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Faust, "Something Dirty"
Over the past few albums, Jean Hervé-Peron and Zappi Diermaier’s version of Faust have been getting more and more into the rock side of their krautrock. On this latest release, they have fully embraced rock and roll to the point where rock has become pulverised and the roll is in free-fall. Hints of classic rock (as in 1950s rock, not ‘70s dad rock) are smashed into atoms and reconstituted as something new, something loud and Something Dirty.
With a title like "Tell the Bitch to Go Home," I was expecting something with a bit of clout from the opening piece and I was not disappointed. Feedback, surging organs and tight, powerful drumming come together to make a wild, happy explosion; there is a tingle along the back of my neck like the first time I heard Faust (Faust IV being the culprit in question) and I have fallen in love all over again with them. Not that I have ever stopped loving them, mind you. This excitement does not fade after the initial hit, it builds across Something Dirty as the band fully invades my mind. Many of the songs feel like loose jams rather than finished pieces; this is not a negative criticism at all as the end result is a collection of music alive with vibrancy and danger.
Of course, it would not be a Faust album without a few surprises or about turns. "Lost the Signal" is a slinky, sexy piece of work that sounds nothing like Faust and everything like Faust. Here, Geraldine Swayne takes over the vocal duties and feminises Faust’s music beautifully. Initially, the album’s title could be taken to refer to the noisiness of the music but Swayne’s singing and the euphoric moment where she shouts for the band to "Start it up!" points to something more carnal. Faust have never been strangers to the sweatier, saltier side of life but Something Dirty definitely has more swagger to it than any of their other releases. James Johnston may have left the Bad Seeds but Nick Cave obviously has left his mark on his guitar playing.
While I have yet to encounter a Faust album I have not liked, Something Dirty strikes me as being that bit more special than the last few releases by either version of Faust. I do not know whether it is because this is more accessible than usual or because the group have really found their groove but I do know that this is one of the strongest albums in their catalogue, a blood relative of other "pop hits" like the aforementioned Faust IV or even So Far. Something Dirty is a fling I want to have again and again.
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