This one was easy to finish but I don’t think I say enough with what I wrote.
Not sure. Anyway, I got an idea of the album across and that’s enough as far as baselines go, but I certainly could’ve said more.

Most of my interview and review work now appears on Culture Eater.
My colleague and I set up a Patreon to further develop Culture Eater as a source of good quality arts coverage from both ourselves and our contributors.

We’re looking at what we can give to supporters as we don’t want to set up a one way relationship, so suggestions are welcome. Podcast Eater is one of the things we’ve got going and (aside from the next few weeks) new episodes are available through there first.

Please consider supporting, or at least sharing the Patreon page with others. Please also check out what our wonderful contributors are contributing.

I hope you enjoy.

—

So Final’s EXPECT NOTHING AND THE KINGDOM WILL BE YOURS (henceforth Expect Nothing) came out a few months ago and what it carries is music that is perhaps “dreamy”.

Expect Nothing‘s pieces are more vague and they are specific. Sounds suggest more than state, and they reach out over long and sometimes wide distances. At times there’s a sense of sounds either fading or disintegrating; at others they come off fragile, yet remain continuous. However, throughout the pieces hold a sense of motion through sounds gradually shifting in form.

Perhaps Expect Nothing is conceptual and looks at a single theme from different angles. Maybe it explores a theme and breaks it down into separate components. At the very least it feels conceptual, but that could just be down to interpreting how the title and music work with each other.

Despite the aforementioned vagueness there is a strong emotional undercurrent that comes through the songs. Slowly weaving through low sounds a melancholy permeates, almost wrapping itself around you. Maybe it does; it certainly has a gripping effect. It’s a gentle grip, however; the emotive qualities don’t overstate, keeping the pieces from feeling verbose.

Final is likely Justin Broadrick’s most naked project. I think that’s due to its length of existence which has afforded him plenty of time to think about how it works as a form of expression. It’s confident in being bare and exposed, and perhaps that’s why it often takes on both minimal and maximal forms. As such, Expect Nothing works because, despite its vague sounds and low murmurs, it expresses in a really pure way.

Expect Nothing seems to work in waves and cycles and it does so with a heavy weight. At the same time it remains gentle. Perhaps that’s part of why the pieces are gripping; there’s no assault and no front-loading. The album holds no interest in blurting everything out. Instead it presents itself as it is. It takes the time it needs, allowing itself to move around you and sink in.

EXPECT NOTHING AND THE KINGDOM WILL BE YOURS is available here.