What's a Listening Log? Well, the idea is quite simple. It's a weekly segment that consolidates all the mini-reviews Dozens Of Donuts has given on RateYourMusic over the past week, split between the Past and Present. A straightforward grading scale has been put in place, ranging from A+ to F-, with C acting as the baseline average. There is no set amount of reviews per week, just however many I get around to reviewing. And don't expect week-of reviews. I wait one month - with at least three listens under my belt - before I rate and review an album. Enjoy!
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This ain't the Squid I know and love. What's interesting about Lino is that it isn't a regrettable, amateur-sounding EP released before the band honed their skills, as many who unexpectedly achieve fame scar their discography with. No, this thing expels talent, persistence, and a knowledge of musical lineage. It's just not too idiosyncratic, with its melodramatic Post-Rock and ethereal waves of dread, so the leap into Art Punk with Louis Borlase as manic court jester was wise, to say the least. It also differentiated Squid from their soon-to-be Speedy Wunderground competitors black midi and Black Country, New Road. For how outlandish and batty Squid's new material is, this trudge through dire seriousness feels off-putting, despite the quality attached.
After a slow-burn starter in 'Intro / Waterworks,' which toys with the idea of morose Sound Collage a la Set Fire To Flames, the band incorporates some textbook Post-Punk guitars and driving, New Romantic rhythms as an homage to 80's alternative with 'Liquid Light.' It's solid, but lacks a creative force to be remembered, especially as Borlase's vocals drift aimlessly in the background. The same could be said, just in longer straits, of 'I I,' an eight-minute journey around natural psychedelics and moody malaise. It's highly reminiscent of .O.rang, the Tribal Ambient side project from two members of Talk Talk. Again, ripe with the faculty to craft a moving portrait but lacking in characteristics Squid would come to identify themselves with.
C
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Can I just say, this is such a confusing compilation. Granted, that's largely my pet peeve with desultory discographies, with stray singles thrown about, remixed indiscriminately on various projects. But still. It's just irritating from a perfectionist who doubles as a critic to see altered versions of songs I've grown familiar with littered amongst remade singles. That was the era though, and Substance is a compilation. They're inherently disjointed, and New Order doesn't pretend to be above that.
However, compilations are, more often than not, a collection of supposedly-great songs assembled for easy consumption. Though praise has been bestowed upon New Order's non-album singles, I struggle to see how that's the case for Substance. In my eyes, there's seven songs above mediocrity. Two appeared on Low-Life ('Perfect Kiss,' 'Sub-Culture'), one on Brotherhood ('Bizarre Love Triangle'), leaving four cuts worthy of aggregation. 'Ceremony' is phenomenal, and the clearest link between New Order and Joy Division. It's what Movement should've been, with its instantly-recognizable riff (similar to 'Age Of Consent') and despondent rhythms. Dancing through depression. Another connection to songs off Power, Corruption, & Lies, 'Temptation' features a Yuletide-esque keyboard loop that straddles the gap between 'The Village' and 'Your Silent Face.' The uplifting and near-euphoric hook is where 'Temptation' separates itself, easily settling in behind 'Ceremony' as Substance's second best.
Then there's 'Blue Monday.' I struggle with this song heavily. The praise is overwhelming, often considered one of the best Dance pieces of all-time. To me, it doesn't fit the New Order mold (or, at least, the mold I wish for them to fit), with its lack of melodious sentimentality and empowered hooks. I'm reminded of Kraftwerk and their primitive brand of Electronic, with plodding synthesizers, stock downbeats, and one-note background vocals. Except seven years too late. 'Blue Monday' strikes me as a song whose impact has been lost to time, dated in the clearest sense of the word. That being said, I do find it passable and quite entrancing in a sort of simple, colloquial sense.
As a compilation record, Substance can't be judge solely off the highlights though, as its sole purpose is to combine such achievements. With that much known, errant missteps in 'Confusion,' 'Thieves Like Us,' 'Shellshock,' and 'State Of The Nation' drain the potency and purpose of New Order's highs with some grisly lows. The former two, while adhering to New Order's Alternative Dance style, glide by as pure filler devoid of fermented aspiration. They just exist. As for the latter two ... oof. Rooted in mid-80's Electro - a genre I largely abhor - 'Shellshock' and 'State Of The Nation' fixate themselves on eye-popping extremities, with the forcible injection of Gospel on the former and the overexposed electric guitar on the latter. One sounds like David Bowie's worst era - circa Tonight - the other, a claustrophobic nightmare of that decade's worst tropes.
C
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