Useless Coordinates (豆瓣)

表演者: Drahla
流派: 流行
专辑类型: 专辑
介质: CD
发行时间: 2019-05-03
出版者: Captured Tracks
唱片数: 1
条形码: 0817949016845

豆瓣评分

7.4

35人评价

5星

14.3%
4星

42.9%
3星

39.3%
2星

3.6%
1星

0.0%

想听在听听过

评价:

简介 · · · · · ·

　　On their debut full-length Useless Coordinates, London-via-Leeds trio Drahla take post-punk’s characteristic noisiness and find a way to make it even harsher. The strained drum roll that opens the album serves as a terse processional. The songs that follow—the bellicose call-to-arms “Gilded Cloud” and “Serenity,” both of which are pierced by screeching electric guitars and di... (展开全部) 　　On their debut full-length Useless Coordinates, London-via-Leeds trio Drahla take post-punk’s characteristic noisiness and find a way to make it even harsher. The strained drum roll that opens the album serves as a terse processional. The songs that follow—the bellicose call-to-arms “Gilded Cloud” and “Serenity,” both of which are pierced by screeching electric guitars and dissonant bass—make good on that stentorian opening. Drahla have plenty they want to champion on Useless Coordinates, beginning with their own growth. “I will make no apology for slipping into serenity,” says singer-guitarist Luciel Brown. Later, she turns that phrase into an order, shouting it as if she’s standing in front of a mirror, demanding she cut herself some slack.
　　Elsewhere, the trio try out krautrock-inspired crescendos and cacophonous experimentation. Brown’s vocal and guitar work recall the wiry punch of Priests, Mike Ainsley drums as if dicing the uptempo art-punk of Shopping, and Rob Riggs coaxes a guttural tone from his bass that calls to mind prime Jesus Lizard. Their combined efforts result in tracks like “Stimulus for Living” and “Twelve Divisions of the Day” where, instead of simply hurling themselves against a quickening tempo as their instruments buck heads, they repeatedly change directions, leaving room for undirected solos or big blocks of silence.
　　Their best moments make use of a squealing saxophone, courtesy of Christopher Duffin. “React/Revolt” begins like simmering improvisational jazz, all hushed bass and exhausted cymbals. Halfway through, the band reveal what they’ve been hiding: ample energy, colossal cheers, and braided guitar lines. That’s the fun of Useless Coordinates: It’s as if Drahla dropped themselves in the center of a stylistic labyrinth and began clawing their way out—never losing steam, exploring almost every route along the way.
　　“Go inwards and be bold.” This was Harmony Korine’s advice to aspiring creatives, during a Q&A at the British Film Institute back in early 2016. For the recently-formed Drahla, his words served as something of a directive, encouraging the trio to trust their own instincts, however far removed they might be from those of their peers. Three years on, the Leeds-formed band have defined their own vital subset of art-rock with Useless Coordinates, a debut album that’s as fearless as it is enthralling.
　　Speaking from her current base in south-east London with bassist Rob Riggs, singer/guitarist Luciel Brown recounts the record’s somewhat chaotic gestation. “Most of last year was spent touring, so we were squeezing writing and recording in from the beginning of 2018 until end of August.” In-between a headline tour, support slots with Ought and METZ, and multiple festival appearances - including at Meltdown at the request of The Cure’s Robert Smith - Brown, Riggs and Wakefield-based drummer Mike Ainsley managed 10 days in the studio in total.
　　It was the unsettled nature of the period that part-inspired the album’s title. “[Useless Coordinates] summarised all of our situations,” Brown explains. “We had all these shows coming up and we knew we needed to leave our jobs and change our living situations to make all this stuff happen. So we had all these fixed points and timelines, but at the same time we felt quite lost within all of that.”
　　Though they felt adrift in their personal lives, artistically Drahla thrived amongst confusion. Experimentation was integral to the creative process, with Brown and Riggs continuing to swap instruments as per their live shows, while collectively they were open to relinquishing traditional song structures in favour of adopting a more instinctive approach. Another integral development proved to be the involvement Chris Duffin of XAM Duo, who played saxophone on large swathes of the record and whose esoteric musical tastes were influential.
　　Via Duffin, they discovered the work of Japanese synth pioneers Mariah and saxophonist Yasuaki Shimizu. These cult figures figure amongst an eclectic array of musical touch points, from Glenn Miller and Swell Maps, to L.A.-band Behavior. As per their earliest releases, No Wave and post-punk remain integral to Drahla’s musical universe, evident in Brown’s brilliantly deadpan drawl, in the Gang Of Four-esque guitars on Gilded Cloud, and in Duffin’s skronking saxophone on React/Revolt, which draws parallels with the work of James Chance and the Contortions.
　　The set’s sharp angles, stark tones and claustrophobic textures are reflected in the album’s artwork. Designed by Brown and Riggs - as per all previous record sleeves and promotional videos - the minimalist, mixed media creation takes inspiration from Talking Heads and Gang Of Four album art, the work of American artist Cy Twombly, and the economical, regimented aesthetic of the Bauhaus movement. “Drahla came about off the back of needing an outlet for creative expression,” Brown explains. “So the whole aesthetic is hugely important. As important as the music.”
　　Whatever the medium, Brown’s interests lie in looking beyond the immediate to the abstract and indefinable. Her lyrics are developed from observations, notes and poems, and the fragmented imagery is spliced together to disorientating effect. On Gilded Cloud elegant snapshots from the golden age of Hollywood are juxtaposed with abrasive guitar textures, Pyramid Estate draws parallels between Ancient Egypt and the present day, and Serenity evokes the violent energy of a Francis Bacon painting. Beneath the abstraction are a diverse array of themes, including gender fluidity (Invisible Sex), city living (Primitive Rhythm) and artistic expression (Unwound).
　　The result is an uncompromising but deeply rewarding debut where the internal and external, cerebral and visceral coalesce to quite startling effect. All tracks written and performed by Luciel Brown, Rob Riggs and Mike Ainsley. (Copyright control)
　　Saxophone written and performed by Christopher Duffin.