Although for some of his diehards his best works saw the light of day last decade, in The beggar the charisma and mastery of Michael Gira and his colleagues emerges again, reminding in capital letters that in this rock they still have something to say. And this they have been talking about since the eighties and nineties, when it was almost a cliché that they were defined as the noisiest experimental band in the world. They made noises around the forum then and returned to the scene in 2010, with Gira firmly at the helm. And that intensity translates into the music that continues to emanate from the American band on this already 16th album.
Composed during the cloister – which is transmitted in a general atmosphere with a claustrophobic aroma -, The beggar reflects the vision that this Gira, who is almost seventy years old, has in matters such as life and mortality: in one of the most important themes of the work, Paradise is mine, he literally asks himself if he is ready to die. Despite this starting point, the resulting compositions show a master aesthetic, in the form of a beauty that atmospherically surrounds the listener. This means that one of the first sensations when tasting them is that the forcefulness that used to be one of their hallmarks has been substantially diluted. But there is no need to worry because there is plenty to choose from: there are flavors of Brian Eno, Lou Reed or masterful choral pieces such as No more of this.
SWANS
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THE
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MUTE/PIAS
