Balance Of Decay
Antena Krzku, 2019
10/10
An outfit comprised of 4 Polish musicians who have played in bands like Something Like Elvis, Hokel, and Alameda Organisation, as Javva the quartet birth a very interesting combination of post-punk, afro-beat and avant-rock oriented innovation.
“Pad Eye Remover” starts the listen with a sonically charged display of bouncing bass, crashing percussion and a noise-rock delivery that’s chaotic yet controlled, and “Sentinel” follows with African influenced rhythms in the quirky pop execution of varied instrumentation.
The album only gets even more interesting from here, including the cinematic and jagged “Ancaman”, the tense restraint of “Fernandes”, and the throbbing bass of “Bangau”, where post-punk influences weave into the powerful landscape.
The end of the listen brings us the off kilter innovation of “Erebus” and “Kua Fu” exits the listen with angular dynamics in the avant-garde exploration.
If you’re like me and use cover art to give you an indication of what to expect, well, this is a complete surprise and one that is both instantly gripping and utterly captivating. Record of the year material here, folks.
Travels well with: Nomeansno- 0 + 2 = 1; Fugazi- The Argument