Crystal Castles [II] [CD]

This band has a very unique sound, no one is like them (that i know of). This is an excellent follow up to their preivious album, you can tell its crystal castles but this album has a more euphoric dance feel to it but sounds more mature than there previous album. To be honnest i liked the first album but i love this one! Definatly the best album i have listened to this year. if you liked the first Crystal Castles Album this is a must buy!

Looking back over my wayward musings I gave Crystal Castles'
eponymous 2008 debut a brief but favorable review. With their
second delivery 'Crystal Castles II' I see no reason to abandon
them. Ethan Kath and Alice Glass are back with a collection of
fourteen uncompromising but highly accessible compositions.

The overall sound of the album is "crunchy". The treatments of
Ms Glass' voice conceal more than they reveal; this, despite the
often jolly dance-friendly nature of the arrangements, brings a
nicely sinister flavour to the proceedings. (The artwork is pretty
creepy too!)

'Celestica' has an almost-pretty breathy vocal floating over the
insistant beats. Waves of melancholy synth chords flow in and out
of the mix helping to sustain an uneasy dreamlike ambience.

'Doe Deer', however, is the stuff of nightmares. Ms Glass screeches
like a mad witch with a bad grudge. The inner-violence of the track
may be a tad unnerving for the faint-hearted. Uneasy-listening.

'Year Of Silence' is another sombre slice of stripped-down techno.
(Miss Kittin came to mind more than once). The thumping rhythm
would doubtless go down well in some of the darker corners of
contemporary urban clubland. (The kind of place where everyone
wears black and never smiles!)

'Suffocation', despite its ponderous title, delivers a glimpse of
warmth here and there with its almost-uplifting, anthemic theme.

'Birds' is a particularly interesting confection. The squelchy
beats, great crashing grungy chords and demented vocals outline
a territory which would have interested the venerable Mr Hitchcock,
were he still with us today.

Mr Kath has a turn behind the mike for their reworking of
Platinum Blonde's 1983 composition 'Not In Love'. It is one
of the album's high-points, despite the vocal sounding very
much as though it is being performed by a chipmunk.
(Listen and believe!!)

Final track 'I Am Made Of Chalk' brings the project to an
extraordinary close. The ravings of a savage or suffering
long-forgotten underwater creature would appear to have been
captured on tape and inserted into this deeply disturbing mix.
Not the sort of thing to listen to just before bedtime.

A willfully weird and totally thrilling listening experience!

Highly Recommended.

My first exposure to CC was via the tracks Untrust Us and Crimewave that were made available through a free Nine Inch Nails Tour ep download. I liked those very much, but nothing prepared me for absorbing the entirety of this gem.

Minimal yet densely layered, CC have crafted what has already become my favourite album of the year, and possibly one of my all time faves.

Opener - Fainting Spells is a disorientating beginning that gives way to the quite beautiful and melodic Celestica. Then abruptly Doe Deer assaults with its brief but disarming sonic aggressiveness. Baptism continues this energy but sounds like an offshoot of 90's rave infused with electro punk. The following four tracks - Year Of Silence, Empathy, Suffocation and Violent Dreams are all standout tracks, but by now the standard has already been set and thankfully the following tracks continue the trend.

Closing track I am Made Of Chalk begins in a cloud of distortion but gradually introduces a wash of synth sounds and remodulated vocal layering and other assorted sound bites. A lovely end to an album that manages to cram claustophobia, melancholy and discord and more besides into some the most original and idiosyncratic electronic music that has ever graced my ears.

As a consequence of this I then bought their first album which is made up of demos, singles and such like, so considering that, CC (II) should really be considered their first true album. Highly recommended.