music reviews

::: Fear of Dolls ::: "When the Organ Played at Twilight"

darkwave-rock-gothic

Low and husky female vocals, swirling, droning & hypnotic, dissonant guitars, ritualistic bass & drums... these make up the dark brooding gothic concoction that is the Fear of Dolls. Imagine a much more polished and darker version of the Velvet Underground crossed with early Siouxsie & the Banshees & Einsteurzende Neubauten and you'll get something close to Fear of Dolls. Another possible descrition would be Babes in Toyland without the screaming and obscenities.

I was surprised that this CD blew me away as dark gothic music has largely slipped out of my audio-diet in recent years. "St. Dymphna" broods & snarls like a twisting serpent. "Bleeding on her wings" is an 11 minute epic that begins with several minutes of ambient drones and then a gradually building slow piece of minimalist dark rock that reminds of Loop (an old favourite of mine). "Fragile toy" has a childlike folk-lullaby feel to it. Whereas "Show me my insides" is very industrial but without any electronics. Slow and ritualistic it reminds of mid-80s Einsteurzende Neubauten. Each track is quite distinct even though it works very well as an album. 6 tracks over 33 minutes.

Available for: $8 US, PO Box 20151 Seattle WA 98102 USA. E-mail: [email protected], [email protected] Web: www.fearofdolls.com They also have a page on mp3.com