Dusted Reviews
Artist: I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness Album: I Love You But I've Chosen Darkness Label: Emperor Jones Review date: Dec. 18, 2003 |
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Emperor Jones happens to be one of the more adventurous labels when it comes to gorgeous experimental music like Thuja and Alastair Galbraith/Matt de Gennaro or edgy drone rock by Steven Smith. While mostly off the beaten path, EJ Records sometimes offers an emotional intensity unlike any other. When I Love You But I’ve Chosen Darkness (both the name of the band and release) was dropped into the CD player, I was surprised to hear indie-rock blare out of the speakers. I Love You... is comprised of traditional band arrangements – drums, guitars, bass and vocals – that deliver angsty, bleak, yet ultimately energetic songs.
Immediately evident is the band’s tight and adept performance, which makes sense since Christian Goyer, Jason McNeely, Edward Robert, Ernest Salaz and Tim White have been in various other bands on labels like Young God and Trance Syndicate. Also evident is I Love You...’s strong sense of rhythm and danceability, which is refreshing for a genre that often inspires shoegazing or fist-waving. Two particularly strong tracks are “I want to die in the hot summer” and “When you go out”. The former opens with a steady kick-drum tempo and equally steady guitar notes, followed by an assemblage of instruments that gain a sense of urgency as the song progresses. The song seems so bleak, yet so natural, which creates an interesting emotional paradox.
“When you go out” is easily the best track on this album and would work well as a rock driven dance cut. This song has the drive and energy of an anthem and is something to be bobbed and danced along to rather than merely listened to. These songs are short and in keeping with the delicious intensity that Emperor Jones maintains no matter what the genre. However, this CD is also a 17-minute, five-track debut release and is not a full indication of this band’s capabilities.
I love you... is a good EP and the music would be a pleasant surprise if one was happening to chance by a club on the way home from work. It’s not necessarily the kind of music that compels analysis, but at the same time, it’s clear that the potential for greateness hangs on every note.
By I Khider
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