When TS Eliot wrote his landmark work “The Waste Land” in 1922 he did so as a reaction to the social reality he had come to know. Perceiving the decline of civility, civilization and the traditions of art, science, religion and reason amongst the blackened spectre of the post-war period, Eliot sought to express his laments through the production of lyric and metre and in the process created “a heap of broken images” that many have come to revere as quite possibly the most ambitious poetic undertaking of the twentieth century.
Art has always maintained this dialectical exchange with the life world: finding its inspiration from it and in the process illuminating the source of inspiration to the audience. And throughout literary and musical history it has often been the works that have actively engaged in this process that have truly connected to and resonated with audiences on a deeper level because of the inherent honesty at the core of the work and the scope of the work’s ambition.
The reason I tangent into this brief musing on literary theory and criticism is because it goes without saying that such deep meditation and contemplative content into the realm of social criticism has largely been missing from modern Canadian rock and roll. Sure, many have a social conscious, but few seem to actively engage in it through their craft and when it is conceptually engaged it often comes at the cost of artistic form. Fortunately these things cannot be said in the least of V, the newest release from Toronto-based quartet 5th Projekt – which will be released on August 9. Recorded over several months in 2010 – ironically enough commencing on John Lennon’s birthday in October and ending on the anniversary of his death in December – V is a stark and dark reflection of modern times and quite possibly the most sonically ambitious album to come out of a Toronto band in years. From beginning to end, 5th Projekt’s new LP is a blistering wall of sound, drenched in reverb, haunting vocals, vicious guitar work and fire within the soul of the music.
Beginning with the storming opener “Spin” 5th Projekt’s V launches into a sonic atmosphere unlike any other band in the Toronto scene. Heavily compressed bass-lines reminiscent of Black Rebel Motorcycle Club’s best work and a tempest of guitar harking to Berlin-era U2 – if The Edge was to play without compromise – propel the track and instantly grab the ear. Front-woman Tara Rice’s stream of consciousness-like vocals float overtop the wall of sound, lamenting on militarism, the loss of innocence and the cycle of hopelessness seemingly inherent in the contemporary era. The content is heavy, but fortunately the sound holds up. The pace changes and enrages with “Psych 66”; a furious and pulsing number with a feel comparable to the former Leeds-based band The Music – all psychedelica and swagger with just enough rhythm to make you move.
“Hurricane” – the album’s third track – slows things down just a little, offering a shoegazing rocker reminiscent of early Storm in Heaven-era The Verve. Duelling supersonic guitars by Rice and lead-guitarist Sködt McNalty litter the track and are laden in reverb and delay as Rice muses on being caught beneath the landslide. Things slow down on “Aria”, a sultry trip-hop track propelled by crunchy basslines and shuffling drum work. It’s an awesomely ethereal track steeped in atmospheric synths and a tricked out rhythm section that – like their incredible interpretation of Jefferson Airplane’s Alice in Wonderland inspired “White Rabbit” later in the album – will definitely conjure comparisons to Portishead. Sadly though “Aria” – also like “White Rabbit” – ends just as it begins to make its mark, however it’s follow-up “Soil to Sow” more than makes up for it. A bleak and desolate ballad offering a landscape without hope, “Soil to Sow” contains Rice’s most haunting and beautiful vocal work on the album and is one of the standout tracks. Painfully bleak imagery litter its verses, but when the chorus kicks up and Rice soulfully calls out “Don’t be frightened if you fall” it’s impossible to not to be moved into the light just a little bit.
With “Juggernaut” 5th Projekt return to the realms of fiery rock and roll. Instantly conjuring a Zeppelin-vibe from Jeremy Oram’s muscular drum work combined with furious overdriven guitars, “Juggernaut” features V’s most fist pounding and anthemic song on the album, with a chorus that is sure to fire up some pulses. By the time the middle-8 reprisal of – no surprise here – “When the Levy Breaks” kicks in it’s impossible not to be sold on the sheer badassery of this track. The pace pickups on “Walk Away (Exodus)” and its angry krautrock. Sounding like Rush on an acid trip, “Walk Away” pulses with forward momentum and a frantically paced rhythm section as Tara Rice wails “Every day we lose ourselves”. It will definitely get the kids moving.
The aforementioned cover of Jefferson Airplane’s “White Rabbit” slinks in next like a hangover from the previous track, beginning with delirious white noise and synths before a military beat and Arabic-scale inspired guitars move this slinky trip-hop number forward. It is simply a fantastic reinterpretation of a hidden classic. With the album’s final listed track “Miles of Night”, 5th Projekt offer a sombre, black as night shuffle down a darkened alley. Beautifully blue and about as stripped down as the band can possibly get, “Miles of Night” delivers solely on the emotional delivery of Tara Rice’s vocal work on this track and its siren-song like chants during the coda. While “Miles of Night” is listed as V’s final track the band included the vicious rocker “=Love” as a secret bonus. With lyrics spitting pure venom and a sound reminiscent of the noise and distortion of Creation-era bands The Jesus and Mary Chain and My Bloody Valentine, “=Love” is a bonus track that will not disappoint.
5th Projekt’s V is an uncompromising record steeped in fire, skill and fury and is one of the best records to come out of the Canadian indie scene in a long time. Conceptually it is a bleak photograph of the desolate landscape that makes up the modern era, and the music reflects this as it coasts from angst ridden to solemn and all shades of blue between, with a sonic ambition unlike any I’ve seen from its contemporaries. With an atmospheric approach that could only be described as ethereal, cinematic and aurally eclectic, 5th Projekt have with their aptly titled fifth release produced an incredibly strong rock and roll record that is as stinging a critique of the times as it is a fiery collection of songs. As previously stated, the content is indeed heavy, but thankfully it doesn’t fall into the trap of being a concept heavy record that doesn’t deliver in terms of the songs; it walks the line between conceptually-focused and musically-accessible, and is a huge thrust forward for one of Toronto’s most under-rated bands.
V by 5th Projekt will be released on Tuesday August 9, 2011. You can check out 5th Projekt live in Toronto on Friday August 5, 2011 for the V Launch Party at El Mocambo, Thursday August 11 in Guelph at eBAR, Thursday August 18 at the OTHERfolk Festival in Owen Sound and Tuesday September 16 in Montreal QC at L’Alize. For more information click here.
Tracklisting:
01. Spin
02. Psych 66
03. Hurricane
04. Aria
05. Soil to Sow
06. Juggernaut
07. Walk Away (Exodus)
08. White Rabbit
09. Miles of Night
