ALBUM REVIEW: Your Inland Empire – Your Inland Empire
Bursting forth from the ashes of their previous project CROWN, French industrial quartet YOUR INLAND EMPIRE balance crushing electronic beats and dense atmospheres on their eclectic debut album. Already making their mark on the industrial and darkwave genres for over a decade as CROWN, bandleaders David Husser and Stéphane Azam alongside bassist Marc Strebler and drummer Nicolas Uhlen have returned under their new moniker YOUR INLAND EMPIRE. Mashing together the guitar and synth led production of industrial acts like NINE INCH NAILS and GODFLESH with dystopian electronic textures and memorable 80s inspired pop hooks, YOUR INLAND EMPIRE hit the reset button, aiming to eclipse their previous work with a refreshed passion.
The self-titled debut album by YOUR INLAND EMPIRE is nothing if not ambitious, clocking in at close to fifty minutes across eleven tracks of driving beats and whirring electronic textures complimented by distorted guitars and soaring vocals, intro track Scars acts as a perfect primer for both fans of their work as CROWN and newcomers. Steadily creeping in with a synth line reminiscent of John Carpenter’s iconic Halloween score, Scars builds layers of apocalyptic sonic textures up to a melodramatic peak carried by Azam’s confident yet tasteful vocals which weave in and out of the clouds of electronic distortion. For fans of the atmospheric film scores of 80s sci-fi and the pounding synth beats and overdriven guitars of 90s industrial music, Your Inland Empire provides a tantalising sonic landscape to explore.
As the album unravels YOUR INLAND EMPIRE’s ambition continues to unfurl, mixing in elements from various electronic and heavy genres. Whether through the gothy post-punk inspired Grinding, the stomping techno beat of Undone or the chugging metal riffs and distorted vocals of Venom, the French four-piece refuse to let the album sit still, instead constantly folding new ideas into their established sound. Without losing their identity YOUR INLAND EMPIRE manage to experiment with new sounds, keeping their debut album sounding exciting throughout.
Album closer I’ll Be Your Night takes the subtle atmosphere and NINE INCH NAILS style synth hits present in the previous tracks and turns them up to eleven for a memorable and satisfying finale. While much of Your Inland Empire leans towards wild genre experimentation, I’ll Be Your Night takes the band’s core concept and distils it into almost five minutes of catchy, deliberately crafted industrial rock led by a warbling synth bass and Azam’s best Trent Reznor style whisper which explodes into a gratifyingly dense synthwave inspired crescendo. Although much of the album is carried by YOUR INLAND EMPIRE’s willingness to experiment with their sound and bring in sounds from other genres, this closing track breaks the four-piece down to their core tenets, leaving the listener with a unique calling card to remember the album by.
Whether you’re familiar with their previous work as CROWN or not, YOUR INLAND EMPIRE deliver an intriguing and memorable debut on their self-titled album, putting a unique spin on the synthwave and industrial genres. With an expansive sonic palette YOUR INLAND EMPIRE are bound to once again make their impact on the heavy and electronic underground.
Rating: 7/10
Your Inland Empire is out now via Season Of Mist.
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