“Pool Cleaner” starts us off, and I’m gonna keep this short and sweet. I have no idea what they were thinking with this whimsical, cheery instrumental to start of, but it’s not a good time for me. On the other hand, “Ice Skull” is much more like it. The guitars here are driving in this very intense way, and I just love the ferocity around the band’s shouted vocals. The intensity of this is what really sells this one for me, however. I mean, this is almost like “Nonagon Infinity” era of King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard with it’s throttling madness. These guys just really seem like they’re a fearless and exciting force in Post Punk, and I love that. The vocals on “Ice Skull” are almost cheesy and shrieked ridiculously through the background, and you’re god damn right they’re a blast. Everything about this one is in your face and explosive. The production is grimy, the attitude is rebellious, this is much more of what I expected on every level. And the way it all just concludes with this mass of noise, it’s brilliant boys. “Scum Rat” on the other hand has a completely different flavor to it. I love the thumping bass that brings out more of a Post-Punk flavor, and the intense guitars that follow. But I think what really continues to bring me down to this are the vocals, there’s nothing fancy or sweet about them, they’re just so UGH slapping you right in the face with each belted out lyric. This one brings in a whole lot more Noise Rock into the mix, with solo after solo and wonderful distortion everywhere. But that Krautrock influence has also shown up by now, and that’s what really takes these guys to the next level. There’s a level of hypnotism to this band the like of which I really haven’t seen in ages. I mean, the way I get sucked into that bass groove and hazy guitar line, it’s actually incredible. His Electro Blue Voice has a ridiculous sound, and the way they’re able to really flesh this track out over 4 minutes is truly brilliant.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nx7lFRbLOyw
This album continues on with “Jaws”, and there’s something incredibly Old School about these guys that I can’t quite place my finger on, but it’s brilliant. In a way, they really remind me of a lot of the Hardcore Punk acts of the 80’s, the way they’re giving it 100% and not giving a shit how it comes out. This one almost has a groove with its very melodic guitar line. It’s messy, very D.I.Y., and the intensity of this record hasn’t slowed down one bit. The vocals are a little more questionable here, being masked behind this wall of distortion. But if that’s my only complaint, and it is, His Electro Blue Voice are still on to something. On the other hand, “Crystal Mind” has a much more current sound when it comes to Post Punk, and could easily go with bands like Iceage or Protomartyr. But it packs a real punch in the attitude of the vocals and the continued intensity of some of these instrumentals. “Crystal Mind” is easily one of the most crushing, throttling tunes here. Not to mention, I just love the growl that comes with their vocals, it’s such an easy detail but it does so much. When this track gets really revved up, some of these sonic verses really become mesmerizing. The way these guys continue to blend all these very harsh genres continue to be really quite mesmerizing. If His Electro Blue Voice came out with a little bit of a longer album, I can only imagine what they can accomplish. Now, up next is the other interlude we get here, “Pool Painter”, and usually I really wouldn’t complain about these sorts of interludes. But this really just messes up a lot of the flow of the album and just rehashes what the album started with and I’m not sure why.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smOHNrPsx40
“Earthworm” is up next, and because that interlude proceeding it was so goofy and out of place, it really does sort of tamper with the start of this one. Sure, this one is just as crushing and intense. But I’ll be damned if the intro just doesn’t seem as punchy and the flow of this album seems faltered. I do like the very over-the-top vocals and the brutally sludgy guitars, but I can’t get over just how off everything seems. On the other hand, “The Wizz” with its hypnotic bass and Punk inspired guitars gets me back on track quickly. This is the sort of triumphant tune I was dying to hear for the last few tracks. The vocals here just seems so strangely melodic even though they’re just as harsh and rebellious. This is the sound of His Electro Blue Voice, it’s mean and rough around the edges, but still strangely unified and joyous no matter how disgusting it is. “The Wizz” rules in every way, shape, and form. His Electro Blue Voice decide to end this off with a 13-minute finale in the form of “Onieut”. The guitars on this one are much tamer and sludgy, but His Electro Blue Voice still remain heavy as hell. As a matter of fact, this is easily the most hellish tune on the entire album. It’s just so dense and dark and while the guitars are much more structured they’re just as noisy and grimy. The way this track is just constantly building and getting bigger is seriously hypnotic. “Onieut” never really seems to end, building up with solo after solo, wild instrumentals constantly, and hypnotic lips. It’s the only way that this group could have really properly ended this album.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nx7lFRbLOyw
