Album Review: Savages - Silence Yourself

Savages
Silence Yourself
Rating: Grrrr

We live in an age where there is so much technological overkill it is a wonder we can ever find peace and quiet these days, our senses overwhelmed to the point of exhaustion. London quartet Savages appear to be railing against this turn of events, proclaiming in their manifesto that "”The world used to be silent. Now it has too many voices. The noise is a constant distraction." They have even gone so far as to try and, while not outright ban use of cell phones at concerts, at least make the audience aware that they are missing out on the connection between the band and audience by focusing too much on technology. While their music might add to said noise, it it is definitely going to grab and hold your attention. Although I have yet to see Savages live, it has been reported (which wasn't word of mouth the best way to hear of a band in the first place?) that their live shows are a revelation, and if the music on their assured debut Silence Yourself is any indication, I can definitely see why. Missing the post-punk revival by at least 10 years, Savages don't wallow in the mire of Joy Division, but align themselves more with the economy of sound of early Wire coupled with the brash feminism of Siouxsie and the Banshees while still allowing more modern influences seep in here and there, be it PJ Harvey's commanding way with a riff, or Karen O's astonishing lead vocal presence.

Silence Yourself has no shortage of icy, brittle post-punk fury, full of scraping guitars and the ominous bass work of Ayse Hassan, which for me is the driving force behind the record, reminding me so much of Carlos Dengler's melodic bass lines on Interpol's early albums. The chugging opener "Shut Up" roars out of the gate with antagonistic interplay between the tightly would guitars and the free-wheeling rhythm section, singer Jehnny Beth barely able to keep control of her vocals as all the pieces come to life at the track's end.



Pounding drums and swirling echo laden guitar riffs come up against bass lines on "I Am Here" with Beth's vocals deeply held in control, "City's Full" brings on a full air raid siren attack of guitars, while the squall of guitars on "No Face" threaten to derail but always are kept in check.



While the excitement of these tracks is certainly intoxicating, when Savages slow things down and show their deft touch on atmosphere and texture is where the album truly came alive for me. The lurching, sludgy riffs of "Strife" led me back to memories of bands like Loop, where repetition became transcendent,



"Waiting For A Sign" is a haunting, dirge like track with shimmering, ringing guitars and a deeply evocative vocal turn from Beth,



while closing track "Marshal Dear" brings in piano and shockingly an un-ironic saxophone into the mix for one of the most striking tracks on the record.

There are only a couple of times on the record where the band lets things get slightly out of control. "She Will" starts off promisingly with its driving beats and echoing guitars that recall early U2, but by the chorus, Beth unleashes a rather dead on Karen O impression that stands out like a sore thumb next to the reigned in verses.



And "Husbands" somehow never feels more than just an unfinished sketch of a song, and lurches a little too close to manic punk, which doesn't meld with the rest of the record.



Aside from a couple of blips, though, Silence Yourself is by far one of the most confident debut albums I have heard in awhile. It has undeniable energy that cannot be ignored easily. It's so refreshing to see a band that knows what it wants and goes about doing it with confidence and style. Based on this amazing record, I can see big things in store for this band in the future. They are in fact, the future.

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 piques 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.