YOUNG GOD

This is hard, heavy and sludgy all the way through. The same thing that you would expect to hear from early Swans music. There isn't any let up in it's heaviness. It is very primitive sounding and repetitive. Many consider it industrial and that is a good way to describe it, but don't expect a fast beat, it is more like a churning industrial noise more than anything. Even though it might be slightly more experimental than some of the albums the Swans released early in their career, it is still that harsh sound. The first track, "I Crawled" is probably the best of the 4 tracks on this 24 minute EP, and it shows a lot of promise as to prog tendencies, but other than that, it is not much in the way of being progressive. Swans later releases will adopt more progressive elements as time goes on, but don't look for them here.

Some people might find it interesting that Kurt Cobain considered this E.P. his fiftieth most favorite album ever, even though he called the album "Raping a Slave" after the 2nd track. The album has also been known as "I Crawled", but the band refers to it as "Young God" so that is considered the official title.

If you do like the dark, depressive sound of Swans earlier music, then this is a must have. The E.P. itself may not be available now because it was eventually combined with the album "Cop". The overall sound is the same as that album and also "Filth" but slightly more experimental. It has been considered the most brutal of all of their releases. I personally find it easier to listen to it in the E.P. format because it is so harsh and repetitive. It's easier to take early Swans material in smaller doses like this.

Because of the inclusion of this album on the re-issue of "God", it is now only an album that will interest collectors and fans. For that reason I give it 2 stars.