My Ruin - The Horror Of Beauty
2003 - Century Media Records
By Philip Whitehouse
Go to the Century Media Records web site.
No-one could really accuse My Ruin of having enjoyed an easy road to the cult success they have earned for themselves - written off by the misogynistic rantings of prating man-hacks, utterly devoid of radio support, and more recently, screwed over by their former label Spitfire - but I'll be damned if it hasn't stoked the fire in their collective belly, because The Horror Of Beauty is a raw, unhinged assault on everyone standing in My Ruin's way.
Compared to their last studio output, this is a more stripped-down, edgy sounding affair - Mick Murphy peels out riff after huge-ass riff of stoner-esque savagery, melding hardcore punk attitude to Black Sabbath-like downtuned bludgeoning, while Yael and Meghan keep the rhythm section locked tight with their respective drum and bass-playing proficiency. As ever though, the focal point of the sound is the throat of the irrepressible Miss B - Tairrie tears strips from hear throat in track after track of roaring, angry catharsis - here railing against her former label's boss ('Spitfire'), there hitting out against the radio stations that overlook the band ('Radio Silence'), and elsewhere repeating her self-acceptance, anti-consumerist, anti-superficiality messages with the utmost conviction and volume ('Made To Measure'). There's even a re-working of PJ Harvey classic 'Rid Of Me', to up the 'Riot Grrl' quotient somewhat.
While some of the diversity in mood and the penchant for crafting more sinister aural soundscapes has been lost in this release, it's been replaced with a coming-out-fighting, no-holds-barred attitude that more than makes up for the loss of experimentalism by replacing it with an irresistable, visceral nature that is as immediate in its impact as it is honest in its execution.
7.5/10
2003 - Century Media Records
By Philip Whitehouse
Go to the Century Media Records web site.
No-one could really accuse My Ruin of having enjoyed an easy road to the cult success they have earned for themselves - written off by the misogynistic rantings of prating man-hacks, utterly devoid of radio support, and more recently, screwed over by their former label Spitfire - but I'll be damned if it hasn't stoked the fire in their collective belly, because The Horror Of Beauty is a raw, unhinged assault on everyone standing in My Ruin's way.
Compared to their last studio output, this is a more stripped-down, edgy sounding affair - Mick Murphy peels out riff after huge-ass riff of stoner-esque savagery, melding hardcore punk attitude to Black Sabbath-like downtuned bludgeoning, while Yael and Meghan keep the rhythm section locked tight with their respective drum and bass-playing proficiency. As ever though, the focal point of the sound is the throat of the irrepressible Miss B - Tairrie tears strips from hear throat in track after track of roaring, angry catharsis - here railing against her former label's boss ('Spitfire'), there hitting out against the radio stations that overlook the band ('Radio Silence'), and elsewhere repeating her self-acceptance, anti-consumerist, anti-superficiality messages with the utmost conviction and volume ('Made To Measure'). There's even a re-working of PJ Harvey classic 'Rid Of Me', to up the 'Riot Grrl' quotient somewhat.
While some of the diversity in mood and the penchant for crafting more sinister aural soundscapes has been lost in this release, it's been replaced with a coming-out-fighting, no-holds-barred attitude that more than makes up for the loss of experimentalism by replacing it with an irresistable, visceral nature that is as immediate in its impact as it is honest in its execution.
7.5/10
