Berlin Electro fusionists plug in
As the dying mangy flea-bitten body of Electroclash drags its sorry arse around clubland, a question remains: did it amount to anything more than a lazy media catchphrase, a collection of ill advised haircuts and a basement bin full of bored women lyrically naval gazing over beefed up Duran Duran instrumentals?. Warren Suicide are as good as any to answer this question at the moment as they trade in the type of rock/electro fusion that is/was the staple ingredient of many an Electroclash release.
Hailing from Berlin, which, as any self respecting electronic music enthusiast will know, is the creative hub of electronics at the moment, Warren Suicide fuse a number of disparate influences to produce a deranged electrical jolt to the system. Bass is most definitely the place here; it’s the fuel that drives their mutant constructions: low slung, oscillating and charged it’s a sound born out of a definite futurist agenda: a burning need to dismantle the past and rebuild it in a modern context. This was always the point of the recent electro explosion, and it’s a shame it was hijacked by magazine led fashion victim wannabes who took the movement off into the land of retro pantomime.
Comprising of only 5 tracks, more a mini than a full LP, their self titled debut sets them apart from many of their counterparts with its gutsy use of imagery, wealth of ideas, pop sensibilities and spannered sounds. “Warren Suicide” sets the tone with the lyric “Hello, Hello my name is Warren Suicide, I wanna take you on a nightride”, and in the process leads you off into the warped world of an unhinged musical idiot savant. “Twelve” is scuzzball electrofied rockabilly, like The Gun Club giving The Chemical Brothers a beating. It also includes the lyric “I first met Warren when I was 12..., 12..., 12..., 12”. Nice. “The woman just stood there” has a metronomic NEU! type rhythm with a Dwane Eddie guitar twang, ‘Butcher Boy” is a twisted duet and “ Black Planet” is curiously a cover of an old Sisters of Mercy record which translates surprisingly well into an electro hybrid. Mr Suicides’ vocals do at times sound similar to the Psychedelic Furs, adding yet another reference point to their myriad of influences.
The CD also comes with a DVD, and here things get really interesting. Each track is accompanied by a video from a manic gig shot in St Petersburg along with an animated video by Cherie and Jan Rieloff. The animation is astounding and demented, coming across like something David Shrigley would come up with after spending 15 minutes in the mind of Nosferatu. Here’s a selection of random notes I made whilst watching :Throbbing tower blocks, hangings from light bulb wires, flying red tipped penis’ among burning fanged tower blocks , half human half pig mutant beast thing, synchronized drownings in whirl pools of blood, splattered brains on dog leads, big headed fanged guitar twangers, and that’s just the first two videos. Highly creative and disorientating, they complement the songs in a truly bizarre fashion and give added depth to the Warren Suicide persona the band have created.
Impressive in its execution, scope and imagination “Warren Suicide” succeds in making a lot of other musical efforts around today seem lazy. An applaudable success on a number of levels.