Control and Resistance

Ydfyx fgteuzz njmkkkkk…. Oh sorry, let’s try it again. I don’t know what happened, but I have listened to „Control & Resistance“ and I think this was just too much for the thing in my head which once was a complete brain. Now I hear the crys for help from my last cells alive. No question, the gentlemen from Watchtower played a knot in my brain. Given this fact, it can happen that you don't hit the right letters at the first go.

Now it may be that Watchtower's 1989 album is not the most complex work in the history of technical thrash. But for someone like me, who would never think of subjecting "Blitzkrieg Bop" by the Ramones to the accusation of excessive simplicity, "Control and Resistance" sounds mega bizarre. In the last 32 years, I still haven't understood how a largely meandering guitar banter can turn into such a torrent as "Fall of Reason". This piece reveals the secret of the record's success: despite all the technical skills, despite the good will to create the greatest possible confusion, the quartet always acts in the spirit of the song. The technique follows the content, not vice versa. This even applies to dissonant parts like the instrumental section of the title piece, in which the guitar does what it wants and yet never breaks the frame.

The intricate yet powerful sounds of the instrumentalists are joined by the vocals of Alan Tecchio. This acrobat juggles high and highest notes with somnambulistic certainty. He too, although presumably deeply impressed by the permanently changing performances of his colleagues, does not become intoxicated by their craftsmanship. Instead, he is aware every minute that a metal record is to be created here and therefore he does not lack the necessary venom in his voice.

In this way, he creates a counterpoint to the instrumental sections, in which his comrades-in-arms seem to just play music, lost in thought. This mixture gives the sometimes dreamy, sometimes wide awake "Life Cycles" its special touch. But Watchtower can also be aggressive. "Mayday in Kiev", perhaps the first piece to deal critically and intelligently with the reactor accident in Chernobyl and the subsequent disinformation policy of the Soviets, does not lack vehemence, dynamics and explosiveness. So in the end, the weak points of the material have to be searched for with a magnifying glass. For example, "Dangerous Toy" suffers a little from a very eccentric part, where Doug Keyser in particular indulges in strange figures on the bass.

Well, maybe I can't understand everything as a scene outsider. In any case, to put it in Watchtower's own words, I am clearly more "controlled by confusion" than "confused by control" with regard to the musical content. But at least I understand the production. Guitar and drums shine in their due brilliance and a more present (and rebellious) bass can rarely be heard. It's all very carefully balanced, even Tecchio's voice has the appropriate space (but no more than that). Finally, the lyrics are anything but stupid and their intellectually valuable content fits the sophisticated setting.

In case anyone still needs more arguments: the artwork is also great and reflects the individuality of the material in an outstanding way. Despite all the genius, one thing remains: after enjoying the record. I first have to re-orientate myself in time and space. Xcbhuuun.... doesn't quite work yet.