Indie? Post rock? Progressive? Is it even worth trying to classify an album as richly inventive as M.Fallan’s ‘contagious’ or is it better to sit back and let the lush soundscapes and impassioned vocals wash over you no matter what genre it may or may not claim allegiance to? There is, however, one name that bears comparison, if only to provide some area of common ground, and that is Anathema, or at least Anathema if they had been fronted by Jeff Buckley.
Opening with the stunningly lush ‘withered skin’ it is clear from the off that M.Fallon is not possessed of minimalist sensibilities. His is a blend of post rock and progressive rock that journalists in the nineties used to employ the annoying epithet ‘widescreen’ to describe for lack of any better descriptive powers. Incorporated into the music you will find delicate synth, beautifully produced acoustic passages and slide guitar, not to mention layered vocals and the drum sound of the gods (part Def Leppard echo, part Radiohead gloss) all of which seek to ensnare you in beautiful gossamer web that looks and feels fragile until you try to break it apart and escape, at which point you are restrained for the duration. ‘Drown once again’ is a lighter moment, musically, with a faster tempo and dreamy lead that slides languidly across the acoustic guitar before we’re treated to a layered vocal that recalls the beauty of Elliot Smith. ‘All raised in rows’ sees the pace raised yet further for a track that is shot through with the darkness of The Cure at their most vicious, coupled with the lyrical venom of Thom Yorke and the disdain of A perfect circle… yet the place it comes from musically is all the M. Fallan’s own – a unique attack that is far from heavy in any traditional sense and yet due to the thick atmosphere somehow feels like it is, a trick that few acts can pull off with any success.
‘Mirrors’ is a stunning, smoky, soulful number, all somnambulant percussion and liquid guitars backing the vocals with an intensity that brings the later Nick Cave albums to mind. It’s the blues filtered through a progressive filter and then treated with THC and it sounds frequently immense. ‘Willing and able’ equally starts off in a singer-songwriter vain before the picture pulls back and we can suddenly see the whole glorious picture, the darkness shot through with rays of glimmering light and reflection, it’s sad, beautiful, tragic and triumphant all at once and the songs are cunningly crafted so as to never outstay their welcome. ‘Weak’, with its opening cry of “why are you such a freak?” belongs on a Roger Waters album, the alienated cries set to a cacophonous track that gathers unexpected ferocity as the track progresses – if ‘the wall’ had been in written in this era, ‘weak’ would undoubtedly have fitted perfectly upon it. After such an intense moment, ‘the road to ruin’ maintains the atmosphere with a driving rhythm and furious stabs of guitar offset by the melody of an acoustic piano and sudden tempo shifts. ‘The gloom’ sees the album accelerating towards its conclusion, buried under a cloud of paranoia and depression which makes for uncomfortable if frequently stunning listening. ‘Wasteland’ is an updated take on Joy Division’s bleak discomfort filtered through the intervening musical experience of Radiohead, VAST and Angels of light with its syncopated rhythms and tortured yet tuneful vocals and then ‘oblivion’ brings us to the place of its title with a heart-rending melody that dips into minor key despair over a solitary piano.
‘Contagious’ is a truly stunning, if disconcerting album. Echoing back through the ages it follows in the grand tradition of great despair making great art (David Bowie’s ‘Low’, Nirvana’s ‘In utero’, Anathema’s ‘judgement’… the list goes on) with a sense of voyeurism engendered by the naked, soul-baring lyrics, offset by the sheer traumatic beauty of the music. This is a record that once again reminds exactly why music is one of the most important, and underrated, art forms and the sumptuous artwork that adorns the cover only adds to this conclusion. A wonderful, often difficult but always beautiful listen, ‘Contagious’ is a remarkable record indeed and M. Fallan a brave and intelligent artist whose work is well worth exploring in great detail.
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