The wizard is back and only after a few moments of listening to “Dead Son Rising” it was pretty obvious this will be one of the finest albums of the year and definitively one favorite. Surprisingly – or not quite – Numan sounds a little bit “Reznorish”, the blueprint of Nine Inch Nails are present all over the album and the (good) student have now some influence on his master, but all those elements are melt into the typical Numan’s constructions and sounds.
Five years after the brilliant “Jagged”, on “Dead Son Rising” Numan collaborate with the same Ade Fenton – producer and co-written. The title track is a reworked version of “What Have I Become” and “We Are The Lost” is a reworked version of “Mercy” and both are from the 2006 “Jagged” sessions, “For The Rest Of My Life” is a reworked version of “Always” and “The Fall” is a reworked version of “Look”, both from the 2000 “Pure” sessions. “Big Noise Transmission” was previously played live under the working title “Captured Underground Noise Transmission” and “Zulu” while “When The Sky Bleeds, He Will Come” had the live working title of “Dragging Loop”.
This time Numan and Fenton find a fine balance between intensity and gloomy experimental sounds and passages, between cinematic and anthematic moments and themes. In spirit, “Dead Son Rising” might be related to Nine Inch Nails “Fragile”. At least the duo of “For The Rest Of My Life (Reprise)” and the instrumental “Into Battle” are definitively have the same vibe as Reznor’s masterpiece. Both are beautiful and simultaneously extremely tensioned compositions. While “The Fall” is an industrial rock anthem, “When The Sky Bleeds, He Will Come” sounds as a minimalist darkwave track of the 80’s with a power-electro chorus re-packed in moder sounds and the “When The Sky Bleeds, He Will Come”.
Tracklist:
01 – Resurrection
02 – Big Noise Transmission
03 – Dead Sun Rising
04 – When The Sky Bleeds, He Will Come
05 – For The Rest Of My Life
06 – Not The Love We Dream Of
07 – The Fall
08 – We Are The Lost
09 – For The Rest Of My Life (Reprise)
10 – Into Battle
11 – Not The Love We Dream Of (Piano Version)
[youtube http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oZU6rHnwx9M&w=545&h=307]
This is a very beautiful and sensitive, still powerful and intense album with no dead moments, no senseless fills. This is absolutely Gary Numan and the twisted Reznor tastes just make it more authentic: what you give is what you are, and like an echo, some things returns even stronger and better.
Can’t get enough of it. Hats off Mr. Numan, we love you!
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