A LIVE COAL UNDER THE ASHES

It's always good to see more experimental recordings represented in the Archives. Anything that's different and unusual I'll gladly give a go.

'A Live Coal Under the Ashes' - if truth be told, is one of those albums that doesn't belong here in the Archives at all. Like all their recordings there is a lot of lurking fear and spooky shadows executed in the most British of manner. Talking of 'Lurking Fear' - this would be ideal to read HP Lovecraft to.

The great thing about 'Contrastate' was that they had an entirely unique sound - where almost instantly you'd know precisely who you were listening to.

It's all 'Hansel and Gretel' fairy tale ancientness from the macabre, when you listen to 'Contrastate'. If electronics had been around in 1840 this is what some of the more disturbed people would have recorded.

'Fingers of my Foot' has a distinctly oriental yet 'Zoviet France' feel with plucked far Eastern strings and a tin whistle thrown in amongst a melee of drawling chants.

This album doesn't have the same dramatic, disturbing qualities that '1000 Badgers in Labour ' had with its grimy nastiness, but is still a pretty good listen being more electroniic though somewhat atonal at the same time.