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Adding the UK postscript to your bandname is, it seems, very much the thing to do right now-presumably there was already a band called Novus that neccessitated this? Not that it matters as this is a likeable album from the duo of former Faithful Dawn frontwoman SarahJane Farr who is joined by Bio-tek/New Mind mastermind Jonathan Sharp in the studio (but not for live performances which will see a completely different line-up). The music mixes commercial trance styles with some slightly darker flavourings with that 'gaffa-taped' edge that earns the album its goth stripes in a manner that fans of Gotheki will recognise. Despite the title, the album seems to be as much influenced as much by the past as it is the future, the voice sample of Sir Arthur 'Bomber' Harris that opens 'Voice Of The Whirlwind' being a good example (bet he never thought he'd turn up on a ravey track like this, though!) while SarahJane's vocals add a definate air of 'Britishness' to proceedings & while her spoken voice that embellishes the slightly pomp flourishes of the opening 'Halcyon' has enough grandeur to carry it through the way in which she pronounces 'can't' as 'carn't' on 'Liberty' is extremely endearing in a down-to-earth way. At times, the music seems to be almost deliberately at odds with the lyrics which is not neccessarily a bad thing but it does lessen the impact in the case of 'Mother Russia' where the rave-flavoured, easy-on-the-ear mood does not follow up on the dark feelings set by the haunting voice sample in any way & while the interlocking vocal lines on the chorus do attempt something new they don't quite work, sounding a little bit messy. Some assertive sequencing & harder rhythmic effects add to the harder feel of 'The Closer The Net' & it's this mood that comes more to the fore as the album progresses in the shape of the punchy 'Justify' & the robust 'Babel', suiting SJ's vocals much better, it seems although Sharp's influence can be felt through the orchestral motifs that grace the mid-tempo instrumental (if you don't count the wordless voice) 'Anathemata' & 'Emotive' which opts for a more easy-going mood while the short interlude that is 'Now, Being Held By Memories' goes for the full-on Mittelalter experience with some authentic-sounding lute & cello (although none are credited). This would have made a good end to the album but as it is, the PTK remix provides a totally new angle to 'Liberty', adding all sorts of buzzsaw synth sounds in a manner that's good for the clubs but gets a little irritating elsewhere. All in all, any cybergoths out there will no doubt lap this up & it's quite possible that, with just a bit of tweaking, certain tracks could well gain more mainstream club acclaim, if that were their aim. |
