Gary Numan: Dead Son Rising - Album Review

Gary Numan
Dead Son Rising
Rating: Yeah Daddy Make Me Want It

When do you stop assessing the work of a legend? Can you always hold them up to a higher standard, or does there come a time where you just have to appreciate them for what they are and leave it at that? I commented a while back that most bands/artists have, at most, 2-3 really good albums in them (of course there are many exceptions to that rule), and then they either coast along the memory of those classics, fade into obscurity, or attempt last ditch efforts to regain popularity. Gary Numan was one of the biggest innovators in the late 1970's and early 80s bringing synthpop to the masses. While a huge pop star in the UK and Europe, Numan is mainly thought of as a one hit wonder for his ubiquitous smash single "Cars." It is a pity really, because his music and icy, alien stage persona influenced many bands throughout the 80s and 90s, and even now. Without him, there would not have been the rise of alternative industrial pop music from the likes of NIN and Marilyn Manson. So giving credit where credit is due, I think we can give Numan a break and allow him to somewhat coast on his laurels for awhile, and even steal a little from the NIN playbook. The songs that make up Numan's latest release Dead Son Rising apparently were culled from many phases of his career, and updated for a more modern sheen. Back during the NIN Wave Goodbye tour, Numan made several guest appearances and reportedly worked with Reznor on some tracks. While the album is produced by Ade Fenton, most of the tracks have a heavy feeling of The Fragile about them. As such, the album breaks no new ground, but any new material from Numan is good thing, and there are plenty of good tracks on here.

Dead Son Rising starts off strongly with the brooding instrumental opener "Resurrection" which erupts into the electro-industrial stomper "Big Noise Transmission," which feeds off grinding NIN-esque guitars.



The remaining tracks flow back and forth between moodier fare, using a lot of atmosphere, and keeping most abrasion to a minimum. From the slow build of "Dead Sun Rising,"



to the gorgeously lonely piano ballad "Not The Love We Dream Of" which almost sounds like a b-side from The Fragile,



to the quiet beginnings of "When the Sky Bleeds, He Will Come," which hides its furiously dense midsection lying in wait.



The ghost of Trent Reznor haunts almost every track. It almost becomes like a parody at times, however, Numan is such a skilled artist that regardless of any intentional or unintentional bow to Reznor, it still comes out sounding like a Numan record. Tracks like "For The Rest of My Life" which borrows a typically Reznorian distorted beat, and plucked acoustic guitars, still doesn't swallow Numan whole, allowing his dispassionate delivery to shine through.



The record is very solid throughout the beginning and the middle, however, at the end, it gets mired in uninspired instrumentals like "Into Battle," or needlessly offers up bland, ambient reprises of previous tracks. The momentum that was steadily building falls apart at the seams. But, at this stage in his career, Numan can pretty much get away with whatever he wants to do. And there is enough strength in this material showing that Numan will likely be around for a long time.

Rating Scale:

Chilfos: masterpiece; coolest thing I've heard in ages.

Woof Daddy: excellent; just a hair away from being a masterpiece.

Grrrr: very good; will definitely be considered for my top releases of the year.

Yeah Daddy Make Me Want It: good; definitely invites further listens and peaks one's interest for more material.

Meh: not horrible, but certainly not great; could have either been polished, trimmed, or re-thought.

Jeez Lady: what the hell happened? Just plain bad. They should hang their heads in shame and be forced to listen to Lady Gaga ad nauseam as penance.

Tragicistani: so bad, armed villagers with pitchforks and torches should run the artist out of the country for inflicting this abomination on the human race.