Review Summary: William Control tunes down the moaning girls and improves his instrumentation, leading to a very enjoyable 13 track LP.
After releasing the “Novus Ordo Seclorum” EP in late 2011, William Control strikes back with his third full length album, fittingly titled after Oscar Wilde's poem “Silentium Amoris”. Themes from Mr. Wilde's life (imprisonment, tragic love) resonate all over the album, which could be perceived as a homage to this Irish poet. Spanning at thirteen tracks, it seems to be Control's most complete and most consistent album showing great progress in almost all areas. Musically, all of the songs are electronic, with catchy, melodic beats and refined instrumentation.
William seems to have learned from his past endeavors as the lyrics, which were heavily criticized here on sputnik, are generally good and more mature, with the exception of only a few softer spots. Thematically, all songs appear inter-winded, with one leading to the next, resulting in a interesting storyline that keeps listeners entertained for the full 47 minutes. The production doesn't seem rushed, as well as the song arrangements. Use of the synth is not overdone here, and everything just seems to be in the right place.
The LP starts off and ends in typical Control fashion, with a reading. This time around, intro track “Achtung” features a text from the pen of Marquis de Sade, a famous 19th century French aristocrat and philosopher. “We Are Lovers” introduces the main storyline to the listeners - travel from England to Germany through France, which is similar to the journey Wilde took after being released from prison. Musically, it's a type of song Control has not done before, so it serves as a refreshing start to the album. Track number 3, titled “Kiss Me Judas”, is one of the highlights of the album, standing out with a great chorus. This song was also chosen as the album's first single. “I Am Your Jesus” slows down the tempo, which can also be said about “The Velvet Warms And Binds”. For me, these two songs are both lyrically, and musically the weakest on this LP.
Thankfully, from this point on, the tracks continue to get better with “Letters To The Other Side” being of William's best, and “Omnia Vincit Amor” - my personal favorite off Silentium Amoris. #7, titled "Come Die With Me" leads nicely to “Atmosphere”, which is a very well executed cover of this classic Joy Division song, with a great bass line intro and soothing beats. Control also covers Daniel Johnston's mellow “True Love Will Find You In The End” in track 11, with satisfying results. The LP finishes off with a very personal and extremely chilling “Failure Of All Mankind”, followed only by the title track “Silentium Amoris”, which is a reading from Wilde's poem. It provides a good sense of closure and finality for William Control’s poetic and appealing independent release that combines elements of synthpop, dance, dark wave, and electronic music.
Recommended tracks: Omnia Vincit Amor, Kiss Me Judas, Atmosphere
I had a pretty hard time reviewing this, my previous 2 were much easier to finish off, and I still have mixed feelings about this one.
