Amanda Woodward
La Decadence De La Decadence
8.5
Level Plane has been impressing me of late, what with Anodyne, The Minor Times, and now they add this left field little album. The only way to describe this is a sort of French, indie art house, screamo, noise core that sounds like Planes Mistaken For Stars and Neurosis on a hot date in Paris as Shai Hulud masturbated behind the bushes. Lush layers of muted harmonies, some droning, dreamy pacing and a seedy bar room ambivalence, of course delivered in French-which may put off most listeners.
This, much like Planes Mistaken For Stars, is most definitely an acquired taste, and difficult to categorize, but is certainly absorbing and captivating, with all the grandeur and aloofness that comes from being French. Wholly artistic and slightly pretentious, the native tongue imbues a sort of decadent emotion to the proceedings, while the music’s grainy tones throb and pulse with a hazy but driving pace. Often, the songs hibernate with a lulling sound only to peak and crash with screamo like urgency “Mise A Sac”. Other songs drift with a hoarse serenity “ ‘On’ Est Au Con”, “Dans le Cas Où Les Flammes”, or combine healthy a hardcore rockin’ gait laced with emo moping dramatics “Le Temps du Deuil”, “Sous le Feu Nourr”, “Binaire et Lisible”. Either way, this oddly named band can pen songs that cover the entire spectrum of music with ease and challenge the listener with their thoughtful intricate approach that still has undertone of screamo’s wanton emotion and melody.
Individual riffs and moments are hard to single out as the album comes across as one fluid entity, with the throaty screams and spoken word vocals simply floating on the vibrant, and cathartic tones that seem to envelop and entrance, despite the language barrier-a testament to the band's song writing ability.
Amanda Woodward is a sort of musical escapism for hardcore, as it’s evocative and ambient, rather than demanding and petulant, it pulls you in rather than shudder you into a sudden awareness. “Mise A Sac” is as opulent and eloquent as anything by Neurosis if you can get past the lyrics.
Certainly not for the casual listener and definitely not for the closed minded, as its country of origin and delicate musings will certainly put off most narrow minded hardcore fans, but the depth of the band's music transcends genres and cries for an attentive, appreciative ear.
