A mate of mine has been making reference to Holy Fuck for a while now. Me, I've been playing it cool, not because my friend has bad taste, but because we don't agree on everything musical and he likes some dancier electro stuff, while I'm not so keen as a rule. Besides, I've got so much music to immerse myself in, I can't act on every recommendation... I know, it's a tough life.
Anyway, this landed through my mailbox the other day and... Holy Fuck! It's good. No, it's better than good. Just when I was beginning to think that the while instrumental thing was getting a bit monotonous (I've lost count of the number of instrumental post-rock and electro bands I've seen play live in the last six to eight months, and after a while it dulls the senses), along come Holy Fuck with 'ËœLatin.'
So what makes it so jaw-droppingly good, so eye-openingly awesome? In some respects it's hard to say. But isn't that what makes great music great? I always try to review objectively, but the most exciting music never hits you on an objective level. Put simply, 'Latin' achieves so much, incorporates so many different elements and leaps in so many different and unexpected directions, and makes it all sound so natural, that it can't fail to captivate. It's imaginative. It's EXCITING. It doesn't sound like anything else (while at the same time sounding like an amalgamation of everything else).
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Across the entire album, 'Latin' has grooves. Relentless, powerful, infectious grooves. It also has dirt, as demonstrated by the freak-out that is 'SHT MTN.' It has explosions of sound, no more ably exemplified than on 'Saliva & Grimes.' It has attack. Closer 'P.I.G.S.' rocks hard, while also featuring a noodlesome lead snyth line that almost battles against the grinding bass and relentless, driving percussion, yet works perfectly. And there's more. It has BALLS. Enormous balls, and almost limitless ideas, matched by execution. Broadly speaking, it's an electro album, but ultimately, 'Latin' defies genres: it's music, and, most importantly, it's bloody good music.
In short, 'Latin' is awesome: its range is broad, drawing on an immense range of styles while forging a sound that is truly unique. Nothing short of brilliant.
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