American Supreme

About

Suicide's first studio album in more than a decade, 2002's <i>American Supreme</i> is both true to the duo's history and aware of all the groups that it influenced. There's a sense of post-9/11 apocalypse in the ominous spaces dominating the music. Much like Scott Walker's <i>The Drift</i>, tracks such as "Swearin' to the Flag," "Beggin' for Miracles," and "Misery Train" ache with a mechanized sense of doom. "Swearin' to the Flag" is a scary piece of music, with vocalist Alan Vega multitracking his voice as if chasing a dialog with himself, while Martin Rev's keyboards and treatments make for a sparse sonic collage where the empty night air creates an eeriness of its own. "Beggin' for Miracles" turns up an Adrian Sherwood influence that evokes electro-funk. "Wrong Decisions" adds a muddy hip-hop beat that's buried in the background while Vega's vocals are pushed to the fore. "Death Machine" jacks up a techno beat that's twice as quick and dense as "American Mean" and deliberately less pop-like than the hooky "Child, It's a New World," where you can almost imagine Suicide with a hit single.

via Apple Music