ALBUM REVIEW: Weaponize Tomorrow – Missiles
Swedish post-punk band MISSILES have just put out their debut album Weaponize Tomorrow. The Malmö quintet were formed in 2016 when Gabriel Forslund (ANTICHRIST) put the word out to his fellow musicians, which means that not only do we have a band with diverse backgrounds and styles but also a band with years of experience behind them. So, for their debut record, does all that talent and experience shine through? Of course it does.
Opening things up with both the title and intro track, the first thing the listener hears is a collection of distorted sound effects that feel reminiscent of sci-fi – almost like what would happen if space and galactic noises combined with the Stranger Things soundtrack. It’s intriguing and as we near the end of this short intro we start to hear something that signifies a take-off, one that follows immediately when it blends into next track Dead Summer Moon where the full band kicks in and things change into an action-packed rock song. If you had to compare or place it anywhere, it would be in a thriller film’s chase scene as our group of protagonists try to escape the enemy. Admittedly, it’s not as explosive as one might have expected, but you feel satisfied all the same.
When listening to this album there’s a theatrical ambience, the type of atmosphere that you could place in film or television show soundtracks. Along with the two tracks mentioned above, there’s recent single Living In A Nuclear Town that has a blues meets funk beat which feels like a small ode to Fallout, further backed up with the use of synthesizers. There’s also Deathlike Love that has a dark, gritty dystopian ambience with some elements that give you a sliver of hope, the type of feeling you get from the protagonist in said genre.
What’s also fun is bringing in elements of goth-rock and industrial rock to create further intrigue, as heard on concluding song Radio Dark. This seven-minute track once again features distorted sound effects that give off a melancholic atmosphere before things shift into industrial meets psychedelic rock, with a guitar rhythm that draws comparison to something MUSE might do.
Eight years in the making and MISSILES have put out an intriguing post-punk record that not only transports you to other worlds and realities, but also brings in sounds and styles that one might not have thought of using within this genre.
Rating: 7/10
Weaponize Tomorrow is out now via Svart Records.
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