ALBUM REVIEW: Swans – The Beggar


 

According to the pre-Socratic Greek philosopher Heraclitus, change is the only constant in life. Everything that comes into being is a product of conflicting opposites and that process of becoming never ends. We never stop becoming. We are never at rest. The music of Swans (and by extension that of songwriter/bandleader Michael Gira) is the embodiment of an ever-changing being, existing through the continual tension of opposing forces; never at rest.

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ALBUM REVIEW: Human Impact – Human Impact


Comprising members of Unsane, Swans and Cop Shoot Cop, New York quartet Human Impact embrace all of those bands’ qualities and add a rebellious Noise element which belies the middle age quickly enveloping the protagonists. Debut album Human Impact (Ipecac Recordings) sees that collective maturity provides a focused, prowling edge.Continue reading