Negative Freaks

Description

Fourteen records in eight years. "Canon" and "parallel" albums, experimental EPs, a double album of B-sides, splits, and demo collections: in just a few years, Bordeaux-based Thoineau Palis has built up a discography that is as fascinating as it is prolific, paying tribute in his own way to the heroes of his rock pantheon, populated by lo-fi geeks and beautiful losers of all kinds. *Negative Freaks*, TH da Freak's fifteenth record, resets the counter in a way, as it is the first album by TH da Freak "the band," a collective embodiment previously reserved for live performances. This is the first album entirely composed by the five members, breaking a long-established working method where Palis would bring finished compositions that were then collectively reworked for live shows. The five Bordeaux musicians imposed the use of what they call the "negative scale," dissonant and disturbing sounds applied to compositions initially structured like pop songs. This deliberate choice, combined with Palis's casually surreal lyrics (influenced by intensive listening to Oingo Boingo, Devo, and P-Model), brings a new coherence to the tracks on the album. *Negative Freaks* sounds more than ever like an album, a massive grunge monolith, driven by a collective and radical vision, fully embraced from start to finish. Impressive for a debut album.