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| Martin Heidegger: Terminal thinker |
Having fallen victim to lazy, short-sighted journalism, it
remains all too easy to write Terminal Gods off as yet another smoke and shades
Goth-by-numbers collective. In truth
however, there was little tying debut ‘Electric
Eyes’ to the Sisters’ well-trodden path of danceable gloom - a sing-along
slice of leather-clad riffage that owed as much to Johnny Thunders and the
Stooges as it did Brit-Goth’s second wave. Indeed, men sang in baritone before [Andrew]
Eldritch, as plenty more followed: Jim Morrison fused the purring croon of
Sinatra with edgier, more abrasive textures as the former still occupied a single
figure age bracket. Of course, the photos are a tad incriminating, but you’ve only to talk
with the band to see beyond that.
The DIY traits are all in place: that waxy vinyl aroma, homespun
visual continuity, and a bonus track for the discerning listener. Even the
cover art has a story – inspired by a line in Heidegger’s ‘Between Good &
Evil’, discussing the image is anecdotal enough to bring a university graduate
to quivers. A-side ‘Lessons in Fire’
fades in and, well, they’ve only gone and written a pop song – a spiralling
12-string riff, sparse verses and a harmonised chorus that despite lacking the
‘woah’ factor this time, will keep us hollering at our speakers for weeks to
come. It’s certainly one of those relentless, dandruff dishevelling moments,
with all four band members wrestling for your attention. ‘The Card Player’ is a much darker, less predictable animal. Wound
tight to the point of suffocation, rhythm section Josh Cooper [guitar] and
Katie Helinski [bass] come to the fore here in some of the band’s finest
ensemble playing. While the song does not possess the former’s enduring
vitality, there is enough stirring imagery in the wordplay to keep things
interesting, that shaky guitar intro notwithstanding.
With the studio trickery of Goth supremo Tim Chandler
conspicuously absent on this home-produced effort, all could have unravelled.
Fortunately, with the steady hand of engineer Gordon Young [Pretentious,
Moi?/Seraphin Twin], the sound is rich and organic; textured, without removing
the four people between the grooves.
It packs a defiant punch, and as a statement of intent, is
hard to beat. With a string of European dates imminent, Terminal Gods could
begin living up to their name. You can call it daft, bombastic, even. Unfortunately,
with amps to 11 and gassy pint in hand, no one can hear you. A worthy follow
up. “You gotta do it again…”
