DOWNLOAD: The Horrors No Longer Terrify The Ears

By Tankboy in Arts & Entertainment on Jul 25, 2011 7:00PM

We hated the first album from The Horrors, deeming it juvenile screeching best left in the garage. On their second disc we saw the group making progress but ultimately still felt they were faking it. So that leads us to ask this obvious question after hearing the band's newest album Skying; who are these guys and what have they done with The Horrors?

On each album The Horrors have proved themselves a one-trick pony, even if that trick has changed each time. This time around they've either found their true voice or they're deploying a really fucking god trick. Skying's DNA is definitely British and it's definitely '80s and it's definitely constructed by a sense of nostalgia practiced by a band who isn't old enough to have actually lived during the time they're reconstructing, and this allows them to inject the proceedings with a curiosity that helps keep everything feeling fresh.

The first hint that the band might have finally developed into something worth our time was when we heard the new disc's lead single, the epically beautiful and haunting chug that is "Still Life." It's all backward guitars and icily descending keys taking you up and down some lush mountain terrain. It's the kind of song you play over and over again because, despite its simplicity, you keep wondering, "Just how did they do that?" Was this a fluke? Was "Still Life" merely a siren leading us blindly into a disappointing album?

It wasn't. We have another track to share with you that stretches out even further and starts off with a nice little but of Giorgio Moroder biting synth under a nice Madchester inflected drum chug that slowly builds into multiple movements leading to a crescendo of guitars that crashes into a brick wall of silence. It's mesmerizing. And the rest of the album follows a similar pattern; the band mixes a few of their favorite sounds from British rock circa 1988-1993 and uses them to put together a solid tune. We know, that's not exactly groundbreaking but it still all comes together to create one of the most enjoyable albums we've had the chance to hear this year.

MP3: The Horrors "Moving Further Away"

Skying is out August 8.
The Horrors play Lincoln Hall on September 25.