Wednesday, April 11, 2007

I Wanna Sarx You Up:


One of the more unique and weirder acts to emerge out of the "Christian Rock" scene of the late 80's; scaterd-few inexplicably garnered comparisons to bands like Bad Brains from the clueless magazine writers of the time. The truth is that their sound flows more along the lines of The Cure, Jane's Addiction, or even bands like The Pop Group; but with some definite hardcore leanings somewhere in the mix. Yea...semi-psychedelic-jazzy-hardcore(?) ...Wait, come back. It's actually quite an intriguing listen.

The record starts off like it's been bottled up for years and someone finally popped the cork. Thus, the white hot blast that is "Kill The Sarx" bubbles forth like some of mead pumped from the brewery of some alien planet. The sound is fast and raw, but laced with fascinating colour from the vocals of frontman (and cover star) Ramald Domkus. Things only get weirder as the album progresses; with bits of dub, heavy metal, and post-punk that equals one staggeringly challenging and revolutionary record.

Perhaps the crowing moment of the album is the final track "Kill the Sarx II (Apocalypse)" which begins like a party scene from a lounge in Las Vegas. Soft, jazzy sounds trickle forth while a strange sample voice repeats "...and death shall have no dominion" again and again. Things get very David Lynch as the piece continues, with wild distorted noises and disturbing voices creeping in and invading the lively festivities. It's an unsettling, and memorable way to end one of the best "Christian Rock" records that you've never heard!

Begin!

1 comment:

toposheet said...

listening to this now again for the first time in 15 years.
and it still kills. yes, one of the strangest christian rock records ever, and one of the bestest.(especially SARX II).