Rating:
Genre:
Rock
Release Date: 02/20/2001
Run Time: 52:10
And thus was American
goth rock born. Perhaps an extreme statement, as one could argue
.45 Grave beat
Christian Death to the punch, if with a lot more intentional humor. Still, it's about the only thing that can be said upon listening to
Christian Death's debut,
Only Theatre of Pain, released in 1982 and influencing more bands that can be counted since then. The member who got the most attention was, unsurprisingly, singer
Rozz Williams, but guitarist
Rikk Agnew is the secret weapon that makes this album so good. With the first phase of
the Adolescents (and a solo album) behind him, he brings his
punk-inspired work here, and with the help of longtime producer
Thom Wilson, who sat behind the boards here, the two created a perfectly ominous world of tolling bells, heavily treated guitar, and general spookiness. Bassist
James McGearty and drummer
George Belanger keep the murky energy going and thankfully aren't afraid to kick up a storm when needed either. The most memorable song is
"Romeo's Distress," a catchy slice of doomy
punk-pop that admittedly has one of the most un-PC lyrical starts around. Throughout, the band either kick out the melancholy jams,
McGearty's purring bass leading the way, or sheer atmospherics, some quite effective. Witness the slow wash of sound concluding the first side and kicking off the second, or the combination of noise, keyboards, and treated vocals on the closing
"Prayer." And then there's
Williams -- those who accused
Bauhaus singer
Peter Murphy of delivering up pretentious lyrics and overwrought performances must have flipped upon hearing this record. Sodomized boys in front of furnace altars, hilariously naïve reversed words meant to be spooky ("Reficul!"), incense-laden sex, "roses and candles, silver knives and spoons," "necrophiliac relationship," song titles like
"Mysterium Iniquitatis" and
"Spiritual Cramp," all delivered with a breathless moan at once low and whiny. His weird charm comes through after a while, but it usually takes a couple of listens to get the giggles out. [The CD version contains the
Deathwish EP as a welcome bonus.]
~Ned Raggett, All Music Guide
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