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Band: Silent Scream
Album title: Public Execution
Release date: 11 January 2013
Label: Stupido Records / Danse Macabre
Tracklisting:
01. Public Execution
02. Rotten Days
03. Last Living Witness
04. Spirit Invocation
05. Nine Black Sunrises
06. Haunted
07. Skull Face Child
08. The New European Son
09. Dying Dreams
10. Revenant
11. Meat
Public Execution is second full lenght studio album from Finns Silent Scream, formerly known as Varjo, who were founded back in 1996 and got quite a reputation in Finnish underground corners. In recent post-punk renaissance with a lot of bland releases this one strucks with its creativity, authenticity, energy and a lot of "in your face" thrown dirty old school passages. Two things that got me interested in this album are: front cover artwork, with explicit photo of the execution of a Finnish soldier, who has escaped from the frontline in the second world war, shot just seconds before his death. And bands drummer Jukka Laine who's the member also in great melancholic rockers ShamRain.
This album is a blow of fresh air for the genre, though it leans to the late 70's and early 80's post-punk movement, but still brings a lot of interesting things. Album is gloomy and apocalyptic, with eleven thounderous tracks full of surprises. The first one, album titled "Public Execution" tells us that Silent Scream are not joking around. The band starts with strong drumming, powerful distorted guitars and vocals that deliver messages about how unequal is the modern society. What impressed me very much is interesting use of electronics, inconspicuously inserted, but adding a lot of atmosphere. The band continues in this manner on next two tracks, never loses the consistency. The greatest tracks, at least for me, up here are next three. "Spirit Invocation" has a very captivating and catchy melodic guitar riff, great groove and nice flow. "Nine Black Sunrises", not only with its title, but also with execution reminds a bit to early works of Danzig, but the real highlight in this track is use of saxophone that just deepens the bleak hypnotic atmosphere on here. And the best track is of course "Haunted" with its gothic rock vibe and special haunting intensifying development of events. Acoustic guitar, strong bass lines and great vocal job really do the thing and take the track into the final emotional outburst. Impressive! What follows it's a dramatic, claustrophobic punch in your face, though not that impressive as I would like to be. Certainly not to be missed, but to get the full experience I recommend to check the lyrics. The band doesn't make any philosophy with long texts, but tells about the desperation of mankind in short and right to the point well written lines. Yeah, at the end the band speeds up with aggressive punk in "Meat".
Everything what those three guys do reaches the right goal. Strong and vivacious, yet aggressive and emotional vocals, dirty, raw but still effective, sometimes even dominant bass lines and distorted guitar riffs, together with some amazing drum work and before mentioned interesting use of electronics, synths, sax. Nice dynamic song structures, tracks around three minutes in lenght and a lot of talent just screams to be consumed. Public Execution holds power, emotion, it's not an easy record, but one that needs you to reflect upon it, I'm sure that it will leave some knots in your stomach. Production is raw and it should be like that. For fans of UK Decay, Killing Joke, Joy Division, Bauhaus, Christian Death, Misfits, Danzig,...
Review written by: T.V.
Rating: 8/10
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