Love Cult – Yr Problems

Artist: Love Cult
Title Of Album: Yr Problems
Year Of Release: 2014
Label: Trensmat Records / TR042
Genre: Ambient, Experimental
Quality: MP3
Bitrate: 320 kbps
Total Time: 00:51:26
Total Size: 116 mb

Tracklist:
01. Black Pines (3:03)
02. Yr Problems (7:25)
03. Nothing Makes It Real (8:30)
04. Landing On Fires (4:34)
05. Thirst (4:23)
06. Nonplusultra (5:32)
07. Death Forever (7:56)
08. Hunger (3:23)
09. Records and Tapes (2:32)
10. The End (4:08)

The multi-tentacled beast that is Gnod reveals here another, er, tentacle in the writhing and sucking meeting of Druss (aka Paddy from Gnod) and Russian creepo electronics merchants, the duo Love Cult. Tracks are credited to either Druss, Love Cult or Love Cult Takes Druss but to be honest the joins are seamless – these geographically disparate freq-freaks are clearly on the same wavelength.

Placed against the grubby tech fury of the recent Dwellings and Druss Gnod-offshoot releases, this LP at first appears more restrained, though an unsettling and mostly downtempo atmosphere pervades. The overall feeling of unease proves quite difficult to pin down, especially when the component parts are examined in isolation. Whether you focus on the pleasing deep deep bass rumblings, the pulsing mids, the primitive staccato drum machine, the occasional half-buried vocals, the dreamlike corroded loops, or the obnoxious insistence of the upfront disembodied vocal sample-triggering, there’s seemingly something familiar to hang on to at every turn – but taken together in the slightly ‘off’ way these ingredients coagulate, there is in truth very little comfort to be had.

To break it down, for what it’s worth, side A is weighted in favour of Love Cult (2 collabs, 2 solo tracks) and on the B Druss do the heavy-lifting (again 2 collab, 2 solo). Take for example the unbearable claustrophobia of split composition Yr Problems – it has all the previously-mentioned elements, none of which are overly sinister in isolation but put the listener right off their lunch when served on the same tray. Death Forever on the B could be (and should be!) the closing credits soundtrack to J. Carpenter’s Prince Of Darkness. It isn’t – though freely-available contemporary tools and a little cunning can make that cyber-satanic dream a reality for anyone willing to get their kicks in such a fashion, inevitably losing their shit to the frantic stuttering electro groove, corrosive B-movie bleeps, and Crowley-esque ‘FOREVER’ chants on infinite repeat.

Two extra digital-only tracks, somewhat lighter in mood, serve as a fine apertif and as good a prompt as any to pull open the curtains and reflect on the preceding 45-minute offbeat excursion, back safe in reasssuring daylight normality…though it doesn’t look quite the same any more…