HEALTH have become the biggest industrial band of the modern era, and I will die on that hill. As Nine Inch Nails metaphorically passed the torch with the pair of bands collaborating on ‘Isn’t Everyone’, two years ago.
Over the decade or so, the band have expanded their sound to increasingly popular video games (Max Payne 3, Cyberpunk 2077), movie and TV soundtracks (atomic Blonde, 13 Reasons Why) and collaborated with some of the biggest artists in the world (from the aforementioned NIN to Ghostemane and POPPY to name a few) on previous full-lengths, leading toward their sixth studio album ‘Rat Wars’, and a reputation for being the boundary-pushing (yet oddly accessible) electro-metal powerhouses that we know today.
From the off, the tone of the record is as pulversing as one might expect. ‘Demigods’ strikes as a defiant and epic statement of intent with its haunting intro leading into the characteristically punishing percussion and Jake Duzsik’s effortless soft vocal that builds and builds to a resounding conclusion. Indeed, this one is an absolute album highlight right from the jump.
Meanwhile, ‘Future Of Hell’ is as much the dystopian documentary soundtrack as you could hope for from a HEALTH record, matching Ministry’s intensity with the kind of evocative pop vocal that Christopher Hall (Stabbing Westward) would be proud of.
Prominent single, ‘Hateful’ is a solid Electronic Body Music-baiting banger that teaches all of that (EBM) genre’s pretenders how to write accessible sounds that don’t sound self-indulgent, and frankly…kind of wank. This (‘Hateful’) could fill a stadium (and soon will be as the band support Sleep Token), but would feel equally as at home in one of those seedy rock clubs we all grew up in. Put simply, HEALTH is music for the goth kids that later turn into goth grown ups that don’t act like soulless clout chasing weirdos and/or creeps…less Manson and Orgy more Reznor and Broadrick here, mate.
‘Crack Metal’ starts at a blistering pace, and hits with a metallic intensity, before giving way to one of the hardest, and most emotive breakdowns on the whole album. There will be hooks aplenty here for the audiophiles, and this is a track that perfectly showcases HEALTH’s overall sonic diversity – brutal, yet beautiful.
The follow up tunes, ‘Unloved’ and ‘Children Of Sorrow’ are the quintessential HEALTH singles that fans will be used to, blending heartaching melodies, brooding beats, grungy riffs and crisp production to great effect. Both of these, make up the most listener-friendly portion of the record, and go to show just how adept the band is at building seductive sonic sounds.
‘SICKO’ pays tribute to the aforementioned Justin Broadrick and Godflesh’s ‘Like Rats’ while giving it a pop sheen, and renewed vigour in the beats and programming – powerful stuff overall. ‘Ashamed’ is my personal record standout, and delves way back into HEALTH’s early stuff (‘Get Color’, and that era), and pulls out its most accessible parts, while ‘DSM-V’ takes as much from Rammstein’s provocative and sexy percussion and euphoric synth lines as it does from Crosses (Chino Moreno’s) penchant for soft, hypnotic vocal stylings.
Finally, ‘Don’t Try’ is the softest affair on the record, and sees the band, for the first time in a long time, strip things back for a raw, satisfying conclusion to the proceedings.
If you want modern industrial with a real kick, and without the cliche, HEALTH has everything you need, and have probably wanted all along. There are many bands that have come to try and take that crown of thorns from Trent and the Nails, HEALTH haven’t taken it, they’ve been gifted it by the OG masters, and moulded it into their own thing. ‘Rat Wars’ is this band’s most creative collection yet (that hasn’t focused on mega collabs like the DISCO series), and so…you will love this album.
