Billions
Self-Released, 2023
8/10
The duo of the vocalist, guitarist and lyricist Luke ‘Skyscraper’ James and the musician and arranger Ricky Humphrey, as This Twisted Wreckage the pair make a very distinct version of punk, alt-rock and even industrial like sounds via their very original song craft.
“Welcome” opens the listen with much attention to atmosphere, with a mesmerizing quality of droning, cautious alt-rock ideas, and “Nothing Is Nowhere” follows with buzzing guitars and punchy drums that fuel the driving post-punk ideas.
Halfway through, “IWishIKnew” swirls with a raw energy of throbbing bass and crisp drums amid the repetitive singing, while “Upgrade Me” is a bit blurry in an off kilter sort of way that emits a mysteriousness before segueing into a club friendly climate.
“Trailer Park” and “Billions” exit the listen, where the former, the best track, showcases gruff vocals and ‘90s focused, thick, grungy rock, and the title track exits with a furious pace of scrappy and ambient, charged songwriting.
James has a history fronting the British New Wave outfit Fàshiön and Humphrey has worked with Nature Kills and Rise. Together, they make for an artistic, gothic and often ominous version of modern alt-rock that’s highly memorable.
Travels well with: Teething Veils- Sea And Sun; Blackout Transmission- Sparse Illumination