The Soft Moon - "Criminal"

The Soft Moon is the very grimy and dark Post Punk project of Mr. Luis Vasquez, who basically IS everything about the Soft Moon.  He writes the lyrics and music, plays it all, sings, so obviously Mr. Vasquez is a busy bee. But man, does his efforts ever show when it comes to The Soft Moon's sound.  From the minute I heard the project's 2010 debut I was hooked.  I love Post Punk in general, but some artists like The Soft Moon know how to create an atmosphere.  And create they did.  This album is a grimy, truly dark modern Post Punk masterpiece.  Whether it be patient and intense tracks like "Into The Depths" or early rockers like "Breathe of Fire", this album got a grip on you and didn't let go.  But what I loved the most about this album was its blend of styles.  There were obvious throwbacks to the early days of Darkwave, but there was also tons of very new ideas as well.   The Soft Moon quickly followed that up with a very solid EP, 2011's "Total Decay".  Once again, I don't feel like Luis was doing anything absolutely earth-shattering.  But he was working with sounds of Post Punk that we hadn't heard in years, especially not done with such admiration for the early days of this genre.  So far I had been loving everything I heard from The Soft Moon.  But 2012's "Zeros" is an album that exposed some real weaknesses in the project.  This album was darker, more twisted, and more intense than ever.  Sounds great right?  Not really.  Luis had some truly awesome and exciting ideas, that was evident.  And the atmosphere was truly on point.  But his vocals and songwriting just seemed so lackluster.  So much so that it just seemed that these intense atmospheres were just sort of a mark over how very little was going on underneath.  Thankfully though, a few tracks were really great, like "Crush" and "Machines".  Interestingly enough, 2015's "Deeper" to me came off as the album Luis was going for with "Zeros".  This album showed Luis writing much more tortured, haunting material.  But he did all of this while keeping the same great atmosphere he had brought in previously.  He also brought in even more elements of Industrial Metal as well as some DarkWave as well.  And while yea, I did sort of miss how intense his early recordings were, I really enjoyed "Deeper" overall.   Now, it's been a few years since we've heard from The Soft Moon.  But I have to say, since The Soft Moon has signed with Sacred Bones records I couldn't be more excited than I am for this new album, and these new singles, for the most part, have been just what I wanted to hear.

This album starts off with “Burn”, and Luis isn’t wasting any time at all.  I love just how animalistic this is coming off and how raw this is.  It’s just so dark and dense, and easily the most pulsating sound that The Soft Moon has come out with.  It’s rough around the edges and not nearly as streamlined as the early days of this project sadly.  But, I still absolutely love just how far Luis has come along when it comes to songwriting.  The amount of paranoia on “Burn” is staggering.  It’s an intense one, and while I worry a lot that Luis is really just going for his best Trent Reznor impression, enough of this track is fresh enough and new enough to be compelling. This is one hell of a single, and I love just how noisy it ends up being.  Sadly though, I’m not nearly as into “Choke” as I was hoping I would be.  The woozy synths on this one aren’t nearly as powerful of a statement that I wanted them to be.  On the contrary, it’s seriously ugly, and just not appealing to listen to.  The muddy production just doesn’t end up coming off as flattering as I was hoping it would be because just how noisy the last track ended up was such a huge plus.  But “Choke” just sort of trudges along and quite frankly is boring.  It’s not edgy, and to be honest I would so much rather hear Luis do his best Trent Reznor impression.  Thankfully, Luis really does pick up the pace quickly with “Give Something”.  While this one is still on the slower side of things, I love just how tense and cold this is.  His vocals here are so much more high pitched, which I’m not sure how I feel about completely.  But it does end up giving “Give Something” a bizarre, haunting feel to it.  When Luis’s vocals come back down though, in a weird way it almost comes off like he’s almost going for a Deftones “White Pony” feel (Luis does wear his influences on his shoulder).  It’s a decent sound though, and I want to stress that I don’t think that Luis is a carbon copy of any of these artists.  Honestly, I feel like he’s more of his own artist than ever on this album.  “Give Something is a tense, pumping tune that takes its time in the best way.  I continue to love just how twisted and paranoid Luis comes off.  And while yes, I do sort of miss the out of control Post Punk feel of his early recordings, this is a very commendable sound.  As this album rattles onwards, the Post Punk vibes continue to fade and the Industrial elements just get stronger.  I love just how intense the verses come off on “Like A Father”, with Luis’s very tortured, hypnotic verses being layered in fuzz and effects.  It’s a really intense tune, while I do wish this maybe had some more Post Punk elements.  I do have to say though, “Criminal” is by far the most truly horrifying and dark Soft Moon album yet, and really does great as painting Luis as a truly unstable frontman.  But I sort of can’t shake the feeling that I wish this had some more of The Soft Moon’s classic Post Punk elements.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tIVB9x-HDzg

