Babylon Whores
King Fear
[Necropolis]
How notorious trendwhores Necrapolis got hold of these strange Finnish iconoclasts is beyond this reviewer. As far as I know, the appeal of Babylon Whores has always been formidably underground and wouldn’t garner Necrapolis the tidy profits that they demand of every band they sign. As part of the avantgarde English conglomerate Misanthropy, Babylon Whores unleashed a full-length and a massive mCD, “Deggial”, a recording that I picked up out of pure interest and wound up listening to for weeks on end.
This Finnish band peddles a self-branded ‘Death Rock’, which has often been misconstrued as an offshoot of death metal and caused Babylon Whores to suffer perpetual misunderstanding. Instead, their sound is one constructed with the very best elements of mid-period Entombed, Danzig, early Soundgarden, Sisters Of Mercy and Motorhead, without sounding like any of the aforementioned bands. Dark rock n’ roll then, with a nod towards contemporaries like Dark Carnival and Las Cruces rather than Deranged and Pyrexia.
An honest, yet sinister groove pervades this entire recording, replete with raucous, filthy rawk n’ roll hooks, hell-for-leather lead fretwork and vocals that sound for all the world like a less-hysterical Glenn Danzig meets a less contemplative Andrew Eldritch, all encrusted with genuine intelligence and an esoteric feel. The lyrics are perhaps Babylon Whores’ strongest, most identifiable trait, from the starkly sarcastic, darkly abrasive Errata Stigmata, where he condemns the Satanic rebel ethic, to the apocalyptic rant of the eponymous track, this is genuinely intelligent and heady stuff that demands your attention.
A definite middle finger in the face of the predominantly self-parodical extreme metal crowd and an intelligent, brooding, yet absolutely rocking piece of musical achievement, it is but an elite few to which Babylon Whores reach and can be appreciated. Never destined for anything more than cult appeal, this is their boldest outing yet, and one can only hope that this streak of quality will continue to shine brilliantly on their next release.
The bottom line? This is raucous, dark, introspective music that sounds like nothing else out there, and they deserve a place in your collection immediately.
[ 9 ]
© 2000 equimanthorn
This Finnish band peddles a self-branded ‘Death Rock’, which has often been misconstrued as an offshoot of death metal and caused Babylon Whores to suffer perpetual misunderstanding. Instead, their sound is one constructed with the very best elements of mid-period Entombed, Danzig, early Soundgarden, Sisters Of Mercy and Motorhead, without sounding like any of the aforementioned bands. Dark rock n’ roll then, with a nod towards contemporaries like Dark Carnival and Las Cruces rather than Deranged and Pyrexia.
An honest, yet sinister groove pervades this entire recording, replete with raucous, filthy rawk n’ roll hooks, hell-for-leather lead fretwork and vocals that sound for all the world like a less-hysterical Glenn Danzig meets a less contemplative Andrew Eldritch, all encrusted with genuine intelligence and an esoteric feel. The lyrics are perhaps Babylon Whores’ strongest, most identifiable trait, from the starkly sarcastic, darkly abrasive Errata Stigmata, where he condemns the Satanic rebel ethic, to the apocalyptic rant of the eponymous track, this is genuinely intelligent and heady stuff that demands your attention.
A definite middle finger in the face of the predominantly self-parodical extreme metal crowd and an intelligent, brooding, yet absolutely rocking piece of musical achievement, it is but an elite few to which Babylon Whores reach and can be appreciated. Never destined for anything more than cult appeal, this is their boldest outing yet, and one can only hope that this streak of quality will continue to shine brilliantly on their next release.
The bottom line? This is raucous, dark, introspective music that sounds like nothing else out there, and they deserve a place in your collection immediately.
[ 9 ]
© 2000 equimanthorn