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It’s set to be a big year for London industrial-noise-pop trio TAYNE. Their blistering live shows and the strength of recent singles have placed them on ‘Ones to Watch’ lists of various publications including this one, not to mention the fact that they recently signed to MNRK Heavy, home to the likes of MASTIFF, POP EVIL and THE CALLOUS DAOBOYS. The imprint is set to release their debut album, Love, on 31 January, which is set to justify the ever-building hype.
Erased sets the scene in cinematic fashion, sounding like the soundtrack to some sci-fi noir film with its pulsating bass swells and mechanoid percussion before a RAMMSTEIN-esque four to the floor beat and riff combo injects 50CCs of adrenaline straight into the listener’s sternum. Clean vocals give way to anguished screams before the whole thing judders to an end. At less than two minutes long it’s less of a song, more a short, sharp statement of intent. Consider our interest piqued.
Down is the first proper song and it’s built around a sensual backbeat that sounds like it was made to get leather clad hips gyrating on the darkened dancefloors of Berlin’s seediest goth clubs. The demented disco stomp of Coherent is a highlight early on, with vocalist Matt Sutton trading putting his haunting melodies up against CAGE FIGHT’s Rachel Aspe’s trademark screams. Elsewhere, James Spence of label mates ROLO TOMASSI makes a thrilling appearance on the GODFLESH-meets-LADA GAGA rager, Fear.
TAYNE wear their influences on their sleeve and while they certainly lean into comparisons with the likes of HEALTH and NINE INCH NAILS, they’re far from carbon copies of these acts, bringing their own flare and idiosyncrasies to the table.
By far the most unique element of their sonic palette is Sutton’s vocal delivery and the way the band juxtaposes pummelling drum machines and buzzsaw guitars with his breathy, ethereal singing voice. His vocal harmonies are layered and drenched in reverb to the point they take on an instrumental nature of their own, occupying the space where a synthesised string section might sit on a more traditional dance track. His presence on tracks like We and Wasted is like a guardian angel enclosed in shimmering light, guiding the listener through a desolate post-apocalyptic wasteland.
The album’s overarching theme of love as conflict is reflected in the stark contrast between these delicate vocal melodies and the muscular aggression of the juddering drum samples and liberal use of analogue synths, shades of light and dark being used not only to paint a beautiful picture, but also creating tension and unease, the way human relationships often do.
This approach does become slightly detrimental to the album’s overall aesthetic at times though. Given Matt’s unique enunciation (or lack thereof) and the fact there’s so much going on in terms of instrumentation and sound design, it’s often difficult to decipher exactly what Matt is singing about. Granted, heavy music has a rich and and joyous history of songs with indecipherable lyrics, but it’s still rare that it’s the bits where there’s clean singing that are hardest to make out. It’s a minor niggle though, the sum of TAYNE‘s parts still making for a thoroughly rewarding listening experience.
In the latter half of the album, In This Trend is another standout track, providing a thrilling, high octane conclusion replete with more bang-your-head riffing propelled by stomping drums and glitchy synths. They probably could have ended it there, however, final track Nothing serves as a moody closing credits sequence.
Overall, a sonically rich and engaging collection of songs that reveal more on each listen, Love will no doubt be a catalyst for this exciting trio to do great things in the months and years to come.
Rating: 8/10
Love is set for release on January 31st via Inside Job/MNRK.
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