is a lyrically basic if heartfelt attack on US imperialism that sets the record straight.

‘World Painted Blood‘ may not touch Slayer’s classic thrash trilogy (‘Reign In Blood’, ‘South Of Heaven’, ‘Seasons In The Abyss’), but after 26 years in the biz, the four Californian horsemen of the apocalypse have effortlessly created the best metal album of the year – as if to show the new blood how it’s done just before the new decade rolls in.

Not only are Slayer arguably the metal genre’s most extreme proposition – they also count among the greatest rock outfits of all time. ‘World Painted Blood’ is further testament to their majestic credentials.

TRACK:

Slayer – Americon

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Guest post by the elusive and talented Zuri Z.

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