on THE TURNTABLE

"They thought the desert would divide us..."
—from "In Silence" by Low, as found on the album Drums and Guns

The album begins with the hiss and pop of broken electronics and soon finds its way to music austere and drums martial. This is the soundtrack to your death at dawn by firing squad. Yet you have never been so happy to see the sun rise. A funereal voice cries out, "We're all gonna die." You believe it. There are no lies here.

Low have delivered a brilliant collection of songs in Drums and Guns. This is a finger in the face of a culture that distracts with supermodels, porn stars, and celebutantes. The cosmetic masks are peeled away to reveal the skin below, and further, the sinew, the bone. Minimal instrumentation is bolstered by the singing of Alan Spearhawk and Mimi Parker. These are the voices of oracles warning us.

Death is not denied. It is confronted. War is protested. It is not glorified. The blood of the battlefield drips crimson and we see it. We feel the pulse in our own veins and sympathize. Bodies are broken and laid bare. We age and turn to dust. If there is any emotion left within us we are moved to tears.

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"Don't act so innocent. I've seen you pound your fist into the earth..."
—from "Murderer" by Low, as found on the album Drums and Guns

The music haunts. The voices sing an elegy for a culture that can turn back, if only to beg for grace and mercy from God. You can lay down your sword. You can beat it into a plowshare.

Don't fool yourself. Listen. Listen.

Water the soil with your tears, not the blood of our children.