Perhaps it’s because it took so long for me to fully digest all of the insane beauty and perfect chaos that was The Seer, but it does not feel like it’s already been two years since Swans released their last album. Michael Gira’s experimental post-punk madhouse are about to unleash yet another monstrous record though, the almost certainly ironically-titled To Be Kind, so prepare your cranial cavity appropriately.
To Be Kind will be another double album (spread over 3 LPs), and lest anyone is worried that Gira couldn’t possibly match the intensity of his previous work, the track they just released, ‘Oxygen,’ should disavow all of it. The most surprising thing about this track is just how gosh-darn funky it is. The combination of the bouncy bass, cavalcade of brass, and Gira’s drunken wails and primal barking sound like a dance party gone horribly awry (or possibly just amazing depending on your taste). Either way it sounds like the morning after will be painful.
Between this and the other track they’ve previewed, ‘A Little God In My Hands,‘ the danciness and horns do not appear to be an anomaly. So get ready to spin this record at your next celebration or get-together and not be surprised when you wake up in a haze surrounded by puddles of blood and possibly something on fire.
To Be Kind comes out May 13th (12th in the UK) via Young God Records. Pre-orders available at Young God Records’ webstore.
– NC