Vukovar live, somewhere in London
What an album again by Vukovar (UK)! “The Body Abdicator” LP was released on Digital format and CD earlier in the summer (June 25) through Other Voices Records containing 9 songs originating from the same ‘fountain’ as their previous albums, “The Collosalist” (2020) and “The Great Immurement” (2021). Apart from the art they create which is always at least interesting and bizarre, there is a deeper motivation in their lyrics/words and in their music in its final form. Let me show you what you’ll read on their Bandcamp page;
Following ‘THE COLOSSALIST’ and ‘THE GREAT IMMUREMENT’ and continuing the death-life commitment to their grave loss, VUKOVAR‘s final step in their obsessive memorial device to Simon Morris is ‘THE BODY ABDICATOR’. With the last twitches of the NeuPopAct, the perpetually reorganizing group have collided and colluded to now present their 10th LP and final part of the Eternity Ends Here triptych; the most ambitious thing attempted by the group and the most wrapped in turmoil. Joined by Gea Philes, this is a metaphysical and esoteric wasteland disguised as a pop album – For Simon Morris; His Name Means First And Last – …” Do not trust us; we are fragile stars.“
I dare to suspect with a reason that several things in the Eternity Ends Here triptych are either predisposition of Simon Morris or the same Vukovar as if ‘identifying’ him and then determining themselves too through the process. After the great mourn comes limpidity. All you’ll hear in their new album is an astonishing blend of experimentations masterfully plugged in their peculiar music that is by all means…no wave, generally. And yeah as a friend of mine once said “everything after post-punk is forever post-punk but in different shades”, and this is actually what Vukovar are doing. With an open mind and their ears always alert to the new waves and with the techniques they find for themselves, they play no wave to post-punk with a very cool keen on what they call ‘deathpop’ music.
Songs like “Little Deaths/Little Lights” and “Place To Rest” are unique in their new album as if they wanted to jump out of their rehearsal room to a pub for clearing their minds. These two songs are potentially superhit songs in the way alternative radio programs, are danceable and so much groovy with a kind of dark and hazy beauty in the riffing and the melodies. In the rest of the songs, they are practising what they know best and this is their insight and awareness of when a song must end, and more than this their ability to experiment with knowledge in their music and how and when experimentation may plug into a “normal” song. You won’t hear any vast ambient music or drone music or oddities. You will hear them jam (sometimes for 6 or 8 minutes) as they follow one certain structure in their minds, and you will also hear so much emotion while singing and when twisting things in their music. There is grey all over their music but not dark, there is mist in it without hiding the whole picture, they know!!!
Keep up with Vukovar:
Written by Loud Cities’ Mike
