The Leader

[Click to enlarge]

Drum's Not Dead opens with a mosaic trance of synthetic noise and guitar. This loop of noise gradually pulses inward, and at the point of reflective rupture, pulsates outward toward the infinite. Vocals gurgle in between these threads of musical confusion and express emotion through falsetto chant. As soon as the opening song hints at catharsis, the second track begins; the transition is seamless. The same pulsating synthetic soundscape, with an added emphases on tribal rhythms and layered falsetto wailing, continues onto the second track.

Drum's Not Dead is about the terror of the creative process. It isn't so much a concept album, but instead, is really an experiment in combating aesthetics. There is a feel of creative inspiration that wants to conform to rigid structure, and at the same time, there lies a sense of nihilism that is content with disordered noise washing over all forms of constructive song writing.

The paradox allows the vacuous display of stream of conscious noise manipulation to feel inspired, and the attempt at conventional song crafting to feel labored and drowning under the weight of the album's paradox. What allows Drum's Not Dead to succeed is in how the Liars don't separate the two sides of the creative process. Childish ramblings through synthesizer effects roam freely through beautifully crafted melodies and multiply layered vocals.

Drum's Not Dead is not a conventional album. Drum's Not Dead barely delivers coherency, and when it does, it floats over us in rustic naturalism and pagan musings. The songs have to be found within the chaotic (beautiful) mess of noise; however, once the structure of each track is intuitively felt, the album becomes a living work of art (rather than a static disc gathering dust). The listener has to allow for at least a few forced listens (much of the album at first appears meaningless); however, the excitement of having to discover the beauty is what makes Drum's Not Dead more than just a noisy rock album. Liars are a band that need to be found, and within Drum's Not Dead, there can be found three men asking for you to believe in their lies.

4 of 5

Article Tools