Cult Of Whores And Dogs ‘Brass Knuckle Bondage And Morgue Rules’ CDEP 2010

Cult Of Whores And Dogs 'Brass Knuckle Bondage And Morgue Rules' CDEP 2010When the first recorded efforts from Cult Of Whores and Dogs landed last year it was a vicious and uncompromising slice of industrial hardcore meets thrash that showed a lot of promise under its grimy production. Back then the whole thing had been assembled as a one man band project by guitarist Keith but fast forward a few months and he now has a full line-up in place and a new 3 track EP out there that shows far more of a band identity and a huge progression in both song writing and production.

While the band’s sound may still be an acquired taste there is much here to commend it. The Voivod comparisons across the 3 tracks remain firmly in place in the skewed, dissonant and brutal riffs not to mention the spastic and spasmodic rhythms that see odd tempo shifts at the drop of a hat. The addition on bass and vocals of Jess does much to add an extra dimension to the sound. Her laid back croon offers an almost gothic tone to the barbed riffing that sit underneath and comparisons could be drawn to Siouxsie Sioux. The vocals also lend a sinister air to Keith’s twisted tales of psycho sexual violence…the femininity of the voice singing such brutal lyrical content is potentially a stroke of genius as it takes the focus away from the male perspective in which it has all been written and inverts the traditional sexual clichés.

Musically, despite the unsettling twists and turns there is a great sense of melody at play here that demands further listens. Though a million miles away from anything resembling commerciality, the riffs and vocals are naggingly catchy and memorable displaying a song writing suss that is unconventional but strongly musically aware.

The production here is a vast improvement on the original demo the band produced but I do still have some misgivings over the overall sound. The bass and guitar are nicely balanced and the guitar has a particularly suitable abrasive tone, and there is some very nifty use of samples to add to the gothic style the band has shifted to. However, the two main bones of contention for me are the vocals are too high and dry in the mix and, although Jess’s voice is a welcome addition to the overall sound, they do tend to override much of what is going on underneath and the sound loses some of the power that it deserves. More importantly I do find the drum sound rather disappointing. For much of the recording the bass drum and snare in particular are struggling to cut through the rest of the music whereas they should be providing the muscle and backbone on which everything else should be sitting. The effect is that the weight and force of the tunes has been somewhat emasculated.

Since this EP was recorded bassist Michael Atherton has moved from bass to guitar allowing Jess (who only joined the band mere weeks prior to recording) to assume full bass duties and the band have already hit the studio to record the follow up. I’m hoping they continue to capitalise on the song writing skills they’re already showing in spades and beef up the sound further with the extra guitar muscle and a thicker more prominent drum sound. The seeds have been well and truly sown with this release (and the accompanying suitably disturbing video!!!) so let’s watch this poisonous plant grow.

Label: Self Released
Website: www.myspace.com/thecultofwhoresanddogs

Scribed by: Ollie Stygall