It’s an odd way to end it all as it ignores much of the dark chaos that precedes it. Soft guitar and hollowed out voices accent the ambience that comes to the forefront. The simple track is haunting, but completely light in its approach. Yet when “Emptiness Will Eat the Witch” final enters it comes like a breath of fresh air. But HANL still happen to surprise, as the unsettling “Cropsey” sounds abyssal in its dark delivery. It is like “Woe Onto Us” cleaned up, with simplistic guitar tones leading the band like a carrot on a string.
The back to back “Defenestration Song” and “The Burial Society” highlight the deliberate pace that the record takes. Songs that were once aimless have transformed into thunderous and dark anthems that rock along.
Everything has much more purpose than before. This is emblematic of The Unnatural World as a whole. Unlike the latter of the two, this opener is not content with droning along, as about halfway through it collapses into a guitar feedback driven melody. Mired in lo-fi fuzz it acts as soft introduction. “Guggenheim Wax Museum” begins the record much in the way “A Quick One Before The Eternal” did all those years ago. As a sensible album it works wonderfully. This is an album with absolute structure with punctuated and logical breaks that separates the work into digestible and agreeable pieces. None of the record’s eight tracks blend together seamlessly, or complement each other in any way. That sense of organic discovery is completely lost when everything falls into place so perfectly. And honestly, it just doesn’t feel quite as profound. Even the moments of beautiful ambience have lost their bite. The crackling drones that unexpectedly led to dramatic outbursts are all but gone here. But one cannot help but feel that the duo have become, let’s say, domesticated. It’s undeniably better written-everything flows more naturally and the production is cleaner but still loveably murky. Truth be told, The Unnatural World just makes a lot more sense. Songs like “Burial Society” still have a lo-fi, ethereal quality to them, yet feature a more scathing tone a la “Waiting for Black Metal Record.” It’s compact but still holds the same uneasy aura that made the band so beloved. While still holding steadfastly to their aggressive acoustic sensibilities, HANL have concentrated every influence heard throughout their relatively meager discography. Existing almost as a straightforward post-punk experience, the record is oddly benign. Where Deathconsciousness trudged along like moving earth, The Unnatural World moves with absolute deliberate focus. But when the mere 50 minute album finally dropped, it became readily apparent that this was a different beast entirely. With rumors of a three hour record circulating for months, the band had finally blown the lid off, so to speak, of the must gestating work. The Unnatural Worldcame as both a surprise and completely expected. With such a signature, refreshing sound, it should come as no surprised that their sophomore record comes hotly anticipated. Add a twinge of black metal and set it against a drone background and you just about have all that is Have a Nice Life. Drawing inspiration from acts that run the gamut, Have a Nice Life come across as an amalgam of My Bloody Valentine’s fuzziest tones, Nine Inch Nail’s most angst ridden noises, and the sublime essence of Joy Division. Starting out as a bedroom project between two men, Dan Barret and Tim Macuga, the band quickly evolved into something much more profound. In a way Have a Nice Life is the very album that they’ve become known for. No, Deathconsciouness is an album that one could talk about endlessly, mining its corridors and perplexing twists and turns all the while becoming lost time and time again. Deathconsciousness isn’t an album that can just be swept under a rug, cowed down for its successor. In the case of Have a Nice Life, however, it is absolutely necessary. Review Summary: Not quite the earth mover that was "Deathconsciousness," but Have a Nice Life's long awaited second record is a logical next step and a worthwhile listen nonetheless.īeginning an album review by discussing a band’s previous work is trite at best a needlessly convenient way to lead into a meatier discussion.
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