Even through the dissonant guitars clamoring to get your attention in the background, there is no doubt that Viet Cong’s self-titled debut album was carefully orchestrated. Each individual track is a work on its own, with a dark, cold tone somehow interweaving itself throughout the whole album. There is something intrinsically nihilistic about this record, from the lyrics “…if we’re lucky, we’ll get old and die” in “Pointless Experience”, to the almost apocalyptic verses in “Continental Shelf.” However, the doomsday vibe doesn’t get tiresome, instead it leads itself into a nervous energy that suggests revitalization through the sheer construction of the music. This follows through without even mentioning the massive composition that concludes the record. The eleven minute track, “Death”, gives out a story line, complete with beginning, peak, and end, finalizing the record with a repeated, clashing of sounds that forces you to pay attention to what’s being said.
8/10
