THE BEGGAR

Although SWANS originated on the tail end of the obscure NYC no wave scene some four decades ago, this project led by Michael Gira has exhibited an amazing staying power by leaving all the competitors in the dust while consistently reinventing the SWANS sound to transverse itself into more contemporary styles of experimental rock. While jettisoning the skronky guitar dissonance long ago and transmogrifying into a form of post-rock, SWANS unlike any other band has showcased how the no wave movement was in many ways a precursor to the world of post-rock and here in the current calendar year of 2023, Gira returns with SWANS' 16th studio album titled THE BEGGAR.

I have been a fan of pretty much everything this band has cranked out right from the no wave industrial noise rock of 1983's 'Filth' to folk and drone fueled totalism meets post-rock on the more recent albums like 'The Glowing Man' however with 2019's 'leaving meaning' i was actually left cold as Gira's approach had shifted significantly from a hypnotic detached methodology to one that incorporated Gothic country and Neofolk however what i hated the most about that album was vocal style that sounded as if it was trying to emulate happy-go-lucky pop artists from the 50s and 60s. That album was a complete dud to many and it seemed SWANS might have run out of steam.

No such problem though as Gira hasn't successfully navigated the decades by not paying attention to the reaction of the fans. He experienced a similar hiccough with 2010's 'My Father Will Guide Me Up A Rope To The Sky,' which personally i love but many did not. Apparently GIra got the memo and on THE BEGGAR returns to that same mopey vocal delivery like he just woke up from a series of bad dreams and is here to recount his experience through poetic prose set to a menagerie of post-rock, neofolk, droning, sound collages, ambience, gothic rock, avant-folk and even a bit of goth country. This time around though he succeeds in his efforts given that this formula of simplified music based on melodramatic continuity can be very fragile and any particular element skewed in any particle direction can result in a total derailment of tolerability.

I don't know how he does it but beginning with 2012's 'The Seer,' SWANS only releases double albums or at least the modern equivalent of what would once be considered as such. THE BEGGAR is another sprawling series of tracks that collectively slink past the two hour mark at nearly 122 minutes! While not as dark and depressive as earlier SWANS albums, THE BEGGAR seems to reject the overt happy campiness of 'leaving meaning' but not jettison it altogether. Gira seems to have simply refined that formula by connected it more successfully to the stylistic approaches of the past with a continuity that allows a two hour plus album to not lose its momentum. With only 11 tracks, the majority are lengthy sprawlers but in reality the second to the last track 'The Beggar Lover (Three)' consumes almost 44 minutes of this album's playing time!

What makes many SWANS albums to intriguing is that they are instantly likable with no digging required to connect to receive an instant impact but yet find many subtleties buried beneath the surface. An ominous mix of goth-tinged post-rock with ethereal atmospheres and processional cyclical loops that meander for large chunks of time, THE BEGGAR also features a lot of lap steel guitar sounds as well as many ethnic instrumentation such as the dulcimer, fujara or duduk. Gira employs seven musicians and two vocalists to bring THE BEGGAR its magical hypnotic touches and does so triumphantly.

Somehow in the modern world where attention spans have been reduced to mere blurbs, SWANS has managed to memorize the listener with lengthy sprawling musical compositions. While this album is great, the best track is the longest. At nearly 44 minutes, 'The Beggar Love (Three)' has a running time of a traditional vinyl length album and yet it is the best and most hauntingly beautiful track on the entire album. SWANS is best when it is allowed to just slowly drift into a world of its own making. This hypnotic and ethereal dreamy track just perfectly ratchets up the perfect tension with a beautiful atmospheric accompaniment that works in tandem with the martial rhythmic grooves that culminates in a heftier rock sequence around the 20-minute mark. A few minutes later the music drops out altogether and becomes a series of percussive chaos and spoken word samplings. In short the track is the perfect marriage of drone, ambient, post-rock and miscellaneous sound effects. The album ends with its most energetic, 'The Memorious' which exits on a fiery note.

Overall THE BEGGAR shows that SWANS is in no way of danger of burning out. Gira is has an uncanny ability to keep cranking out engaging albums that on paper sound as if they should bore you to tears. SWANS albums are very difficult to describe because words can't really convey the depths of emotional responses that they evoke. Gira has proven time and time again that he can go against the grain at every step of the way and still provide something captivating in a manner that no other has quite latched onto. It's hard to believe that some 41 years after SWANS was created that yet another album emerging in 2023 will surely rank right up there with other masterful creations. Is this SWANS' best album? I wouldn't go that far. I don't think albums like 'Children Of God' can ever be topped. Even more recent albums like 'The Seer' and 'To Be Kind' are more varied and interesting but there is no doubt that THE BEGGAR doesn't not disappoint from beginning to end and for that i must applaud Michael Gira and his endless wellspring of creativity that shows no sign of letting up. Bravo!