PROTOMARTYR – Detroit’s Post-Punk Misfits At Their Knife-Edged Best On New LP ‘FORMAL GROWTH IN THE DESERT’
Standout longplayers
3 June 2023
Detroit‘s post-punk eccentrics PROTOMARTYR unleashes their
new, 6th LP named FORMAL GROWTH IN THE DESERT yesterday.
Order info here.
It was recorded at the Sonic Ranch in Tornillo, TX with producer Jake Aron.
The songs came from a period of colossal transition for frontman/songwriter Joe Casey, including the death of his mother. But life does go on, and Casey describes the great theme of Formal Growth In The Desert as an embrace and acknowledgment of that fact.
A 12-song testament to “getting on with life,” even when it feels impossibly hard.
AllMusic: “As great as the band is, it’s the vocals and lyrics of Joe Casey that set Protomartyr apart from their peers. The melodies are as straightforward and muscular as ever, with more graceful structures yet executed with the precision and dynamics that makes their music so satisfying. Protomartyr would almost certainly have sounded like nay-sayers even in America’s salad days, but in 2023 Formal Growth in the Desert plays like another State of the Union essay from this band of intelligent malcontents, and what they have to say is strikingly effective as editorial commentary and as music.” Score: 4.5/5.
TUTV: Joe Casey‘s troubled soul and ongoing swing moods push this new full-length
to a remarkably emotional place, sonically as well as lyrically. Protomartyr at their
knife-edged best.
Singles/clips: Polacrilex Kid / Make Way / Elimination Dances
– POLACRILEX KID –
– MAKE WAY –
– ELIMINATION DANCES –
FULL ALBUM
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