Trashy wah-wah skronk is what Destination Lonely delivers. In spades.
A bass-less trio from Toulouse, the members have done time in Jerry Spider Gang, The Fatals and Kung Fu Escalators. If those names mean anything to you, you’ll know what to expect. Just imagine them frolicking in a swamp.
This is rock and roll from the dirty side of the street. All the well-to-do people live somewhere else. Opener “Dirt Preacher” sets the scene: Barely audible, angsty vocals under layers of guitar. The wah pedal signifies music that opens up and bleeds, on a regular basis.
The muddy mix reflects the conditions under which rock and roll exists in Europe. Producers are for wimps. Big budgets are for techno.
Cases in point are the bouncy “I Don’t Mind” that floats away on a dense, dark cloud of acrid guitars and bustling drums, and the menacing instro “Outro”. This last one is where the ghost of Link Wray does battle with any thought of falling back onto sterile production values. Link wins. Fuzz rules.
Of the 10 songs, the organ-embellished “Death Of An Angel” is the only stylistic respite. It’s a brooder amongst bashers, with guitarist Lo Spider’s vocal given air to breathe. The plodding “Straight to Hell” and “Vanessa” also turn the intensity down a peg, but a river of distorted guitars running through both keeps things edgy.
If there’s a drawback to "Derath Of An Angel" it’s the plodding rhythms that sometimes drag down the songs. I have a sneaking suspicion that this is intentional. “Only One Thing” is sombolent to the point of sounding like it’s never going to get out of bed. The tumbling feel and fuzz wail of “Waste My Time” that follows sounds like a wake-up call in comparison.
This is not radio-friendly music - not in the broadly understood sense of the term. Thank fuck for that.
3/4
