Coil ‎– Constant Shallowness Leads To Evil

"Constant Shallowness Leads to Evil" gets a lot of mixed reviews and it's not hard to see why. It's some of the most uncompromising music Coil has ever made - even noisier than "Time Machines." It's light years away from the style of Horse Rotovator or Scatology, and it's definitely not for all tastes.

Some would say this album doesn't contain music at all. I think that's going too far, but I'm also aware that taste is subjective and what I may call music, you may not (or the opposite). As a big Merzbow fan, I wasn't shocked or surprised by the sounds on this album. However, I can't say it won't be jarring to those unfamiliar with this type of extreme music. I don't mean to imply that this sounds like Merzbow at all - it's just a handy point of reference for the fringes of music.

If we can momentarily set aside the "is it music?" debate, lets talk about how to listen to the album. You won't find rhythm, beats, or even a pulse. Nor will you find chords, harmonic progression, or single notes. Dark, droning clusters and some sweeping bands of noise are pretty much the material of this album.

Since it contains almost nothing of standard music, I don't think we can afford to listen to this album as we would a standard CD. Rather than try to fit some sort of logic based on my previous experience with music, I prefer to hear this as a purely sensual experience. For the duration of the album, I enter a foreign sound world of otherworldly ambience. It's a unique experience. I recommend listeners just sit back, turn out the lights, and let the sound wash over them as Coil assaults the eardrums.

Some have expressed the opinion that this is just a big joke or that Coil is behind on their rent and threw some crap together to have another album for sale. I would urge these listeners to revisit the work and listen for the details. Does it sound like it was thrown together? Aren't there themes and motives at work here? Although the compositional method is much different from their other work, I would argue that it sounds as composed as anything they've ever done. It's just a lot different.

I wouldn't expect everyone to like this, even with an open mind. It's just not going to appeal to some listeners, and that's fine. I hope that everyone can at least understand where Coil is coming from, even if they ultimately don't like the results. It's difficult music and since it doesn't conform to any normal sense of "beauty" or pleasure, it makes considerable demands on the listener.

As for me, I rank it amongst my favorite Coil records because, even for such an innovative group, it's utterly unique. If you decided to give "Constant Shallowness" a chance, listen with an open mind and be prepared for a wild ride.