Swans - My Father Will Guide
Me Up A Rope To The Sky
(CD, Young God Publishing)
This album is like a mind explosion to me. Like recovering an old love. Years and years ago (12, 15?) I found the 1994 Swans album "The Great Annihilator" in a record store. I took it with me and it totally blew me away and still does. How life plays it's games, a couple of days later The Swans were playing in my hometown and I was happily buying my ticket to see this wonderful band live. But how it ended! I had to leave the venue, because the music was so fucking loud, the bass was hitting my stomach and my ears nearly began to bleed. I was really upset: Why did they destroy their beautiful art with that over-dimensioned power?
In all the years I couldn't find a wire between me and the band. I prelistened some albums in shops but I never found something that strong and attrackting as "The Great Annihilator". But this album itself stayed important for me over all the years and so I did a blind buying of "My Father..", knowing that there is no more Jarboe within the band, what really made me a little sad. But besides this only reason to be "critical" the new album, mainly the work of Michael Gira and his voice, is haunting as ever. If you don't like it, put away the album. If it casts a spell on you as it does for me, you will love "My father...".
Musically the Swans 2011 are still this roaring, ever-changing Noise Rock as ever, with different tempi, slowly evolving, than suddenly changing directions . But this is not where it ends. It's folky - sometimes reminding me of 16 Horsepower - I think this is called Americana, violent (My birth), melancholic, depressed, powerful - shortly: it's great and intense as life itself! Needless to say that all this is realized by fantastic musicians. Though it's nearly impossible to say what's my favourite song, I tend to the opener "No Words/ No Thoughts".
For those who want to deal with the ideas of Michael Gira - they can find all the lyrics in the booklet. The artwork of the CD with it's cosmic pictures seems to me being meant as a symbol of chaos.
After all this years I'm again in love with the Swans. And I will see another concert of the band. In May...
