Modern Creatures

Vancouver, British Columbia, is a rich breeding ground for experimental bands of all stripes, and this act is one of that scene's shining stars. Listening to Modern Creatures is not unlike watching an especially entrancing but unfamiliar Edgar Allan Poe movie on a TV station with snowy reception: Distorted, grittily...

By Tom Murphy

May 14, 2009

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Vancouver, British Columbia, is a rich breeding ground for experimental bands of all stripes, and this act is one of that scene's shining stars. Listening to Modern Creatures is not unlike watching an especially entrancing but unfamiliar Edgar Allan Poe movie on a TV station with snowy reception: Distorted, grittily sinuous dual bass lines intertwine with propulsive drums to create dense atmospheres shot through with an irresistible drive. Nikki Nevver's voice haunts the upper registers of each song like a desperately mournful spirit. Fans of the more avant-garde end of Crass and Scream-era Siouxsie & the Banshees should definitely check this band out. The live shows are a burst of frantic energy inside a gyrating vortex of emotional intensity. Beyond that, Modern Creatures is pure punk-rock attitude informed by social conscience and vivid imagination.

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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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