I have a notoriously short attention span with most of my music. I listen to it, I like it, then something new comes and I forget about it. Having said that, I'd like to point out that Fell Venus' debut album @ has lived in my CD player constantly for the past two weeks. This is an accomplishment of simply enormous proportions. I think the last time this happened was Michael Knott's Screaming Brittle Siren. This is a brilliant debut album. The only complaint I have is that it clocks in at a little under half an hour, not counting the bonus tracks, and I want more.
Style-wise, it's industrial. Beyond that, it's hard to draw comparisons. Fell Venus quite simply sounds unlike anything that's crossed my plate in a while. The best I can do is to say that sometimes it sounds like Pretty Hate Machine era Nine Inch Nails. At other times, Venus' vocal wail scratches my Pixies itch. I've been waiting a long time to find a band that can do that.
Now, the more observant among you will be saying, "He just compared this band to the Pixies." Yes, I did. And I did so knowing full well that the Pixies are not an industrial act at all. This is part of why this band is so hard to describe. Fell Venus just plain doesn't seem to care what industrial bands are and are not supposed to do. Songs like "Shaped by Fear" are filled with sequencing and computer generated noise. Others--"Hate Disease" and "Nice Guy" come to mind--have virtually none. This album is incredibly diverse--but the consistent, driving guitars and Venus' wailing voice hold it all together.
Lyrically, this is pretty standard fare for the style. The majority of the songs stare in the face of human weakness and unflinchingly report what they see. The lyrical highlight of the ride is the back-to-back combination of "Hate Disease" and "Let Me Go." The first calls out in the chorus, "I've got it, don't want it. Hate Disease." The second is based around the repeating sequence of "Let me go. Let me go. Let me go. I'm all tied up." Simple, but it makes the point quite nicely. I've been saying for a while now that Scott Albert was the best of what was left in the Christian industrial world since the demise of Mortal. I don't know what he has planned for Argyle Park, but he's got some catching up to do.
Other coverage for this album
The Conqueror Worm Jun/Jul 1995Reviewed by argyllethis cd is not too bad. the major problem with it is not enough meat. there are only 10 tracks listed and two of them don't really count as songs. then there are a couple o' those hidden track things. (why do they call them hidden tracks if everyone knows exactly where they are?) the meat you do get though, is good. it's a kind of industrial you don't get too much of these days. it's not…Heaven's Metal #53Reviewed by Doug Van PeltEven though Fell Venus pulls a Prince and calls their album "@," they still crank out some great music. As fellow HM music freak Charles Gates puts it: "The drum loops and sequences stay in the back and the live instruments come up front (real drums 'n' stuff!) This is a guitar groove album, dude!" This album crosses over the dance and metal and hardcore and, yes, industrial genres and satisfies…Similar sounding releases
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