Lee Bartow, the de facto head of Theologian (and previously Navicon Torture Technologies) has never shied away from creating intense music. The newest release, the two disc, two and a half hour plus Pain of the Saints is daunting in both its sound and its epic length. With regular members Matt Slagel and Fade Kainer, Theologian includes a variety of collaborators on this set, resulting in a complex, sprawling bit of sinister noise.
One aspect of Bartow’s work as Theologian distinct from his time as NTT is a greater sense of composition and structure, and amidst the darker, chaotic moments of this record lie some conventional melodies and rhythms.He blends distorted rhythms in the layers of aggressive noise on "Of Foulness and Faithfulness," channeling the earliest forms of industrial before blowing things out with harshness. The churning low end and martial rhythms of "Redemption is an Impossibility" at first are in league with the early 1990s Tesco sound, before Theologian shifts things at the last minutes into a rhythmic EBM sound that sound like an excellent tribute to Skinny Puppy circa 1987.
Much of these two discs lie in some realm between ambient film score and harsh noise, fitting into neither category too easily."Iron Pierces Flesh and Bone Alike" has Theologian leading off with sweeping, film score like synths and buckets of reverb, shifting into a harsher conclusion with a bit of percussion thrown in.On "With Eternal Derision", the open ambient electronics get paired with a dentist drill blast of electronic noise, which stays grounded in dissonance, made more intense by the heavily processed vocals.
The most effective pieces are, for me, the ones that see the project channeling the religious/blasphemy themes of the album most overtly.On "Piss and Jism," Bartow and company bury a dour melody under an overdriven grind, like the profaning of holy music."Their Gelded and Rapacious Hearts" also effectively functions as a mixture of light, almost reverent music with dark, distorted noises and sinister sounds.The set closer, "Self-Flagellation as Faith" (featuring Barren Harvest’s Jessica Way on guest vocals) presents her heavily processed voice and live percussion.The first segment, led by Way, has a more liturgical feel, while the latter half, with Bartow's vocals, goes entirely demonic.
Even at this massive duration, there are few moments that feel like filler or unnecessary.Some of the pieces, such as "Gravity" or "Suppuration" are more than competent synth heavy noise works, but when compared to the more innovative and unique moments throughout the set, they are less captivating.
Pain of the Saints is gripping for almost all of its long duration, and it definitely makes for an intense record.Again, Theologian is one of the projects that disprove that myth that all noise music is just distortion pedals and screaming.It is a rich and devastating record that works brilliantly, with Theologian mixing a variety of textures and moods, though the latter are mostly variations on dark.Coupled with a strong sense of composition on the part of the artists, it makes for a brutal, yet wonderful work.
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