CONTRASTATE

— First review of this album —

A spooky dream-like electronic recording which conjures up images of ghosts fleeting in and out between trees in a dead, dark, leafless forest.

'I Just Am' is the huge 17 minute opener - replete with drones, squeaks and an all permeating bleakness. Feelings of impending doom increase throughout this track, particularly after 12 minutes when some semblance of tune appears using bass tones and manipulated elongated stretches of vocals. Oriental strings appear towards the conclusion but are hugely reverbed and electronically treated.

'Invocation To The Rite Of Birth' introduces spoken vocals over a bass drum. It sounds like the bloke's trying to convey a serious message, but I haven't got a clue what he's on about. And that's despite it being recited in perfect English. No matter, this track is superb in it's execution. Like a coiled spring pulled back to snapping point. Industrial bangs and swirling keyboards add to the atmosphere as deep 'Zoviet France-like' droning vocals encompass the recording. A beautiful tune slowly emerges from the gloom, making this the highlight of 'i'.

A ridiculous high pitched mediaeval vocal materialises on 'The Rite Of Birth', which will have you shaking your head in bewilderment. It is quickly joined by deeper vocals all of which sing about some sort of Biblical event. God knows what... A strange glossolalia develops with multiple voices singing at high speed on this entirely vocal track. It's bizarre to say the least.

'Locked Inside A Dying Horse' gets back to the drone-like overall feel of the album. Incredibly dark and somewhat unsettling. This sounds like it was recorded in a deep, dark cave somewhere in Scotland, with water dripping down the walls. One thing's for sure - if nothing else 'Contrastate' knew how to create dark atmospherics.

The cd only track 'October Dawn' continues in this vein but with the welcome return of those oriental strings. This sounds uncannily like 'Zoviet France' circa 1989.

The dreamiest (or dreariest) is left for last with the instrumental 'Black December'. Comparisons could be made with 'Lull' circa 1994. Solely comprised of keyboards, it is played in the darkest of manner, with groans that sound like a huge castle draw-bridge being brought up and down.

An excellent dark and foreboding recording, with that definite 'Contrastate' approach. As is usual with the 'Tesco Functional' label the quality is high, being crisp and clear throughout.

It's a good thing this was released on cd as it begins off very quietly for the first 10 minutes. If released 5 years earlier on vinyl I think I would have grabbed it from the turntable and snapped it in two, in one of my tantrums due to the clicks and pops.

What we've got here is more dark, sultry ambience from this English band who have just recently released their first album in 13 years. 'Throwing Out The Baby With The Bathwater' has been excellently produced and engineered. Great CD music.

There's not much in the way of traditional instruments used - in fact none whatsoever bar a few guitar chords towards the end of 'The End of History'. There are plenty of whines and elongated groans, interspersed with bloops and gurglings from what may be damaged minds. Contrastate have a hard to replicate feeling of ominous dread, especially when those monotonous baritone vocals start spouting out about how bad everything is.

There are lots of backward looped effects on this album which creates an effect of wooziness if you've been drinking gin (like I have).

'Extinction' literally sounds like the destruction of the Spanish Armada in 1588 under the Duke of Medina. Sounds of snapping timber, waves and groans create a vision of something awful going down.

'Altering The Circumstances Of Human Life' thumps out some deepest coal mine throbs while high pitched voices screech away in the background. Some lyrics emerge from Jonathan Grieve who sounds seriously pissed off with life the Universe and everything before the album quickly fades and dies.

It's pretty good, atmospheric, but not brilliant.

It's always good to see more experimental recordings represented in the Archives. Anything that's different and unusual I'll gladly give a go.

'A Live Coal Under the Ashes' - if truth be told, is one of those albums that doesn't belong here in the Archives at all. Like all their recordings there is a lot of lurking fear and spooky shadows executed in the most British of manner. Talking of 'Lurking Fear' - this would be ideal to read HP Lovecraft to.

The great thing about 'Contrastate' was that they had an entirely unique sound - where almost instantly you'd know precisely who you were listening to.

It's all 'Hansel and Gretel' fairy tale ancientness from the macabre, when you listen to 'Contrastate'. If electronics had been around in 1840 this is what some of the more disturbed people would have recorded.

'Fingers of my Foot' has a distinctly oriental yet 'Zoviet France' feel with plucked far Eastern strings and a tin whistle thrown in amongst a melee of drawling chants.

This album doesn't have the same dramatic, disturbing qualities that '1000 Badgers in Labour ' had with its grimy nastiness, but is still a pretty good listen being more electroniic though somewhat atonal at the same time.

'A Thousand Badgers in Labour' begins with a direct replication of Herzog's 'Nosferatu' soundtrack from '79 (Hope you paid your royalties lads...). It is, however, wonderfully done - creating a real sense of dread and ominousness, before those familiar distinctly English throaty vocals appear with more threats of doom and disaster for all who are willing to listen.

This lengthy and impressive opener fades into the 'folky' and somewhat disturbing 'Sleep Little Sister' with its distinctly psuedo-sexual dodgy lyrics. The sinister 'Nosferatu' soundtrack re-appears briefly before morphing into something far more gruesome involving the death of foresaid 'Little Sister'.

For British readers, the tune that follows is 'Slater Hogg and Howison, they Can do Anything...' An advert from the 80's that no matter how much research I do I can't find an answer to the classical composer.

Contrastate then bury themselves in swathes of gloomy keyboards and warped vocals where all sorts of enmity and malign thoughts are directed at the listener. If truth be told, it's pretty damn disturbing in a way that only the English can do. You won't find any hilarity here - nor guitars or drums for that matter.

'At the Bottom of my Dreams' - being the last track, lurks even further into the depths. Booming grim vocals and threatening keyboards makes this album feel that December 21st 2012 might happen after all. Yikes!