Faust Something Dirty

There are a couple of Fausts floating around these days so its important to distinguish, right up front, which one we are talking about.  This incarnation essentially consists of the rhythm section of the original, or “mythical” band, in Julian Cope’s words.  So it’s not surprising that Something Dirty leans heavily on thudding bass and drum patterns, with the new guys left to generate riffs and feedback on top.  They’ve come a long way from Faust, which was basically an experiment in sound collage and noise, which seemed to pick up where Revolution 9 left off.  Those roots were deep in the avant-garde classical world of the 50s and 60s.

The roots of the new album go back further, and in the case of the title track, much further.  A war-like rumble repeats over a droning E chord with a second triumphant guitar joining on top, and you’re ready to follow Mel Gibson out into the Scottish forests until some guy starts mumbling in French, the language of love, and you’re not sure where the hell you are or what to do.  But this is par for the course with Faust who clearly enjoys juxtaposing sounds and words, as in some Situationist experiment to fuck with our heads.   Occasionally they head directly for post-rock Mogwai territory with tracks like Herbststimmung, yes, you read that right, which shows they know how to play with dynamics.  Also successful in the post-rock category is the unfortunately named lead-off track, Tell the Bitch to Go Home.  This surges along with sustained intensity with a hooky minor riff for just enough time to stave off boredom.  Overall the band carries off a convincing sense of menace and rocks hard at the same time.  It may not be what fans of the original Faust would expect but it’s satisfying in a different way, while still maintaining the arch sensibility that made them legendary if not exactly famous.