Wary of the dubious hype emanating from The Wire and other pretentious, quasi-academic outlets, I've pretty much steered clear of any "heavy" album one might learn of from such sources. Yet, something about the bass/drum duo known as Big Business drew me to seek out their latest album, and having done so I'm not the least bit disappointed.
Although I'm fully aware of just how in vogue it is to be a scruffy, dateless fan of metal-referencing shoegaze acts these days, I've always curbed my own potential enthusiasm by actually listening to these artists' tunes and feeling bored or otherwise let down. If there's one genre save for noise that could do without any more artistic self-indulgence, it's metal. In a recent interview with the Melvins, I read of their inclusion of the Big Business duo of Jared Warren and Coady Willis with interest. I haven't been a Melvins fan of late, though I still dig their Atlantic releases from that period long before Mike Patton began rubber-stamping anything King Buzzo tossed in his direction. Still, that they'd recorded an entire album, last year's A Senile Animal, with two simultaneously performing drummers seemed novel to me, though I'm positive it's been done before. Still, rather than seek out that recording, I opted to pick up the new Big Business album instead.
While not exactly formulaic, Here Come The Waterworks constantly balances the accessible and the foreign. Complex drum rolls and brutal riffing open "Just As the Day Was Dawning" and kick off this impressive set of heavy hitters. Its chorus soars with an arena rock quality, all the while dazzling with adroit experimentation. Channeling Judas Priest and Motorhead, "Hands Up" jolts with anthemic ferocity, each kick drum exploding like illegal fireworks. What typically kills even the most musically thrilling metal acts is an indistinct, forgettable vocalist. Thankfully, Warren's voice stands out, unquestionably superior to today's screamo dandies and black metal goofballs. His style, clearly informed by both '80s wailers and '90s screamers, recalls Jaz Coleman with slightly less bile. Warren's lyrics are surprisingly thoughtful, as on the incredible "Shields," where he morbidly rants simultaneously on the inevitability and unpredictability of death.
The final tracks, "I'll Give You Something To Cry About" and "Another Beautiful Day In The Pacific Northwest," are each twice as long as any of the preceding killers. The latter of these veers into the perilous sludgy waters of stoner metal, though after so many sensational head bangers, it works remarkably well as an album closer. Anyone who has ever loved metal at any point in his or her life will find Here Come The Waterworks an absolute pleasure, guilty or otherwise.
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