Zeal and Ardor
Devil Is Fine
Reviewed by: Geno Thackara
What do old-time Americana, hard-baked blues and modern Scandinavian metal have in common? If you’ve got a taste for the morbid, the answer might already be obvious: they all offer a whole lot of room for spooky black magic. It’s only human to have some little deep-down attraction to things that are a bit unnerving – gargoyles, horror films, Hello Kitty, whatever it may be. Manuel Gagneux definitely recognizes the appeal, and under the name Zeal and Ardor he’s willing to let his weirdest impulses run free just to see what wicked somethings might turn up.
Devil Is Fine kicks off with a chain-gang chorus that could have come out of the deep South, but it’s a long way from country spirituals or even gothic hymns – this is more the kind of chant you could sacrifice a goat to. Add a little abrasive fuzz and simple piano and it becomes something otherworldly. Within a couple more tracks Gagneaux is playing around with double-kick speed drumming and crunchy thrash guitar, then sprinkling around some techno beats or monk-like chanting at fun moments. Most strangely, a couple spots of childlike xylophone or music-box chiming make a perversely cute cherry to top off the craziness sundae.
It’s an audacious mix that comes out unnatural and unsettling, which is precisely what makes it succeed. Devil Is Fine is a rough ride full of sulfur and brimstone – an album that’s intense, slightly frightening and maybe a bit dangerous to one’s mental health. I can’t shake the suspicion that there must also be a downside somewhere, but for the moment I haven’t found it. Crank up and enjoy until the goblins come out.
Rating: Bad-Ass
