With
Fuck Buttons
and as
Blanck Mass
,
Benjamin John Power
has always had a gift for channeling intense emotions with instrumentation that's often thought of as cold and clinical. In particular, his solo work for
Sacred Bones
uses electronics to plunge into compelling moods -- the surprising sensuality of
Dumb Flesh
, the outrage of
World Eater
, and the juxtapositions of grief, horror, and humor on
Animated Violence Mild
. That album title is both a warning and a promise: The violent streak in
Power
's music is well-known, and extremely well-represented here by "Death Drop," a lengthy assault that incorporates the relentless thrust of industrial metal's double kick drums and throat-shredding vocals and some of the
BBC Radiophonic Workshop
's whooshing sound design into a juggernaut full of crazed intensity and deadpan wit. However,
is just as skilled at finding the beauty in destruction, and that side of his music takes the lead on
. Huge, immediate synth melodies dominate tracks such as "House vs. House," which even adds actual verses and choruses to
' music with results that call to mind
HEALTH
's doomsday pop, and "No Dice," where crashing beats and chromatic percussion twinkle like broken glass. As on his previous albums,
showcases
's mastery of complex combinations of sounds and moods. "Creature/West Fuqua" shifts from a deluge of synths to harp and the fractured vocal samples
used so well on
to fascinating effect; while it's the album's shortest song, it might be the most unnerving. On the standout "Love Is a Parasite,"
reimagines "Death Drop"'s fury as a club-ready banger with a lunging beat and surprisingly jaunty handclaps. He brings the album full circle with "Wings of Hate," a finale that sounds anthemic and furious in both senses of the word. In many ways,
feels like the inevitable sequel to
. Where that album used the full force of
's music to rail against the world's injustices, this one reflects the resignation, frustration, and emotional overload of its time in its startling and moving tracks. ~ Heather Phares