In the early ‘80s, Burning Image appeared on the California punk scene with a death rock sound that flew in the face of a scene that was becoming heavily loaded with hardcore. With their dark, raw lyrics and heavy instrumentation, they were like an American Bauhaus, spinning a web of goth punk that was very thick and hefty.
Now, with Fantasma, the band is back with their first new album in over 20 years, and it’s readily apparent that they really haven’t lost their edge.
What you won't find on this album is the overly theatrical melodrama that plagues too many goth bands, the makeup and lace that can easily change a band from dark to silly.
In its place are 10 tracks that are thick, heavy and dark. Exhibiting the layered, experimental guitar noise that Bauhaus and a few other of Burning Image's contemporaries utilized, it’s a sound that has been resurrected from a darker era of music, and it still sounds fresh.
And while there may be times when the album suffers a bit from it’s overwhelming sound – the heavy plodding riffs can get a bit monotonous in a couple of sections on the record – at its core Fantasma contains enough restrained energy, always threatening to blow, that even when the band is at their dreariest, you’re rarely bored.
Fantasma peaks in the middle with two songs. “I’ve Been Waiting,” with raw tribal drumbeats that are heavily piled on by droning guitars, conjures up memories of Bauhaus and the Sisters at their peak, and that track is immediately by the faster, more punk “Mr. Dark,” which mixes driving riffs with reeling, feedback-laden guitars. If you check out nothing else by this band, get to know these two tracks and know them well.
Powered by the current state of affairs - a country at war and suffering from a dismal economy - Fantasma paints a bleak picture of the world, and I’ll be quite surprised if some large chunk of bands don’t begin to appear with a similar sound. Death rock may have peaked many years ago, but it’s due for a resurgence on the scene, and with their reappearance, Burning Image will lead the way.
Essential Tracks
”I’ve Been Waiting” (Listen/Download)
”Mr. Dark” (Listen/Download)
Release Date: May 12, 2009
