An ethereal choir of voices introduces a long section that sounds very similar to some of the soundtracks to Hermann Nitsch‘s infamous actions and all the better for it. ‘A Piece of the Sky’, which opens with a sampled fire provided by Ben Frost, certainly creates an atmosphere and also acknowledges the Swans’ distant industrial past.
This is one of the most disciplined and coherent parts of the album and all the better for it. The repeated phrase “Your Life is in My Hands” isn’t aggressively delivered but certainly has a dark undertone. Opening with bells it gradually builds into a dark and aggressive piece that will surely have a great impact live. ‘Avatar’ is much more typically Swans in the sense of urgency and drama. Strangely, it again has a Pink Floyd feeling at one point – which is not something I ever imagined I’d write in relation to Swans. By contrast, ‘Song for a Warrior’ (featuring Karen O.) is pleasant but doesn’t seem as profound as it wants to be. This is also clearly a work in progress but it has a clearer focus than some of the others, even in the closing freak-out section. Blues’ is the most uneasy and experimental piece, with abstract vocals a little like a Tibetan chant. In a very different style, ‘The Seer Returns’ features ex-Swans member Jarboe on a song with a sleazy feel that might work very well on a David Lynch soundtrack. I can see some of this material going down better with some of the Dalston hipsters who attended Gira’s solo gig at Cafe OTO in the spring.Ī song (or suite of songs) on this scale almost demands to be treated as an album in itself and since Gira describes the songs as unfinished it’s hard to reach a definitive verdict on them. It gradually gains speed, stops and starts and takes some interesting detours but again is undermined by absurd vocal effects in places. ‘The Seer’ itself is a 32 minute-plus epic, introduced by the impressive sounds of bagpipes and drones. The next section is marked (or marred) by an irritating improv vocal, fortunately displaced by the fast section from what seems like a completely different song, which in turn decelerates to be replaced by a more melodic final section with the repeated refrain “in and out in and out and in and out again…”, very much in the old style. ‘Mother of the World’ starts out much more urgently with an angular 1-2 rhythm, much more in classic Swans style. In contrast, the last section bears a trace of early Pink Floyd. The repeated chants of “Lunacy-Lunacy-Lunacy” and the harmonies lend a slightly medieval feel and there is even a trace of neofolk. It opens dramatically with ‘Lunacy’, which demonstrates the slow Krautrock atmosphere that surfaces a few times in the course of the album. The Seer won't be for everybody, but deserves to win new converts.A sprawling, uninhibited work on an epic scale Gira's stated musical goals are "beauty and ecstasy", and both abound in the tinkling bells of the hypnotic Avatar, epic constructions of guitar and percussion, Gira's Lou Reedy singing in A Piece of the Sky or Can-like mantra The Apostate.
Perseverance brings rewards: the haunting funk grind of The Seer Returns or the unusually pretty Karen O-sung Song for a Warrior, an ethereal country ballad. The marathon title track crashes like waves of heavy metal on to an industrial shore.
LUNACY SWANS TV
Opener Lunacy ("Lunacy! Lunacy!") sounds like a witchcraft chant Mother of the World repeats two notes over what sounds like a TV test tone. Two hours long and containing songs lasting 30 minutes, it is loftily described by frontman Michael Gira as "the culmination of every other Swans album". Their second album since reforming in 2010 after a 14-year hiatus won't quite so terrify the faint-hearted, but is certainly a challenge. S wans' reputation arrives before them: the "loudest" or "heaviest" band in the world, with dark rumours of punishing gigs making audiences vomit.
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