Gangcharger

If the term "industrial" wasn't already fairly synonymous with the heavy, dark electronic music made popular in the late '80s and early '90s, it would certainly apply here. It's as though Ethan Ward, while living in big cities across the country, heard the clashing ambience of construction and factory production...

By Tom Murphy

October 19, 2010

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If the term "industrial" wasn't already fairly synonymous with the heavy, dark electronic music made popular in the late '80s and early '90s, it would certainly apply here. It's as though Ethan Ward, while living in big cities across the country, heard the clashing ambience of construction and factory production in the nearby distance and approximated a musical version of that in the guitar sound and rhythms on this album. But this isn't dystopian music — unless, that is, you're turned off by moody music with some fire and fangs. This is noise rock inspired by urban decay and civilization on the verge of collapse under the weight of its own hubris — and yet there's an unexpected, steely hopefulness underneath its razory sound.

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Tom Murphy is a writer, visual artist and musician from Aurora, Colorado. He was a prolific music writer for Westword and a documenter of the Denver music scene.

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Twitter: @simianthinker