Customer Reviews

Law of Ruins

5 star:		(3)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(0)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

My god, what can I say about this truly mind blowing album? Forget this 5 star shenanigans, I would give this 6 stars if I could. In my opinion, this is one of the best albums to have come out in the last 20 years or so and is hands down one of my top ten favorite albums along with Jane's Addiction's "Ritual de lo Habitual" and Led Zeppelin's "Houses of the Holy." Sadly though, to the best of my knowledge not that many people have heard of this album or much less the band (the one excpetion so far being my friend Chris who was their sound board op. for a show of their's in their home state of Rhode Island) which is why I wanted to put a review up here so that I could strongly encourage people to check both out.

"Law of Ruins" is an amazing modern rock album, not only because it has a modern sound thanks to the keyboards, sound effects, experimental touches (e.g. the final track "Hertz So Good")and production, but because it also contains all the energy that any good rock and roll band does. Analogies and comparisons(though none could truly hit the mark, but it's fun anyway): what if Devo had had more of a rock and roll sound and been on speed? What if The Stooges had been given keyboards? What if a bunch of killer robots decided to form a rock and roll band? Words to describe "Law of Ruins" : violent, intelligent, sharp, crafty( the change between "Sea of Tranquility Pts.1&2") ,ghosts , monsters, scientists, janitors ("Surveilance House"), rocking, crushing ("Surveillance House" again), suprising ( the quieter feel of "Fall to pieces" following the awesome ear crunching of the first two tracks, it's almost a relief from their excitement), etc.

As far as I know, there is no other band that sounds like this and for that I am not only glad but impressed. It's one thing for a band to have a unique sound, but it's another thing for a band to have a unique sound and kick you know what. Their entire catalogue is also great (well, their first release entitled "Weapon" doesn't really sound like the later stuff), but this album is their opus (so far anyway, I've been waiting 4 long years for them to put out another one). I could probably go on and on about how incredible this album and the band are, but with "Law of Ruins" words can't accurately do it justice. Like Morpheus says "No one can be told what the Matrix is. You have to see it for yourself." Come to think of it, "Law of Ruins" would probably eat the Matrix for breakfast. But enough of my rambling. I strongly urge you to find out for yourself.

this was the best release of 1998, BAR NONE. post rock you say? no way, man...this blows the likes of both Shellac and Radiohead away with the sound of a band literally falling to pieces and trying desperately to hold itself together (comparable to Pere Ubu's 1979 masterpiece NEW PICNIC TIME) while in the meantime spewing out some of the finest, gut-wrenching, take no prisoners rock and roll. what can you say about a record that both SPIN and ROLLING STONE refused to review? the other half of the rock and roll coin on this record consists of 6FS doing their imitation of Trans Am and actually doing a better job at it than TA ever could. why 6fs never made a modern minimalist techno update of their excellent MACHINE CUISINE 10" is beyond me, as they coulda been huge in Germany. this is one record that EVERYONE should own. if you like this, also check out SERENADE IN RED by OXBOW, NEW PICNIC TIME by Pere Ubu, and ANYTHING on the Chain Reaction label (distributed by Caroline in the U.S.).

Slow tunes mix dub with new-tech noise. Pensive with an edge. But this one is all about rage. It's a tour of the heart's deepest cravings. As a fan of Killers-era Alice Cooper, it was a joy to hear a modern version of real rock. Mania of "Just as predicted, I blame the chemicals" refrain is one for the ages. It's FOIN.

Bought this because my old copy got destroyed due to my neglect of cds in my youth. So glad I did. Six Finger Satellite is one of my favorites. Law of Ruins was their last proper record and, upon further listening years after I ruined my original copy, may be my favorite of theirs. The tone they achieved on their records is unbelievable and creates a very cold and sinister mood. Way out there space jams with a touch of cold steel and German. The sound of smoking crystal meth and then beating the crap out of Big Black. Everyone should own a Six Finger record, if only to use to frighten children and make your neighbors want to kill themselves because they realize what a failure their lives have been in comparison.

While maybe not as pulverizingly and brutally appealing as their masterpiece, Severe Exposure, 6 Finger Satellite still manage to add new tricks to their already bizarre and wacky sound on Law of Ruins. While many tracks are a triumphant return to the spastic and abrasive guitar workouts that were left largely behind on Paranormalized, there are also many spacious synth grooves here, where 6FS allow their already harrowing and claustrophobic noise to grow to mesmeric dimensions. For example, Fall to Pieces is 7 minutes of droning drums and bleeping synth noises. Elsewhere, however, the trademark 6FS tweaked-synth + motoric drums + guitar-as-white-noise blueprint is in full effect. As always, 6FS prove themselves to be tireless inventors. Complete lunacy has never been so interesting or so tongue-in-cheek.