The self titled debut long player from Calgary noise/post-punk quartet Viet Cong is our first album of the week for 2015. The intelligently crafted seven tracks employ the best elements of a myriad of approaches and sounds that personify the experimentation of the immediate post punk era but in terms of the fruits of that employment produce something truly original. Abrasive, yes, alienating, no.
The menacing factorised march of ‘Newspaper Spoons’ opens proceedings followed by the deadpan vocals, pulsing bass and skeletal guitars of ‘Pointless Experience’ mirroring its title. The inexorable industrial whirr of ‘March Of Progress embeds itself easily into the subconcious.’Bunker Buster’ boasts a Women sounding high pitched guitar riff and thumping beat before a dose of pop drama enters proceedings to offer the light to the shade. Such texturing is hard to engineer but the songwriting chops of this foursome are of the highest order.
‘Continental Shelf’ is as close to industrial pop that you’ll get while the fast paced manic nature of the synth laden ‘Silhouettes’ plays a vital role in the album’s tracklisting. Closing monster ‘Death’ packs more into its 11 minutes that some bands have mustered in their whole careers.
For anybody, like me, who has been lamenting the tragic demise of Women, the former band of bassist and vocalist Matt Flegel and drummer Mike Wallace, the getting together of Flegel and guitarist Scott Munro and the further enlistment of Daniel Christiansen has produced an entity even better – and that’s definitely a statement.
James Stocker – January 22, 2015.
The video for second single, ‘Silhouettes’ is below. Viet Cong is out now through Flemish Eye in Canada and Jagjaguwar internationally. The vinyl is already on its second pressing. Get it here.
Silhouettes
Viet Cong (CAN)
From the album, ‘Viet Cong’, Flemish Eye / Jagjaguwar.
Viet Cong Bandcamp
Official Video