THE ANGELS OF LIGHT THE ANGELS OF LIGHT SINGS OTHER PEOPLE ALBUM YOUNG GOD RELEASE: MARCH 14, 2005 REVIEW: MARCH 31, 2005

It was bound to happen at some point, and if you've heard the album which M. Gira did a few years back with Windsor for the Derby's Dan Matz "What We Did" (Young God Records), you won't be surprised. The Angels of Light have made the closest thing to a pop album that they ever will. Gone are the long builds and epic crescendos of the past. Oh, don't worry, the bitterness is still there. The resentment also features strongly.
There is quite a folk influence on this album, primarily provided by Gira's new line-up which mainly consists of Akron/Family, four lads who are signed to his label. He was so impressed with their own work that he asked them to contribute. The one deliberately different approach which was also taken for "Other People" was the exclusion of drums and percussion overall.
Generally speaking, the music is a mixture of calm, reflective ballads, "To Live Through Someone", twangy depictions of sad, lost characters "Dawn", oddly recorded, claustrophobic rants on certain individuals "Simon Is Stronger Than Us" and, most impressively, the vehemently militant "Michael's White Hands". This song was debuted to me on their last tour for "Everything Is Good Here..." and it blew me away. It is one hell of a song. I also cannot forget to mention the wryly inserted string arrangement for the "The Kid Is Already Breaking" which takes this composition from a tale of second-guessing to an endearing apology ending with bittersweet loss. This is really moving; I find myself playing it over and over.
That this album is almost entirely acoustic is testament to the perseverance of an artist honing his craft. The melodies play off against one another in the most dynamic manner possible but never do they act as more than an accent to the amazing lyrics which Gira (as ever) has written. Truly, this man is a literary force of nature.
Die-hard Swans fans will probably not be into this new tome from Michael Gira, and for that, they are to be pitied. "Other People" really is a new chapter in the career of this sometimes turbulent but always engaging man. Do I like this as much as his four previous Angels of Light releases (yes, I'm counting the live album) you may ask?
Absolutely.

PETER MARKS