This album continues on with “Jaws”, and there’s something incredibly Old School about these guys that I can’t quite place my finger on, but it’s brilliant. In a way, they really remind me of a lot of the Hardcore Punk acts of the 80’s, the way they’re giving it 100% and not giving a shit how it comes out. This one almost has a groove with its very melodic guitar line. It’s messy, very D.I.Y., and the intensity of this record hasn’t slowed down one bit. The vocals are a little more questionable here, being masked behind this wall of distortion. But if that’s my only complaint, and it is, His Electro Blue Voice are still on to something. On the other hand, “Crystal Mind” has a much more current sound when it comes to Post Punk, and could easily go with bands like Iceage or Protomartyr. But it packs a real punch in the attitude of the vocals and the continued intensity of some of these instrumentals. “Crystal Mind” is easily one of the most crushing, throttling tunes here. Not to mention, I just love the growl that comes with their vocals, it’s such an easy detail but it does so much. When this track gets really revved up, some of these sonic verses really become mesmerizing. The way these guys continue to blend all these very harsh genres continue to be really quite mesmerizing. If His Electro Blue Voice came out with a little bit of a longer album, I can only imagine what they can accomplish. Now, up next is the other interlude we get here, “Pool Painter”, and usually I really wouldn’t complain about these sorts of interludes. But this really just messes up a lot of the flow of the album and just rehashes what the album started with and I’m not sure why.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=smOHNrPsx40
“Earthworm” is up next, and because that interlude proceeding it was so goofy and out of place, it really does sort of tamper with the start of this one. Sure, this one is just as crushing and intense. But I’ll be damned if the intro just doesn’t seem as punchy and the flow of this album seems faltered. I do like the very over-the-top vocals and the brutally sludgy guitars, but I can’t get over just how off everything seems. On the other hand, “The Wizz” with its hypnotic bass and Punk inspired guitars gets me back on track quickly. This is the sort of triumphant tune I was dying to hear for the last few tracks. The vocals here just seems so strangely melodic even though they’re just as harsh and rebellious. This is the sound of His Electro Blue Voice, it’s mean and rough around the edges, but still strangely unified and joyous no matter how disgusting it is. “The Wizz” rules in every way, shape, and form. His Electro Blue Voice decide to end this off with a 13-minute finale in the form of “Onieut”. The guitars on this one are much tamer and sludgy, but His Electro Blue Voice still remain heavy as hell. As a matter of fact, this is easily the most hellish tune on the entire album. It’s just so dense and dark and while the guitars are much more structured they’re just as noisy and grimy. The way this track is just constantly building and getting bigger is seriously hypnotic. “Onieut” never really seems to end, building up with solo after solo, wild instrumentals constantly, and hypnotic lips. It’s the only way that this group could have really properly ended this album.
Rating: 7.9/10
Give A Listen To: “Ice Skull”, “Scum Rat”, “Crystal Mind”, “The Wizz”
Genre: Post Punk / Punk Rock / Noise Rock / Krautrock / About 10 other genres
Overall Thoughts: Now I know I was very picky with this album. But those two dumbass instrumental interludes really sort of messed up the flow of this album for me in a big way. However, outside of that, these guys continue to be one of the most interesting acts in Post Punk. The tracks here are aggressive, hypnotic, and strangely triumphant at the same time. Not to mention, His Electro Blue Voice seem to constantly be changing genres and blending new ones in a very exciting way. Hell yes this is a solid Post-Punk album.
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