Last month, the band Whitehouse released their latest album, “Asceticists”. Whitehouse has been releasing albums since 1980: This is their 18th major studio album. And man, oh man, does it pack a wallop. I’ve been listening to it non-stop recently and it gets better and better each time. While not as sonically harsh as their earliest work, it displays a much more ambitious sound then their older albums, and lyrically, it takes the band to new heights. Whitehouse, now a duo of band founder William Bennett and the slightly younger Philip Best, have taken their game to a whole new level.
“Asceticists” began as a William Bennett solo album called “The Asceticist” that originally was supposed to be released in 2005. Eventually, it was decided to combine material from that album, a solo album Philip Best was working on, and combine what they had into a new Whitehouse album. And by jove, it works! Tracks 1-2 and 6 were from Best’s project, while 3, 4, 5, and 7 are Bennet’s, and the two styles create a very diverse listening experience. Having said that, Best does most of the lyrics on the album, while Bennett doesn’t contribute as much vocals as he usually does… Which is too bad, as I love Bennett’s high-pitched shriek. Still, Best is a very good vocalist, and can yell like a motherfucker. “Asceticists” continues the African vibe that the band began to explore on their last album (2003’s classic “Bird Seed”). For example, the cover features words with three colors: Red, Yellow, and Green, while the CD label itself is decorated with what looks like a voodoo veve that could have come right out of the Voudon Gnostic Workbook! In keeping with this African style, most of the tracks feature a sort of random tribal percussion style. This style was somewhat explored on their last album, but here it comes front and center. So much for Bennett’s claim back in the 80’s that no one would ever hear a beat on a Whitehouse album!
The first track, “Dans”, kicks off with a noisy barrage that sounds like an army of birds having a psychotic fit inside of an amplifier before changing to a synth-bass heavy sonic attack over hectic drumming, with Philip Best’s rabid vocals distorted to a deranged degree as he spits out the usual vitriolic words, these ones being about child dancers, terrorist bombings, and what not. Intense. Even better is track 2, “Language Recovery”, which starts with a blast of static before abruptly changing into another hectic beat that sounds almost like a galloping horse. Best does vocals on this one too, and the lyrics appear to be an attack on former band member Peter Sotos, who split with the band a few years ago (and who has been trashing them in books and interviews as of late). What we have here, then, is the power electronics equivalent of some sort of hip-hop feud. Some of the lyrics might not make much sense to newbies of both artist’s work, though “ignorant goatish greybeard cunt” is kind of an obvious reference. William Bennett does the lyrics to track 3, “Guru”, which alternates between what sounds like a stentorian insect hum and a malfunctioning machine being operated by lunatics from an insane asylum. Bennett begins whispering his lyrics before raising his voice and going off into a usual tirade. Hypnotic.
Smack in the middle of the album is a short instrumental called “Nzambi Ia Lufua”… “beautiful” isn’t often a word I use to describe Whitehouse songs, but it’s a word that fits here… A mournful sounding song (it almost sounds like machines singing an unearthly harmony) laced with what sounds like manipulated air horns imitating the dying moans of pierced souls. So beautiful, yet so loud… and harsh! Just the way I like it. It’s followed by “Killing Hurts Give You The Secrets”. Bennett muttering what could almost be described as motivational lyrics over a low, thumping beat. Then the beat stops, and rising out of the silence like a spirit from Hell is a pulsating, accelerating noise that gradually gets louder and louder. Then the thumping beat comes back, Philip Best starts ranting, and the song slowly and slowly becomes more and more intense until finally it grinds to a halt. Breathtaking.
Concluding the album are two shorter tracks, both heavily beat-orientated like the first two tracks on the album. “Ruthless Babysitting”, another track featuring Best on vocals, over cool tribal sounding drums. The last track, “Dumping the Fucking Rubbish”, is one of the album’s best. Beginning with a metallic beat that sounds like it could have come off SPK’s “Leichenschrei”, it also features a long synth drone that sounds like the dying gasp of an ancient synthesizer. Over this Best spits out more vitriol, before Bennett takes over the mike and sings the album’s last few lyrics:
"You're about to
Experience getting seriously fucked up
And once you're willing to
Feel that out of control
Dump the fucking rubbish
Rise up
Rise up now
Kill this fucking nightmare that is inside you."
This is followed by the simple sound of what sounds like a cymbal softly being tapped in a pattern, that gradually fades to silence. And then the album ends. I should mention here that the lyrics in this album are really good, even if I’m not sure what they mean (I know there’s lots of references to Sciencetology… some of the band’s recent lyrics have incorporated questions from e-meter auditing sessions). I don’t know what “Create the open can’t-have butterfly in your monarch mind” means, but it sounds much more poetic then their old lyrics, usually variations of “That body’s yours! Rape it! Fuck it! Kill it! It’s your right to kill!” ect.
The saddest thing about Whitehouse is that there are people who have only heard of their 80’s stuff and still think that the band is just about Nazism and serial killers and violence against women, who won’t give any of the band’s newer stuff a chance. Which is a shame, really, as Whitehouse is still one of the most exciting, innovative bands around (one of those rare bands that actually get better as they age), and definitely one of the most hard-hitting electronic acts on the music scene today. Purists might howl at the new stuff, preferring their old analogue sound, but I think that their switch to digital was a great idea, and this new album (plus the three ones preceding it) are among their strongest, most intense work (I also like how the band refuses to play old songs live, instead just focusing on newer material). With no Sotos' collage in the center and under 30 minutes, it's easily the most user-friendly CD they've put out yet. Wish that Bennett had played a bigger part vocally though. Oh well, maybe he had a sore throat or something. |
