Review: Venamoris ‘To Cross Or To Burn’
Venamoris debut Drown In Emotion made the number one spot of my Top Ten of 2023, so when I learnt their sophomore record, To Cross Or To Burn, was looming on the horizon after switching labels from Three One G to Mike Patton‘s Ipecac Recordings, an email was swiftly sent off to The Shaman overlord requesting first dibs and voila, here I am!
For those not familiar with the band, it features drumming giant Dave Lombardo – instrumentation (Slayer, Fantômas, Mr. Bungle, Grip Inc., Philm and many, many more) and wife Paula – instrumentation/vocals. In between releases we’ve not only had two singles showcasing the upcoming record, but also two gorgeous standalone Christmas themed numbers, 2023’s The Gift b/w Holiday Spell, and 2024’s Winter’s Whispers. To say I’m excited to be reviewing this is a massive understatement.
Stay With Me recalls Billie Holliday with both its jazz influenced bluesy pop and strong melancholic longing, a beautiful opener. In The Shadows, as the name implies, has a strong gothic sensibility with some of the reverb laden vocal harmonies reminding one curiously of artists such as Enya, there’s also an electronic undercurrent permeating throughout, ala a subtler Nine Inch Nails. An unusual confluence of musical styles but one that works perfectly well.
Truth takes you down a trip-hop route, Paula‘s stunningly soulful vocals drawing comparisons to Beth Gibbons and the music of Portishead. As someone who saw the Gibbons live in Manchester last year, these comparisons are immediately apparent and inevitable, although Venamoris still manage to put their own stamp on it.
Stain Of Pain the first of two tracks to feature guitar legend Alex Skolnick (Testament) shouldn’t be much of a surprise to anyone familiar with his work both with his own jazz trio as well as 2012’s world music orientated Planetary Coalition album. The jazzy gypsy guitar stylings certainly nod to principle exponents as Django Reinhardt making for a truly extraordinary piece.
another exquisitely crafted, musically adventurous album for our listening pleasure…
More trip-hop sounds abound on Spiderweb with Portishead once again coming to the fore but this time with a far more haunting quality (and the inclusion of strings). Alex Skolnick appears once more on Burnt Paper, an understated eerie folk number that comes off like a nightmare version of a child’s fairy tale, ala Grimm while Holding On To Nothing has the spirit of Siouxsie Sioux’s masterful Mantaray solo effort, a record that was described by The Times as a ‘mix of lush, Bernard Herrmann-like strings and Bond-theme melodrama’.
Animal Magnetism is a cover of the Scorpions track taken from the 1980 album of the same name. The moodiness of the original is retained with Gary Holt‘s (Exodus, Slayer) guitar expertly interwoven in a manner that gives the listener a latter-day Killing Joke apocalyptic post-industrial/post-punk vibe. The Scorpions should be delighted by what’s presented as their track is treated with equal parts invention and reverence.
Numb follows the duo’s ‘tradition’ of featuring at least one overtly metallic sounding track, as was initiated by Oceans on the debut. This time we are treated to grungy alt-rock with nods to artists such as PJ Harvey and Garbage with the grooves and angst making for an exceptionally enjoyable listen.
The title track, To Cross Or To Burn, features sounds you would expect to find in a vintage 1930s horror film and The Damned’s attempt at goth-rock phantasmagoria, though nothing thankfully as ridiculous as Grimly Fiendish. A camptastic conclusion to the album.
As expected, Venamoris have delivered another exquisitely crafted, musically adventurous album for our listening pleasure. No great surprise for artists of this calibre. Sublime.
Label: Ipecac Recordings
Band Links: Facebook | Bandcamp | Spotify | Instagram
Scribed by: Reza Mills
