ALBUM REVIEW: The Beep Test – God Alone.

Ah, the beep test. The PE lesson everyone dreaded where the entire class would be lined up and be made to run until they dropped, pegging it back and forth across the length of the gymnasium, attempting to get to the other side before the next beep in order to avoid elimination, the intervals between each beep becoming shorter and shorter until a victor emerged, legs aching and feet blistered. 

This test of speed, stamina, and mechanical endurance serves as the inspiration, at least in name, to GOD ALONE’s latest album. Since their debut EP in 2016, the Cork quintet has forged a reputation for blurring the lines of genre, melding everything from post rock, punk, metal, and prog to pop, and electronica. On The Beep Test, they’ve honed this ‘throw everything at the wall’ approach and created their most cohesive, concise and well polished record to date. 

The opening title track comes out of the blocks at a sprint, with blasts of acerbic post-punk, angular grooves, and swirling melodies delivered with the red-faced energy of the last two runners in the beep test as they fight for victory. A face-melting shred solo and a perfectly placed Freak On A Leash style “Go!” is more than enough to keep the adrenaline pumping. 

The whole album fizzes with energy, whether that’s from the disco beats of Sir Laplage, with its FOALS-stye melodies, or the grinding, dissonant hardcore of Tony Gawk. The latter sticks out like a sore thumb on an album that otherwise has a pleasant, uplifting sheen glistening across its surface but its inclusion is a genius move. The pivot from that to Pink Himalayan will have you checking to see if you’re still listening to same band. Had this track been released in the early to mid-2000s it could easily have shared the dancefloors with your Take Me Outs and Chelsea Daggers in indie clubs up and down the land. 

Whereas on 2019 self titled record and 2022’s ETC the band would often meander across seven or eight minute long songs, shifting from section to section, on The Beep Test GOD ALONE have learned to edit themselves. It’s like those albums was the sound of them stretching, limbering up and putting their abilities to the test, and now they’re a finely tuned fighting machine able to deliver short, sharp blows with devastating effect. The one-two punch of Bluseine with its scattergun drums and swirling electronics, and the throbbing Rubber Hands and repeated yells of ‘Look at my hands!’ is particularly well landed. At 6:24, only the closing track Yupasaid clocks in at anywhere past the five minute mark, and even then it manages to feel short thanks to the pace at which it rattles through its ever-shifting structure. 

On Rinser, GOD ALONE lean further into their electronic influences, as glitchy vocal samples and bouncing synth stabs underpin haunting lead lines and a shuddering bass line, before giving way to more hardcore intensity. Pulling all these disparate sonic elements together is no mean feat, and looking at the credits it’s no surprise to see Joe Clayton (CONJURER, MASTIFF, PIJN), is at the helm, a producer whose name is fast becoming synonymous with getting the best out of forward thinking, genre defying and downright talented musicians in the UK heavy music scene. His treatment of The Beep Test has resulted in a taut and muscular sounding album, yet with plenty of definition, the subtleties of GOD ALONE’s multi-layered instrumentation shining through in their high energy performances. 

Get stretching, take your electrolytes, and get ready for the starting pistol because GOD ALONE’s The Beep Test is one that you’re going to be running with for many miles to come.

Rating 9/10

The Beep Test is set for release October 10th via Prosthetic Records.

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