After just a few seconds of spoken-word introducing Aesop-inspired 'The Bigger Bone', something that sounds far more unsettling that it should, Paul Hawkins & Thee Awkward Silences unleash a torrent of noise and bile that assaults the ears. No attempts are made to gently coax the listener in; this is music that takes you by the eardrums and shakes you violently before spitting you back out, exhausted and drained.
With "self-aggrandising" (shamelessly pulled from the press release) lyrics tinged with no small amount of irony ("I wanna be so rich I am despised/by everyone I've ever known, 'cos I'm the one with the bigger bone"), crashing drums and ominous organs all fighting for prominence, 'The Bigger Bone' is a sneering, snarling tirade of a song. Hawkins even appears to mimic Iggy Pop's iconic howl from 'I Wanna Be Your Dog', seemingly locked in a barking match with his canine adversary. Comparisons, at least in subject-matter, can be drawn with MGMT's 'Time To Pretend', albeit with the 70s psychedelic playfulness replaced by the Punk movement's attitude.
Next up is 'The Cavalry Ain't Coming', an urgent, twitchy, lolloping beast powered by a bassline on repeat. What initially starts off quite simply very quickly builds into a claustrophobic, hypnotic maelstrom as guitars join the bass and Paul Hawkins' lyrics become more and more hysterical. Lyrics of loneliness and yearning are wound tighter and tighter, mixing crushing pessimism with restrained optimism ("Don't go hoping for a saviour, you're the only cure") until it finally comes to a jarring halt, leaving the listener a few seconds of respite. Don't be fooled though; this respite is brief.
|
The driving guitars and throbbing bass that fuel 'Hate Is All Around' come in pretty quickly, and once again, the listener is propelled into another audio assault. Possibly the most positive of the three songs (relatively speaking), Hawkins deals both with a society that has become obsessed with collapse, national security and war, and also the media that fuels this increasing paranoia. Hawkins acknowledges that "it's true there's always gonna be murders", but does not hide his contempt for an unnamed friend who prefers to "sit at home, living life vicariously through a friend on the phone". The song is relentless, and by the end of it, even Hawkins seems frazzled, his seething bile spent, at least for the moment. With just under 14 minutes of unflinching aggression, this isn't a single that you enjoy. It's chaotic, anarchic and brimming with energy and will leave the listener feeling like they've just been put through a mangle.
www.paulhawkinsmusic.co.uk
www.myspace.com/jezusfactory
www.jezusfactory.com
www.myspace.com/theeawkwardsilences
|
