Swans - The Seer
by Andrew Carver
published: 12 / 9 / 2012
Label:
Young God Records
Format: CD X2
intro
Lengthy, but convincing and compelling double album from New York experimentalists, Swans
Swans were born from New York’s abrasive No Wave scene in the early 1980s, and earned a reputation for audience punishing performances of thundering percussion and lyrical self-loathing. As the years went by, Michael Gira’s brainchild became lusher and more meditative. In 1997 he wrapped up Swans and began recording and performing under the Angels Of Light name. Two years ago Gira elected to resuscitate Swans, at least in name, with the well-crafted ‘My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky’. It was followed by a live album in 2012 and now by ‘The Seer’, which Gira proclaims a culmination of all that has gone before. It certainly extends musical repetition further than any Swans effort before - not a bad thing, since it gives the entire album a feeling of a trance-inducing religious ritual without lapsing into tedium. A song like ‘Mother of the World’ may clock in at nearly 10 minutes, with one two-note riff at its center for the first 5 minutes (sounding remarkably like finish rockers Circle as it does), but there’s enough vocal oddity, breathing sounds and a mid-mark switch to keep things lively. Even leviathans like the 32-minute title track keep things interesting by throwing in just about every mode Swans have attempted, making the leap from order to chaos with both motorik drumming and painful dissonance.Longtime Swans fans will enjoy hearing Gira’s female foil Jarboe returning for the coruscating noise and Christmas bells of ‘Piece Of The Sky’. Also on hand are Ministry’s Bill Rieflin and the Yeah Yeah Yeah’s Karen O, who takes alead vocal turn on the Cowboy Junkies-flavoured ‘Song for a Warrior’. At two hours, ‘The Seer’ isn’t The Swans longest album (the patchwork ‘Soundtrack For The Blind’ is a good 15 minutes longer), but it is certainly Gira’s most cohesive, pensive, ecstatic and worthwhile.
Track Listing:-
1 Lunacy2 Mother of the World
3 The Wolf
4 The Seer
5 The Seer Returns
6 93 Ave. Blues
7 The Daughter Brings the Water
8 Song for a Warrior
9 Avatar
10 A Piece of the Sky
11 Apostate
Band Links:-
https://www.facebook.com/SwansOfficialhttp://swans.bandcamp.com/
Label Links:-
http://younggodrecords.com/https://www.youtube.com/user/YoungGodTube
interviews |
Interview (2013) |
Paul Waller talks to New York-based experimental musician Michael Gira about taking his abrasive band Swans back out on the road again and their recent album, 'The Seer' |
Interview (2010) |
Interview (2010) |
live reviews |
KOKO, London, 15/11/2012 |
Chrisn O' Toole watches reformed American post-punks Swans play an intense, but brilliant set at the KOKO in London |
Academy, Manchester, 30/10/2010 |
soundcloud
reviews |
The Glowing Man (2016) |
Overwhelming but repetitive double album and the final one in the present line-up of Swans before it calls it a day |
White Light from the Mouth of Infinity/ Love of Life (2016) |
To Be Kind (2014) |
The Great Annihilator (2002) |
most viewed articles
current edition
In Dreams Begin Responsibilities - #15- On Being Dignified and Old aka Ten Tips From Jah Wobble On How To Be Happy.Dennis Tufano - Copernicus Center, Chicago, 19/7/2024
Elliott Murphy - Interview
Wreckless Eric - Interview
Adrian Gurvitz - Interview
In Dreams Begin Responsibilities - #16: Living in the Minds of Strangers
In Dreams Begin Responsibilities - #17: Tom Robinson
Norman Rodger - Interview
Chris Spedding - Interview
Penumbra - Interview
most viewed reviews
current edition
Groovy Uncle - Making ExcusesBill Wyman - Drive My Car
Hawkestrel - Chaos Rocks
Philip Parfitt - The Dark Light
Deep Purple - =1
Ross Couper Band - The Homeroad
Jules Winchester - The Journey
John Murry and Michael Timmins - A Little Bit of Grace and Decay
Popstar - Obscene
Splashgirl and Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe - More Human
related articles |
Paul Simpson: Interview (2017 |
Paul Simpson talks to John Clarkson about his forthcoming memoirs 'Incandescent', his post-punk group The Wild Swans and his memories of late 70's/early 80's Liverpool and its bands |
Pennyblackmusic Regular Contributors
Adrian Janes
Amanda J. Window
Andrew Twambley
Anthony Dhanendran
Benjamin Howarth
Cila Warncke
Daniel Cressey
Darren Aston
Dastardly
Dave Goodwin
Denzil Watson
Dominic B. Simpson
Eoghan Lyng
Fiona Hutchings
Harry Sherriff
Helen Tipping
Jamie Rowland
John Clarkson
Julie Cruickshank
Kimberly Bright
Lisa Torem
Maarten Schiethart