Godflesh - Pure
Review: Adding a regular emphasis and clear, viral division of topic in songs, Godflesh break their intricate noise-seasoned riff forests into basic themes in conflict during songwriting and make a spacious and vivid album that somehow misses the range of artistic desire expressed on earlier works. Their technique, as refined as it is, somehow emphasizes its simplicity too much and without enough organization in varying degrees throughout this work, leading to bouncy songs that are listenable but not enduring. Crisp bass-loud production emphasizes this tendency and barely contains the raw noise planned by the amplified stringed instrument players involved.
Where Godflesh have matured is in aspects of riffcraft refinement and conventional song structure, and in use of a melody vocal chorus to counterpoint a harsh growled attack over low-end power chords, creating an experience that flows more smoothly than the still grind-edged approach of their earlier music. The guitar playing and song assembly have reached their own entity here and while somewhat resembling later D.R.I. albums in their riffwriting, songs here stand alone from the album as a conception of the mental orientation of a band at a time. As such, the album has its positive points and its unnecessary data, but remains on many shelves for its file of interesting if underexploited ideas. Notable also is a lengthy clashing noise instrumental which shows this band in their most sublime element.