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Acteurs
This is the debut release by Disappears' Brian Case and White/Light's Jeremy Lemos and it is a hugely promising one, deftly mixing together propulsive post-punk, electronic noise, industrial rhythms, and Case's wonderfully deadpan drawl to create something thoroughly bad-ass and charismatic.  Unfortunately, the duo's initial creative flurry seems to have yielded very few real songs, making this "mini-album" feel an awful lot like an awesome single with a handful of less-inspired bonus tracks tacked on.
It is rare to see a band put their best foot quite as nakedly as Acteurs do on this release, as it opens with its greatest moment and seems to grow incrementally less compelling with each song that follows.  Fortunately, that opening song ("Cloud Generating") is an absolutely stellar one.  In fact, it fleetingly made me think that I had just discovered one of my new favorite bands.  I also felt quite similarly about the slower, sexier follow-up ("Lowow").  Very few albums start as strongly as this one.
That initial euphoria diminished a bit with subsequent listens, however, as the duo's flaws gradually became a bit more apparent.  Still, Acteurs' aesthetic definitely hits the mark for me when Case and Lemos manage to write actual songs, which is something they do all too rarely.  In fact, they arguably only do it just once.  "Lowow" reprises everything great about its predecessor, again offering up a throbbing electronic beat, dissonant electronic flourishes, dub-influenced echo effects, obsessive repetition, and Case's wonderfully world-weary and debauched-sounding vocals, but loses a bit of its luster when it becomes clear that the lyrics consist entirely of "low low low low low" over and over again.  I still love it–I just wish Case had tried a bit harder (clearing his throat at the beginning was a nice touch though).
After that, the duo ill-advisedly dispense almost entirely with both vocals and beats, bringing them back only for the much more abstract "Golden Rabbit."  While the alternately swelling, pulsing, and throbbing soundscapes that remain are certainly likable in their own right, the decision to include so many of them leaves me completely baffled.  For one, Case's vocals are essential to the distinctiveness and personality of the band.  Secondly (and more importantly), I cannot begin to comprehend why Acteurs would devote 2/3 of their debut album to industrial-damaged ambiance after hitting upon such a beautifully executed, attention-grabbing blend of Gang of Four, Throbbing Gristle, and GVSB.  As enjoyable as some of the abstract pieces are, it is very hard to see them as anything other than filler after the duo had unleashed such a striking and near-perfect one-two punch of an opening.
I am also a bit mystified by Case's cryptic/seemingly nonsensical lyrics.  I understand that he is (successfully) going for both minimalism and attitude, but I feel like he could have done much better than "low low low low low" or "golden rabbits, lucky habits" on a release the features roughly four lines in its entirety.  Still, while perplexing artistic decisions abound, they do not eclipse the fact that Acteurs have definitely hit upon something quite wonderful.  "Cloud Generating" and "Lowow" are both great songs–hopefully there will someday be more coming, as I would much rather see this album as the uneven birth of a killer new band than as an exasperating glimpse of what might have been.
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