Galanos
Deceiver Receiver
(2017, Pyrrhic Victory Records)
"Half punk, half surf, all despair." Without digging too deep into the expanse of darkness and the lust for shadows their crushing pieces yield, this is how Kingston-based foursome Galanos describe themselves. Lead singers Gregory Jaw (who also plays guitar) and Netochka Nezvanova alternate between solo voices on some tunes and a gloomy interwoven mist on others. The opener, "Loneliest of Men," is despairingly savage and reminiscent of the Cramps' punk/gothabilly sound, which in an interview the band bleakly described as thus: "We rotate in a frozen, violent, self-defeating space. The altar is full of self-sacrifice and we destroy ourselves for nothing." "Flashbomb" is shockingly evocative of early Nick Cave, both vocally and musically, and heavily bass-and-drum-driven with a bit of Pixies guitar thrown in. Stay on the lookout for this album, if desolation is your draw.