    On the other hand, “The Pain” is really more along the lines of what I really wanted to hear.  It’s just as grizzly and seriously tortured sounding.  But in this case, Luis does really bring in some more Post Punk elements in this seemingly out of control verse.  I love how hypnotic “The Pain” is as well, as Luis really goes off delivering some of his most self-loathing lyrics yet.  As over-the-top and ridiculous as this one is, I’m actually totally into it.  Not to mention, “The Pain” has some of the first real elements of DarkWave elements we’ve seen here.  Luis continues to sound so out of control and on edge, and that excites me.  On the other hand, “It Kills” seems to me to be a really great balance for Luis.  He’s keeping his tinny, DarkWave inspired Post Punk sound in check.  But he’s also bringing in some really noisy production and some muffled, twisted vocals.  To be perfectly honest, it’s a really great blend for him.  The sheer intensity of this one really makes it work.  I love when Luis works in all of these otherworldly grooves, it’s usually then and only then that things become seriously intense.   “It Kills” is bone shattering and truly tortured sounding.  But outside of that, I love how intense the drums are and just how noisy and chaotic the synths are sounding.  It’s moments like this that really excite me for whatever Luis has planned for in the future.   On the other hand, the instrumental “ILL” really doesn’t do too much for me at all.  This one shows Luis trying his very hardest to be abrasive and work with some seriously rough around the edges production.  And that’s all good and fine, as far as an aesthetic goes, I think this track comes off grimy.  But man is it ever ugly.  With all of these overlapping synths and other instrumentals, you would think this one would come off wild.  But sadly, “ILL” just comes off as a mess, a collection of thoughts that Luis had that are quite frankly unfinished.  “Young” however, with just how uneasy and truly frankly this intro comes off builds up some great tension right off the bat.  This is the exact opposite of its predecessor, being completely on the rails and very determined sounding.  It’s intense though, and I just love how sleazy and creepy Luis’s vocals come off.  “Young” is absolutely dripping with sweat and blood, and I love it all.  It may not be the Post Punk sound I wanted to hear more of, but for a more industrial sound, this a home run. I love the noisy riffs, the brooding drums, and those oddly harmonious synths we get at the chorus which is just so icy and uninviting.  Obviously, Luis is really onto something with his sound, and while I don’t think he’s truly mastered it, he’s getting there. 

    As this album goes on though, I do feel like Luis gets closer and closer to the sound that he’s reaching for.  Take for example “Born Into This”, one of the more ridiculously out of control tunes here.  With Icy, Industrial drum blasts, and unforgiving and ghastly vocal performances, this one is seriously memorable.  It’s moments like this that I feel like Luis’s sounds mesh perfectly, creating some really unbelievable blend of Gothic Rock, Post Punk, and Industrial.  It’s intense and incredibly off the rails.  It’s got a dense atmosphere, but one that’s just so welcoming and intriguing.  So please Luis, more of this in the future.  The very dense, wonderfully chilly atmosphere continues onto “Criminal”.  This time though, it’s with one of the slowest tunes here.   I do think Luis can pull off a track like this, with most of this one is seriously unnerving.  But for me, I feel like this could be so much more of a brooding track.  There’s just not enough going on here to hold my attention.  And while I do think things pick up nicely around the 2-minute mark, this is far from as captivating as other tunes here.  Overall, I think this is another very solid Soft Moon album.  My only issue is, Luis has all the tools to make an unforgettable album, but I don’t think he’s done it quite yet.


Rating: 7.6/10

Give A Listen To: "Burn", "The Pain", "It Kills", "Born Into This"

Genre: Industrial / Post Punk / DarkWave / Gothic Rock

Overall Thoughts:  I honestly though Luis Vasquez was going to blow my mind out with this release.  With his great use of atmosphere, and the fact that he's signed to Sacred Bones now made me really think this could be a Post-Punk album for the ages.  And for the most part, this is a very solid, "Good" project.  Of course, if you know The Soft Moon, you know what to expect.  There's a lot of very Industrial Synth blasts and Noise Rock passages.  But of course, the underlying themes of Gothic Rock, DarkWave, and of course Post Punk are never too far behind.  As far as that all goes, Luis does a real good job of packaging this release.  The atmosphere's are incredible, and I'm stunned with just how far his songwriting has become.  But the only thing holding me back from loving this through and through, is I honestly feel like Luis has yet to find a great medium for these sounds he brings together.  There are moments of brilliance here that give me chills, but also a handful of moments that really make me think Luis still has a ways to go.  Still though, this is a totally decent Post-Punk effort.