Name: A decade in glitter and danger
Band: Porn
Genre: Industrial Rock
Release Date: 26th March 2010
Label: Freaksound Music / BlackRain
Album Review
It all began back in 1999, when Phil D (vocals) studying psychology and sociology in France, Grenoble, decided to start his own band. The band’s name is mostly homage to THE CURE’s ‘Pornography’ album, but it is also a way of expressing a will to really live things, feelings and acts unrestrained: a quest for absolutes. The message is not only sexual but also intellectual. On September 11th, 2001, Phil D. moved to Lyon, joining his old friend Hughes B. who would be PORN’s bassist. Lyric was then recruited in 2002. He would take care of the machines. Together they re-recorded the three songs of the first EP, plus ‘The Fee’. PORN’s sound was born. PORN’s first LP, ‘Glitter danger and Toyboyz’, was released in 2004. In 2005, PORN released ‘Call me Superfurry’. The band signed with AUSFAHRT in Berlin. The new CD ‘A decade in glitter in danger’ can be seen as a Best-of acting as a reminder of a decade of joy, and pain.
Somehow it doesn't surprise me that a band called PORN starts his new CD ‘A decade in glitter and danger’ with a sex-recording. The listener is pleasured by 2 minutes of sex. Is there a better way to start a CD? Well, yes there is, but, in some awkward way, it kind of fits. ‘Superfurry’, the second song, starts with some electronic sounds combined with guitars and a voice that reminds me of ZEROMANCER or some other common band. Already here you can hear influences from PLACEBO and NIN but PORN manage to make it their own. The combination of electro- and guitar-based sound is quite interesting. The song though is a little too short in my eyes. Just when you are right into it, it stops. That's a pity. The next song ‘Call me’ begins way heavier than the first one and you could easily mix the band up with MARILYN MANSON which is good on the one hand but kind of sad on the other hand. ‘Call me’ is a BLONDIE cover which was also interpreted by THE 69 EYES. PORN actually produced a pretty good cover which is almost like the original.
People who like LONDON AFTER MIDNIGHT should be pretty pleased by the next song called ‘Recycle’. The song is pretty slow yet powerful at the same time, actually quite nice to listen to. Philippe D. on vocals sounds similar to Brian Molko (PLACEBO) which gives a great touch to the dark sound. ‘The Fee’ is an old PORN song made new. Fans of Trent Reznor (NIN) will definitely be pleased by the new version. The chorus contains more rock than the lines in between which gives a great contrast. Actually, the new version is better than the old one. So, good work there. ‘Baby smack’ shows all the Electro-Rock power PORN has to offer. Great sound combined with a catchy melody and nice (but sometimes too high) voice. All in all, this is probably one of the best songs on the new album. You should definitely listen to it. ‘Borderline’ just sounds like some other song on some other album which is pretty sad if you ask me. So, there’s nothing to say about this song, let's move to the next one called ‘Soft machine porn machine’ which immediately catches your ear. It is probably the one song they could easily play in a club and get a lot of people moving. The Line “My best friend is my left hand” shows that this song is probably not meant to be played in front of small children. The words “bone machine” show that, too.
The next two songs, ‘Don't be a Lady’ and ‘Stiff little things’, are completely different in every way. The hard electro sounds of ‘Don't be a Lady’ stands against the unplugged quietness of ‘Stiff little things’. Sometimes it is really nice to just sit back, relax and listen to a nice and quiet song like the second one. Here, the vocals stand out and show the talent Philippe D. has. I wish they were more songs like that on the CD. ‘The alternate reality man’ throws you back in the fast electro-corner you left for 5 minutes. It is interesting to see how PORN almost “plays” with the speed of this song. Sometimes, it is really slow and then, it gets back to a pretty fast sound. You might thing this would be disturbing but it actually isn't at all. Very well mixed here! The next two songs are covers from songs they already have on this CD, ‘Soft machine porn machine’ and ‘The fee’. I don't know why they did it because those versions are pretty needless in my eyes. Next time, please remember that remixes belong on a separate CD or a bonus CD. The last song ‘...is no gold’ gets back to the opener called ‘All that glitters...’ and closes the whole CD or at least it is supposed to do that, I guess. It actually contains electro sounds similar to COMBICHRIST which isn't really what you want to set at the end of a CD. Maybe not the right choice…
Well, all in all, ‘A decade in glitter and danger’ has good and bad songs. I will listen to songs like ‘Stiff little things’, ‘Call me’ and ‘Baby Smack’. So, if you like bands like MARILYN MANSON and NIN, you will probably like this CD, too.
Tracklist
01. All that glitters...
02. Superfurry
03. Call me
04. Recycle
05. The fee
06. Baby smack
07. Borderline
08. Soft machine / Porn machine
09. Don't be a lady
10. Stiff little things
11. The alternate reality (Manek Deboto and Craig Sue Mix)
12. Soft machine Porn Machine (Ls201 Mix)
13. The fee Corporation Mix (Dexy Corp Mix)
14. ...is no gold
Line-up
Hughes B. - Bass
Philippe D. - Vocals
MD, Step R. - Guitar
Step R. - Keys
Websites
http://porntheband.com/ / www.myspace.com/pornband
Cover Picture
Rating
Music: 6
Sound: 9
Extras: -
Total: 7.5 / 10
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