Le Cygne Noir - Shadow Of A Wrecking Ball - album review
We are locked in the biggest of political mires right now, and so this new record from British musician Ly Cygne Noir couldn’t be more apt.
Le Cygne Noir – The Black Swan in English – releases his debut concept album about being stuck in a zombie apocalypse. And while its electronic core may be more at home with huge sci-fi hits like War Of The Worlds or Tron than your stereotypical zombie flick, you can’t help but daydream about undead hordes piling into the Commons to wreak havoc while Mr Bercow, his shoulder in the jaws of an emaciated corpse, forlornly screams “ORRRRRDEEEEEEEEEERRRRRRR” to nobody in particular.
It’s difficult to listen to this and not be sucked in by the movie-like dreamscapes Le Cygne Noir creates.
There’s a lot of fun to be had here. And a lot of daydreaming too. Perhaps it’s best avoided while driving actually.
Sweeping electronic walls of sound. Crescendos that obviously accompany huge points in this tale in his mind. It’s so 80s, it practically screams Kurt Russell.
The epic Zombi Mantra sums this up perfectly. You can almost picture Russell, dressed in He-Man-like garb, waving a flaming sword above his head as he chops the reaching undead into slithery pieces. Those screeching guitars held aloft by pumped up electro beats are wonderful. It’s a masterful track.
It’s the ball of energy sat slap bang in the middle of the record. The metaphorical undead attack you’d think. Either side of this are breezy, wistful piano and synth-fuelled tracks that are a lot more placid than that just mentioned. Those after it stop the record dead in its tracks truth be told.
Some work well. The nightmarish After All Is Said could have come straight from the soundtrack to Drive with the humming bassline and scattergun synths calling the human defences to arms. Or so the track feels.
And there’s a Scissor Sisters-meets-Elton John feel to Lungs that could be set as the apocalypse starts to subside. Touching on pop ballad, it feels a little odd compared to the rest of the record.
There’s some notable guest appearances to note while flicking through the sleeve notes. We now look forward to seeing what musical stories he concocts in future.
Rating: 6/10
