Coil
Musick To Play In The Dark - Vol. 2

THE REVIEW

As promised, Dais Records makes available (in various formats including CDs and limited edition vinyl) the highly anticipated reissue of the second volume of Musick To Play In The Dark by Coil, in my opinion the artistic peak reached by John Balance and Peter Christopherson, here assisted by the trusty Thighpaulsandra, a past collaborator of Julian Cope.

The style of this album mirrors the musical discourse of the previous chapter, although perhaps the industrial component weakens even further. In practice, we are likely facing material from the same recording sessions. In fact, the Coil could easily have released a double LP considering the stylistic continuity of these songs.

Musically, here we are faced with that peculiar dense, minimal, and bizarre sound (here defined as "Moon Music") with which the English group inaugurated the second part of their career. It could indeed be said that this is lunar, dark music to be listened to, as suggested by the title, in the darkness of one's room in a state of meditation.

The beginning is entrusted to the windy chant of "Something" where we can hear an obsessive voice loop repeating the word "Something". Then comes the experimental electro-ethnic symphonism of "Tiny Golden Books", almost a follow-up to the second track of the previous volume where the Coil paid their tribute to the electronics of Tangerine Dream. "Ether" instead opens with electronic drones worthy of the finest Cluster and then continues with the dark sonorities of the piano and Balance's ailing voice. "Paranoid Inlay" is instead an experimental track that evokes distressing emotional states: it's evident how the Coil have become skilled manipulators of sound, and in this sense, Peter Christopherson plays a fundamental role. After the brief interlude of "An Emergency" featuring the celestial voice of Rose McDowall, the album continues with "Where are You?", based on a treated "loop" of a banjo on which Balance tries to lead the listener towards insane visions not of this world. The masterpiece, however, arrives at the end with the sacred hymn of "Batwings", supported by the sonorities of an organ and inspired by the lyrics of English writer Sir Thomas Browne recited in a "trance" state by a Balance in mystical ecstasy.

Frankly, it's hard to say which of the two volumes I prefer. Perhaps I prefer this one by virtue of the second part even though, overall, the first volume was more qualitatively uniform. In any case, we are facing a cornerstone of Coil's career and experimental and electronic music. Available on Bandcamp: https://coilofficial.bandcamp.com/album/musick-to-play-in-the-dark-vol-2.