Strain / The Null Hypothesis by Ängst (Review)
I was told when I received these tapes that Strain was quite poor and that The Null Hypothesis kicked on it. Well, so far I’ve only checked out Strain and if what I was told is true, I’ve got some great listening ahead of me. But let’s talk about Strain…
This has been labelled as an industrial release, and for the most part, I guess that’s what it is. But there seems to be no qualms at all about breaking just about every rule in existence concerning industrial music. They use blatant melodies. They use instruments like acoustic guitars and live saxophone. They talk about human emotions like love and loneliness. They must be completely crazy.
Actually, no. They’re really quite good. Sometimes they forget that they’re an industrial band and go off into what sounds like Metallica doing an acoustic ballad, but that’s not all bad here. The variety keeps this tape sounding very new, no matter how often you listen to it. In addition to the acoustic thing, they also do a replica-like version of NIN’s “Sin”, some dance-pop, and some techno-industrial. And everything is very good, if rather un-industrial
Now to The Null Hypothesis!
The fun just never stops! Again, Ängst breaks all the rules; this time they add harmonizing back-up vocals here and there and — gasp! — humour! Narrow-minded industrial fans beware! Some of this can easily be labelled “industrial” but they even go so far out as to sound like the Crash Test Dummies on one track. Overall, another wonderful tape, with “Who Am I to Question God” being my favorite. (Nice, hard-edged chorus!) The production is much cleaner on The Null Hypothesis and the lyrics are somewhat more thoughtful, but I didn’t find it quite as catchy overall as Strain. Personally, however, I wouldn’t want to miss out on either release.
One final warning: This isn’t for everyone. But if you’re open to hear what Ängst has to say in their varied methods, you won’t be disappointed.
Written by Carson Pierce. This review originally appeared on the Flaming Fish Music website.