Published by Davide Pappalardo on August 2, 2018
Mysterious Spanish duo Amor is a new reality in the world of lo-fi/proto-old-school industrial with a DIY edge. One half of the project is Belorussian artist Bionihil, another interesting project dedicated to minimal and droning industrial soundscapes, while the other half is experimental producer Las Barbas Indómitas. They took for sure a cue or two from Suicide and Throbbing Gristle, delivering a noisy and obsessive sound with punk elements and dreadful atmospheres, akin to the current cassette-scene reviving that kind of sound and culture.
They present to the world their debut Es La Ley on Berlin-based label Holy Geometry, a 4-track cassette characterized by a fusion of electropunk, industrial, noise and by submerged vocals and sharp sounds with shrilling anti-melodies and looping mantras. Their style offers some subtle change, moving from hazy numbers to frantic territories, while keeping at the core the fundamental elements of their identity.
Transamorem welcomes us with a distorted arpeggiator soon reached by clanging rhythms and vocal reverb effects in order to display a hypnotizing mantra in which few elements are used as the bricks for the whole track. You wont find progressive elements or complicated sound-designs, but that’s not say you have just an infinite loop stretched endlessly; some pauses and addition of sounds give us a crescendo with a building tension founding its climax in noisy electronics and angry vocals.
Voluntad is a faster affair with obsessive snares and throbbing bass-lines underlined by pounding drums and 70’s dissonances. The usual hidden vocals move among the sounds, adding gravity to the tense soundscape here developed. The crescendo give in to moody electronics and sci-fi effects, while sharp motifs violate the almost catchy refrains. Even the vocals deliver now a slightly more traditional approach, but rest assured we are still in not so safe territory, and the usual retro sounds are near the corner.
Confianza is another minimal ride with repeated rhythms and nebular sounds, while this time the vocals have more presence driving the track with their filtered dialogues. Industrial tensions and subtle variations control the movement, reaching rhythmic sessions with an almost tribal attitude. The very short pastiche ends soon its course, preparing us for the last track Bajo las estrellas and its orchestral cacophonies mitigated by old-school rhythmic mantras in which obsessive lines and sharp industrial atmospheres are the main elements. Grim vocals and static effects complete the eerie but aggressive soundscape, guiding us among a factory-like sonic world which ends in the noise of alarms.
A voyage in the field of minimal industrial electronics with a punk edge, an old-school affair firmly rooted both in the past, both in the current scene which is rediscovering old motifs and aesthetics adapting them to the present. Armor crafts a droning sound managing to never sound dull or on pilot, taking influences from the aforementioned giants without sounding as a cover band. Highly recommended.
Label: Holy Geometry
Rating: 7,5