I got into post-punk all backwards growing up, probably because I wasn’t even close to born when the first wave of post-punk bands started releasing music in the 70s. The first song that I enjoyed that could justly be classified as post-punk, with its chilly atmosphere, prominent basslines, and stately vocals, was probably Franz Ferdinand’s hit “Take Me Out.” From there, it took me until the beginning of university to truly understand Interpol, and even longer to come around to the Cure and Joy Division, both of whom are considered grandfathers of the entire genre. And now, in early 2015, I’ve finally found a post-punk album that immediately clicked for me, courtesy of a young Calgary band called Viet Cong.
Viet Cong formed from the ashes of Women, another Calgary band that favoured interlocking guitar grooves and complex rhythms. Women broke up acrimoniously in 2010 via onstage fistfight, and the two members of the rhythm section went on to form Viet Cong. Last year they released their debut, Cassette, to much critical acclaim. With their self-titled sophomore effort, they’ve refined their sound further, with icy synths, murky guitars, and drums that sound like they’ve been recorded in a cathedral. The album runs only seven songs and 36 minutes, almost a third of which is taken up by the 11-minute closer “Death.” The short run time, however, should not trick you into thinking that the album is slight. Every minute of Viet Cong is dense, cold, and biting.
The album opens with the pummeling “Newspaper Spoons,” where the drums don’t sound like drums as much as they sound like someone repeatedly punching a metal baking tray; they’re all tinny reverb and cavernous noise. The vocals are half-sung, half-chanted, and are immediately drawing Joy Division comparisons. The guitars buzz atonally around the edges of the song. And then, miraculously, the curtain drops to reveal an extended synth outro that could almost be described as pretty.
Elsewhere on the album, “Bunker Buster” has piercing guitar stabs and oblique lyrics that evoke early-period Interpol, and “Silhouettes,” contains the same tense beauty that was once common in Bloc Party songs. However, it’s unfair to say that they’re merely an amalgamation of their forbearers. Viet Cong is much more aggressive and cerebral than Interpol ever was, piling up layers of guitar noise and letting it meld transform throughout the song. Instead of being a facsimile, they’ve infused elements of many other bands in order to create something equally unique and consuming.
The lead single for the album, “Continental Shelf,” proves that although Viet Cong will probably never write an honest-to-goodness pop song, they could if they wanted to. There’s a true verse-chorus structure, melodic lyrics, and even some backing vocals. The vocals are catchy, and I’ve caught myself humming the song many times since I first heard it. However, much of the shinier elements of the song are undercut by the incessant bassline and fuzz that bleeds through the song, not to mention the general sense of unease that the vocals are able to project.
Lastly, Viet Cong ends with “Death,’ the 11-minute behemoth that was mentioned above. The song is a towering piece of music, with guitars that meld and chime and ring, and it really has to be experienced to be fully appreciated. But it shows that Viet Cong aren’t afraid of working outside of their genre constraints to craft something different and rewarding. “Death” signals a progression for Viet Cong, a springboard that they can use to reach greater heights. Even though their sound will always be rooted in post-punk, they’ve created a piece of work that attempts to defy genre and stand on its own, and I hope that they continue this trend in the future.
Leave a Reply