Trawling through the works of one of the most intriguing and seminal acts of the industrial scene is challenging and emotive: it may be a full decade since John Balance’s death, and five years since Sleazy passed, but after the initial vow to leave the catalogue in suspension, the release of ‘Bckwards’ marks what may be the first step in making their work more widely available. Credit is surely due to Cold Spring for this.
The follow-up to their ground-breaking ‘Love’s Secret Domain’ (1990) has a chequered history: some four years in the initial making and completed in 1996 in Trent Reznor’s Nothing Studios, its release was repeatedly postponed by the label, Interscope. Subsequently remixed by Peter Christopherson and Danny Hyde (seemingly under pressure from the label), some of the recordings emerged in 2008 as ‘The New Backwards’.
20 years on from its initial completion, ‘Backwards’ finally sees the light of day, and it’s not a straight recut of the so-called ‘Backwards Demo’ bootleg. Fans can finally hear the original versions of much-loved tracks; ‘A Cold Cell’ and ‘Fire of the Mind’ which feature on this 12-track release.
9
Given that ‘The New Backwards’ contained only nine tracks, ‘Intro’ and ‘Heaven’s Blade’ will be new to listeners, while the aforementioned ‘A Cold Cell’ and ‘Fire of the Mind’ were omitted from previous versions. Meanwhile, ‘Princess Margaret's Man In The D'jamalfna’ is absent from, the track list here.
But more significantly, the versions featured here are radically different from those on ‘The New Backwards’ and ‘The Ape of Naples’ box set. But then, this isn’t simply a case of ‘The Nothing Demos’ receiving a formal release. Of the tracks which features on the bootleg release, the versions featured here are much fuller, the sound stronger and crisper.
That Reznor would emerge under the guise of How to Destroy Angels, named after Coil’s debut release is indicative of the influence of the duo over industrial music through the years, but on this album, despite only having been worked on in Reznor’ studio in the later stages of its development, there heavy shades of NIN permeate ‘Backwards’, as if the baton of influence was being passed back somehow. It seems rather fitting, of course.
|
If ‘The New Backwards’ saw Coil drift into semi-ambient technoindustrial territory, the original cuts are much more the sound of the early 90s industrial in collision with the old guard – think NIN meets TG. The tracks are forthright and significantly more concise: ‘Careful What You Wish For’, which appears as track five, clocks in at a mere 3:50 in contrast to the nine-minute drift fans will be familiar with. Similarly, AYOR’s seven-and-a-half minutes is abridged to a fraction over three, and over two minutes are shaved from ‘Nature is a Language’. Conversely, ‘Backwards’ is extended by almost two minutes.
The material itself is dark and menacing as mangled electronics whirr and fizz over thumping beats and deep, pulsating basslines. The atmosphere is murky, the rhythms and counter-rhythms at times disorientating, and ultimately, this version has much more edge, while at the same time feeling more experimental. The title track is exemplary, with Balance’s vocal, whole distorted, sounding sharper, more aggressive and more abrasive. In fact, his vocal presence is considerably stronger throughout.
Not only does ‘Backwards’ shed new light on the already significant Coil legacy, it also stands and an outstanding album in its own right.
Coil – Backwards Online
|
