Here Comes The Mind There Goes The Body

Description

Human Leather has always been a ferocious live band, incredibly loud for a duo. Their concerts are often a true wall of sludge, screams, and amphetamine-fueled percussion, with audience members joyfully flying around the pit. Previous recordings did full justice to the live impact; however, the second portion is something else entirely. On "Here Comes the Mind, There Goes the Body," the sludge is still present, rising and licking at your ankles, but a new clarity reveals just how excellent these riffs are. There are riffs that assault your ears for days, screams accompanied by voices that roar, howl, and reform into a Greek chorus, percussion that repeatedly pounds your chest, then it all fades away in just under 30 minutes, leaving you bruised, deafened, and questioning your life. Squint your ears a little and you'll hear influences from bands like Karp, Torche, and Big Business, but in a much crunchier stew. The lyrics tackle a variety of political subjects, not limited to the petty nobility, global warming, and the warning signs of the end of the world. It's important to note that the songs don't shy away from addressing class issues (unlike many political bands who you suspect have a much stronger safety net). Even though the tone could easily come across as preachy, every line is delivered with a knowing wink and overflowing good humor (I will smile every time I think of "clod damn" or "QVC Hands" staring back at me from the lyric sheet), and the vibe is the same as it's always been in tough times: "we know we're screwed, tonight we mosh, tomorrow we march." And what good is a revolution you can't dance to? Speaking of dancing, the last track offers a genuine dance beat, acid squelches, and disembodied vocal samples, evoking an alternate universe in which Human Leather is a powerful electroclash band. Here is the record of the year; use up whatever's left of your eardrums. You didn't need that body anyway.