FRONT LINE ASSEMBLY - Civilisation

Yes, this review has been delayed…a lot. A 100+ listenings ago, I held the disc in my hand, ecstatic, enthusiastic, yes – nervous. Proclaimed as the final album of my favourite band, it required my undivided attention. Since track one of listening #1 up until now, I just followed music, gathered sounds, trying to make a picture of it. Unsuccessfuly. I cannot put it all on canvas: ‘Civilisation’ is all of FLA in one, no, all of Bill Leeb and Rhys Fulber in one. Years (decades!) of sounds, themes, songs, albums, ideas - Front Line Assembly, Delerium, Cyberaktif, Intermix, Conjure One, Noise Unit, Equinox… “Caustic Grip”, “Desideratum” “Drill”, “Morpheus”... so many…

It can be said that “Civilisation” closes the book. It does sound like an epilogue, recapitulation of an astounding career: ‘Psychosomatic’ reminds of “Tactical Neural Implant”; ‘Transmitter’, ‘Dissident’, ‘Vanished’ are excerpts from “Epitaph”/”Implode” era. ‘Strategic’? A less-than-two-minutes flashback to Intermix sound and ‘Maniacal’ could be superb Noise Unit track. After hearing ‘Civilisation’(with appropriate subtitle “Colliding Islands”) I realised why they named album by it – it is a pot-pourri of Leeb/Fulber sounds and classic lyrics: it reflects their look on the world “…Eradicate, exterminate/ all species from the earth/ in the name of progress/ we call peace…”

Over all songs a bitter icing of Delerium-esque vocals is laid. As a cohesional force and dimension-adding element, also it’s purpose is to add special darkness. Yes, this is as bleak album as the previous, but here negativity is on the surface - not covered by energy, choruses and layers of sounds: unique signature of “Civilisation”. Masterful, no other word to describe it. And no grade to rate it. There is a personal feeling about this album, yet I am afraid it will sound inapropriate if said. Situation is delicate enough.

I was also trying for many sentences (now erased) to express what Front Line Assembly means to me, to use fragments of my personal history as an illustration of all those strong feelings invoked by their music throughout the years. Pointless, isn’t it? You have many moments of your own stored that are much stronger than any elaborate description of mine, so why bother? How to depict accurately how good their music is? What to say in the end of an era? … So I’ll just speak for myself: in my time, in an hourglass that I hold in my hand, Front Line Assembly is that dark air surrounding grains of sand. Their music is an atmosphere of my life and a sonic canvas of it’s colours.

The book closes and every review ends. Myself and Electromeda will never write about their music again, just have to state the obvious: it remains and will remain for time to come.