There's something about the contrast between chilly electronics and a deep, all-too-human voice that has inspired generations of musicians, from
Ian Curtis to
Grace Jones to
Alison Moyet to
Q. Lazzarus to
Cold Cave. On their self-titled debut album,
Light Asylum are in this tradition but not beholden to it, sounding more comfortable, and more genuine, than many of their contemporaries as they blend coldwave, industrial, EBM, and even some pop influences into something uniquely formidable. First and foremost,
Light Asylum gives
Shannon Funchess' impossibly rich contralto, which has graced collaborations with
TV on the Radio,
!!!, and
Teengirl Fantasy, the perfect platform. She unleashes like never before on these songs, with a righteous fury that borders on suffocating, particularly on the mighty "At Will" and "Pope Will Roll," where the soul and gospel foundations of her voice come to the fore against a brutal industrial backdrop. Admirably,
Funchess and partner
Bruno Coviello only repeated one song from their self-released
In Tension EP, the gorgeously elegiac "A Certain Person," which, along with "Shallow Tears," shows that
Funchess' voice is just as strong when it's gentle. Throughout
Light Asylum,
Coviello provides the perfect foil to
Funchess' recriminations and outbursts, whether it's the ethereal tones of opener "Hour Fortress," the hard-edged laser show of "Heart of Dust," or the sleek confines of "Sins of the Flesh." Unrepentant and unrelenting,
Light Asylum is an indelible debut. It's not for the faint of heart, but anyone partial to heavy, brooding, uncompromising music will likely be gladly carried away by it.