Thursday, May 28, 2009

Swans: White Light From the Mouth of Infinity

If you know anything about Swans, you know how crazy their career has been. They started as this slowed down hardcore metal band with brutally violent lyrics that inspired none other than the likes of Kurt Cobain (see his journal of 50 favorite albums and you'll find "Young God" at #50...On a side note, I think he got the idea for "Rape Me" from that album).... But more than that... they have changed more as a band over the course of their career than almost any band I've ever heard. This album is a great example. They ditched the deep growling chanting, screaming, and heavy metal for acoustic guitars, melody, world music elements and ACTUAL SINGING. It's almost an entirely different band... but still really really great. This is probably the album that best blends both worlds of their style. Heavy handed lyrics, guitar noise, pop, folk, and acoustic elements mix together better than I could have ever imagined. It's always fun to see what a band does when they get bored with their style and HAVE THE BALLS to actually change it to what they want. It makes you wonder what some other bands would sound like if they weren't so afraid of losing all their fans. This is a personal favorite of mine although most of their discography is incredible. This album is actually out of print... so don't feel bad about downloading, because it's the only way you can have it! Check it.




White Light From the Mouth of Infinity