Los Angeles

Los Angeles is an interesting album put together by three musicians who usually worked behind the scenes either as a producer, in Jacknife Lees case, or as a main supporting figure in the Cure (Lol Tolhurst) and Siouxsie and the Banshees (Budgie.) The trio came together after Tolhurst and Budgie tried a couple of times to come up with a sound that worked for them and didnt quite hit on one. After they hooked up with Lee, it began to make sense and the trio set up shop for two weeks in Los Angeles to lay down some sounds that touch on various alternative styles ranging from drum-heavy new wave and murky trip hop to harsh industrial dance and thundering art punk. They also brought in strings and horns, which they ran through the mixing desk at half-speed or distorted beyond recognition, something they also did with the guitars. They were pretty sure they were done -- the result being a moody and dark instrumental album -- then realized maybe they should add vocals. This occurred when COVID-19 shut down most of the world, so the people they contacted had time to contribute. LCD Soundsystems James Murphy adds his distinctly agitated howl to the Banshee-esque condemnation of the City of Angels, as well as to the spooky drum workout "Skins" that ends the album. Primal Screams Bobby Gillespie jumps on three songs that conjure up memories of Screamadelica, but one painted in shades of gloomy gray instead of bright red. "This Is What It Is (To Be Free)" comes across as inspirational, "Ghosted at Home" is much more menacing, and "Country of the Blind" sounds desperate and broken as it surfs the politics of the day. Also along for the ride are Isaac Brock of Modest Mouse on the rumbling Devo-on-a-treadmill "We Got to Move," bellowing poet Lonnie Holley on the oddly Beefheart-ian "Bodies," and rapper Pan Amsterdam on the warped hip-hop-adjacent track "Travel Channel." The Edge also drops in to add some guitar shapes to a couple of German art rock-inspired instrumentals. The guests all bring their best selves to the album, rising to meet the high level of music the trio came up with. That being said, Los Angeles might have worked as an all-instrumental affair, since the sounds are so dramatically warped and the drumming is endlessly listenable as the tribal pounding and rock solid beats combine to make it feel like one is stuck inside an avant-garde washing machine. The whole album has that kind of off-kilter appeal and even when the singers break things down lyrically to the elemental level of survival in a world seemingly on the brink of collapse, this is music meant to transport the listener. Consider it a job well done and enough of an artistic success that one hopes the trio makes this one time gathering of like-minded souls a more regular occurrence. ~ Tim Sendra