genre(s): industrial, experimental
credentials: recorded and released in 1986 on the (now defunct) british independent some bizarre records label, produced by rico conning, tony harris, danny hyde, and paul samuelson. all lyrics were written and performed by jhonn balance (psychic tv, zos kia) and peter christopherson (throbbing gristle, psychic tv, zos kia), except for who by fire, a leonard cohen cover, and the golden section, which is a reworking of a paul vaughan narration of a peter wilson book.
the title and concept for coil's second studio album release came to a jhonn balance in a dream; the four horsemen of the apocalypse turn on their steeds, slitting their throats and fashioning a plough from their connected jawbones, which would excoriate the earth.
my first time hearing this record i remember feeling beside my own body, which doesn't happen as often with musical experiences as i like. austere, humorous, eclectic, snd frightening, the first track on this album wastes no time getting to the nitty gritty, from the crudely titled anal staircase to the very tune and timing of the restless collage of the noisy, industrial instrumental production itself. each track feels like cycling through the mind of a person who's seen it all, from themes of betrayal on one moment, to children squealing and playing with the type of glee that can only come from a carefree adolescent the next, to rhe martial and commanding foot steps of men in the trenches, and marching bands accompanied by crooning of death and betrayal, with extensive and visceral depictions of hedonism and debauchery that would make oscar wilde crack a smile occassionally taking the forefront.
this project makes me understand why coil earned the title of one of the most influential and original experimental bands of the 80s, and they're slowly working their way up to one of my favorite groups of all time.
favorite tracks: the anal staircase, ostia (the death of passolini), circles of mania, blood from the air, and the golden section.
listen here!
genres: industrial, experimental, dark ambient.
credentials: produced by danny hyde and peter christopherson, conceptualized and written by jhonn balance, recorded at trent reznor's (now defenct) nothing studios, published by coil's own threshold house studio in 2005.
there's an except from a peter wilson novel published in 1980 about the nature of angels, about "the strange connection that becomes apparent between mors and amor, love and death. the moment of 'extinction' in the pleasure of love resembles that of death, and thus that of the mystic. in mythic terms, eros and thanatos are almost twins, for in some cases death appears as a lovely youth, and eros as a withered starveling."
he then goes on to say that, "both love and death are gateways, hence their eternal adolescence, and their fixation in the midst of the rite of passage."
i like reviewing horse rotorvator and ape of naples in close proximity, because the former feels like a continuation of the latter. i often say that if horse rotorvator conveyed the risky desperation and carnal hedonism aspect of the AIDS crisis, ape of naples conveys spiritual side, the transcience of one's morality, along with continued themes of death and betrayal, are very tanigable on this record.
coil comes through with yet another equilibrium of spontaneous, animistic creation and exacting ritualistic structure in their final studio album; a brilliant collection of final productions and reworkings of jhonn balance's (previously) incomplete works, and was released by his partner shortly after balance's death in 2004. considering coil's subject matter throughout the years, i wonder if that was tactically planned. hypnotic, immersive, and subdued. a symphonic melancholia, with visceral depictions of somewhat final, grim acceptances of a terrible fate. a spontaneous, animistic creation and exacting ritualistic structure, i consider it an electronic work as important as kraftwerk's trans european express.
favorite tracks: fire of the mind, the last amethyst deceiver, tattooed man, i don't get it, and heaven's blade. i would also like to note the album closing with a cover of the theme song from the long-running british sitcom "are you being served?" which was also the closing song of balance's final live performance. an unlikely presence in coil's history, and humanistic insight of the mind and final send off to one of the most unique minds of the late 20th century.
listen here!