If you ignore “Best Of” and remix compilations, the last time we heard from Sweden’s gothic, glam-metal maestro’s DEATHSTARS properly, was 2009’s “Night Electric Night”. It was a solid album from start to finish and further proved their reliability for churning out top tunes, but while the prospect of brand new material is exciting, it’s worth noting that there’s been a little shuffling going on in the ranks. Now as a 4-piece unit, courtesy of the departure of guitarist Cat Casino, Deathstars have had to tighten up as musicians, especially on the live stage, but has it affected their song writing? Upon listening to the latest record; “The Perfect Cult”, it appears not.
Opening up with “Explode”, it’s clear that the core Deathstars sound hasn't wavered in the slightest; we still have the brooding bass, the almost haunting synthesisers and of course, Whiplasher’s distinctive, deep vocal drawl. It’s all very familiar, and despite the tracks title, it doesn't really excite a great deal, it’s quite relaxed all things considered. First single, “All The Devils Toys”, is a brilliantly catchy track and is in all honesty some of the most accessible music they've ever released, it’s got a real foot tapping chorus and is easily up there with past hits like “Cyanide” in terms of quality; great stuff.
The title track keeps things rolling along nicely, generally more of the same, or, textbook Deathstars you could say, while “Temple Of Insects” and then finally “Noise Cuts” see out the album as standard. Essentially it can be said that, yes, this is yet another strong album from the Swede’s, they've not lost their touch, but, it can also be said that they've not really learnt anything new either. Whiplasher has never really had much of an extensive vocal range, not just evident here but spanning all of their albums to date really, and, without trying to sound harsh they risk becoming a one trick pony. Granted, as I said they are capable of churning out quality tunes, but they do need a change of tactics if they are to continue long-term. They have their fan base, but it doesn't stop things eventually going stale. Perfect in name, but if this were one of the Devil’s toys…I'm sure he wouldn't play with it for very long. [6]
The album; "The Perfect Cult" is available on iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/the-perfect-cult/id876431574
Opening up with “Explode”, it’s clear that the core Deathstars sound hasn't wavered in the slightest; we still have the brooding bass, the almost haunting synthesisers and of course, Whiplasher’s distinctive, deep vocal drawl. It’s all very familiar, and despite the tracks title, it doesn't really excite a great deal, it’s quite relaxed all things considered. First single, “All The Devils Toys”, is a brilliantly catchy track and is in all honesty some of the most accessible music they've ever released, it’s got a real foot tapping chorus and is easily up there with past hits like “Cyanide” in terms of quality; great stuff.
The title track keeps things rolling along nicely, generally more of the same, or, textbook Deathstars you could say, while “Temple Of Insects” and then finally “Noise Cuts” see out the album as standard. Essentially it can be said that, yes, this is yet another strong album from the Swede’s, they've not lost their touch, but, it can also be said that they've not really learnt anything new either. Whiplasher has never really had much of an extensive vocal range, not just evident here but spanning all of their albums to date really, and, without trying to sound harsh they risk becoming a one trick pony. Granted, as I said they are capable of churning out quality tunes, but they do need a change of tactics if they are to continue long-term. They have their fan base, but it doesn't stop things eventually going stale. Perfect in name, but if this were one of the Devil’s toys…I'm sure he wouldn't play with it for very long. [6]
The album; "The Perfect Cult" is available on iTunes: https://itunes.apple.com/gb/album/the-perfect-cult/id876431574
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