Album Review: Deaf Wish - Lithium Zion

24 July 2018 | 11:37 am | Chris Familton

"Deaf Wish are resolute in their celebration of post-punk-informed rock'n'roll."

Straight out of the gates, the Melbourne quartet locks into a relentless distorted churn of guitars that sounds like '90s era Bailter Space sharing a practice room with Blank Realm.

The guitars never let up but the lazy vocals smear a dull monotone melody across the surface of the song, Easy. It's a wonderfully hypnotic and mildly unsettling start to an album that has a real sense of sonic self-determination about it. In the face of dippy psych rock and lightweight indie rock, Deaf Wish are resolute in their celebration of post-punk-informed rock'n'roll.

Sonic Youth are an obvious touchstone and an unavoidable comparison when Sarah Hardiman intones a Kim Gordon-styled sing/speak vocal on FFS. Beneath her, the guitars rip, chop and howl, combining dissonance and hook-laden melody, as they do right across the album. Things slow down with The Rat Is Back but essentially it's the same thing on half-speed - a pause for breath before they hurtle back into the rapid-fire dispatch of Ox. The title track best encompasses all that the band attempt to cram into their sound - the density and sonic collision of rhythm and riffs. It's one of those songs that could easily power on for ten unrelenting minutes without outstaying its welcome.

There's a dark beauty across Lithium Zion. Sometimes it feels impenetrable but when the songs come up for oxygen they can blossom on something as simple as an ungainly vocal line or a melancholic, fuzzed-out trail of guitar notes.

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