Comus
First Utterance (1971)


First Utterance is hands down the most (lyrically) twisted album I have ever heard, and at the same time among the most beautiful instrumentally and also one of the most intense. Even standing as a lone beast against the numerous and varied discographies of it's time, it seems that Comus in their effort had made an album which achieved with ease the goal of bands like Pink Floyd, Yes, and King Crimson: to take you to another place completely. In my opinion they did it better.

Bongos, violin, acoustic guitar, electric bass. If you had to guess what this album was going to sound like based only upon the bands instrument choice, you would almost undoubtedly be wrong. The sound here is as abrasive as it is experimental and is relentless in striving to create the perfect mood for murder, rape, and eternal suffering. Don't let this mislead you, once you've spun this enough you'll notice how beautiful it really is; it reminds me of mountains and torture and sky.

Lyrically each song is its own epic story. First Utterance is the best of storytellers here, as it makes certain you feel the suspense of every single second. Despite the vocals being extremely layered, they sound as acoustic as the rest of the album- and also thoroughly raise you up and drop you as they please. "As they please" are the key words of my summary. Comus has all of the power, they know what they want you to feel, and you're going to feel it. It's just what makes this particular gem a rating of 6/5.




Of course highly recommended. Listen to this at 3:00am.
Sincerely, Schizotypic.

6/5

Ratio: 4/5