When Michael Gira announced that he was reactivating Swans (not a reunion, remember?) it came as a bit of a surprise; albeit one that garnered some excitement. The album that followed showed that the band had fleshed out the folk trappings of Gira’s Angels of Light project; instilling some of Swans heaviness onto the Angels’ southern twang. Some people liked it, some didn’t, but it was still an announcement that Swans were indeed back. Now, two years on, we have a second release from the ‘reactivated’ Swans: a double CD that clocks in at two hours. Straight off the bat it’s worth pointing out that this reviewer believes that this could have been pruned somewhat, but we’ll come to that in a bit. The sound that Swans had mustered back on 2010’s My Father Will Guide Me up a Rope to the Sky is back in full effect here, with some added elements of swagger and funk (in the style of Can) that comes as a small surprise. There is no doubting that since their return, Swans have a lot more air in the mix, although there are moments where the tight, constricted heaviness of yore is apparent.
“The Seer Returns” carries on with the loose rhythm that closely approximates ‘funk’ ( a loose term these days, dear readers, so let’s not quibble). Again, we can see that the band have definitely added something to the sound ushered in by their return and are not merely regurgitating their past. “93 Ave. Blues” brings to mind Swans in their Industrial heyday (if it is appropriate to mention the ‘I’ word), and recalls the harsh soundscapes that the likes of Foetus and Einstürzende Neubauten indulged in. Disc one ends with the sombre Angels of Light-esque “The Daughter Brings the Water.” This is a lovely piece that could have easily been on My Father Will Guide Me up a Rope to the Sky.
Karen O makes an appearance on the first track of disc 2, and that’s probably the most notable thing about “Song For a Warrior;” it’s a song where a vaguely alternative rock star does a bit of singing. “Avatar” starts with the sound of bells that opened My Father two years back, with the track “No Words/No Thoughts.” This track lacks the intensity of “No Words”however, and seems to come and go without leaving much of an impression. The majority of disc two is taken up by two tracks, “A Piece of the Sky” and “Apostate.” The former starts with the sound of a crackling campfire, then builds up a drone of voices and violins; humming and whining. It gets almost Penderecki before the drums appear. When they do, they bring with them light, ease, and even a hint of Tortoise. This is a loose comparison (unlike the Can one earlier), and is probably lazy shorthand to describe a track that has a melancholic post-rock feel to it. The final section sees “A Piece of the Sky” become a song; a country ballad-tinged song, to be precise. “Apostate “begins with abstract noise that stretches out for some time before any semblance of a rhythm makes itself known. When ‘rhythm’ shows itself, it’s very minimal, very slow. Then all descends into chaos with stuttering drums and subdued feedback. After build ups and bombast we are back in the loose grooves that brought up talk of Can earlier. This is indeed a much more mantric Swans that we’ve been used to, and the term Krautrock does actually rear its head as a desciption.There is no doubting that The Seer is a statement from a band who are continuing to forge ahead without clinging on to their past. However, it really could have done what it intended to in maybe two thirds of the time. We didn’t need the full two hours.
-Jay Harper-
