{"id":1381,"date":"2014-05-16T10:34:16","date_gmt":"2014-05-16T14:34:16","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/agitreader.com\/wp2\/?p=1381"},"modified":"2014-05-26T10:20:55","modified_gmt":"2014-05-26T14:20:55","slug":"swans-to-be-kind","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/agitreader.com\/wp2\/swans-to-be-kind\/","title":{"rendered":"Swans <br>To Be Kind"},"content":{"rendered":"<p><a href=\"http:\/\/agitreader.com\/wp2\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/swans-to_be_kind.jpg\"><img loading=\"lazy\" decoding=\"async\" class=\"alignright size-full wp-image-1382\" src=\"http:\/\/agitreader.com\/wp2\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/swans-to_be_kind.jpg\" alt=\"Swans, To Be Kind\" width=\"250\" height=\"250\" srcset=\"https:\/\/agitreader.com\/wp2\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/swans-to_be_kind.jpg 250w, https:\/\/agitreader.com\/wp2\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/swans-to_be_kind-150x150.jpg 150w\" sizes=\"auto, (max-width: 250px) 100vw, 250px\" \/><\/a>It\u2019s an inevitability that any band that broke up in the \u201890s will reform sooner rather than later. But of all the groups to reunite in recent years, not even the most wide-swinging speculator could have predicted the roar of approval and delight that has greeted Swans\u2019 reformation. From their emergence in the No Wave scene through the 15 years that followed, they were never a band to settle on one sonic style. Besides the use of repetition, they dabbled in a variety of styles and moods. The one thing you could say that was Swans\u2019 signature was the presence of emotionally and sonically brutal songs. Not exactly the soundtrack to swinging Young America. Yet, their return in 2010 was greeted as if they\u2019d spent the better part of the \u201990s yucking it up on the couch next to Kennedy. However, their reemergence wasn\u2019t just a one and done victory lap. Instead, they\u2019ve maintained a fairly steady stream of new releases, mixing studio records with live albums. In keeping with that momentum, the band has released its 13th studio album, <i>To Be Kind<\/i> (Young God).<\/p>\n<p>Produced by Swans leader Michael Gira, <i>To Be Kind<\/i> follows the format of its predecessor, <i>The Seer<\/i>, as a two-disc release breaking the two-hour barrier. With only 10 songs, it\u2019s something to prepare for when the shortest song on the album is five minutes long. Generally speaking, it\u2019s not the type of record that you\u2019ll throw on shuffle, but rather the sort that demands your attention. But it\u2019s not as indulgent as it might sound. The key is that Gira and his collaborators know to keep it interesting both sonically and compositionally. Even amongst heavy repetition, the band knows how to add and subtract before it starts to become a bore. It\u2019s best compared to having a bunch of different movements in one song that are going to a specific place. As a result, the record doesn\u2019t feel as long as it is, and the canny blend of traditional instruments, found sounds, and aggressively manipulated sonics helps to keep things from becoming stagnant.<\/p>\n<p>Vocally and lyrically Gira howls, growls and coos the darkness into being. But there\u2019s a twist as \u201clove\u201d also gets time to shine. It\u2019s generally not the Hallmark card type, but an attempt to connect and perhaps cut a swath of light through all of the gloom. Yet <i>To Be Kind<\/i> isn\u2019t an unrelenting doom cloud. It\u2019s more steely-eyed and fixed jaw than wallowing. Make no mistakes, Swans won\u2019t be the soundtrack for a Memorial Day BBQ but it\u2019s not all, \u201cdark room with a handle of bourbon\u201d either. For the uninitiated and the fateful, <i>To Be Kind<\/i> may be one of the best documents of Swans, encompassing nearly everything the band has been about during its career. It\u2019s also a damn fine and challenging record.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>It\u2019s an inevitability that any band that broke up in the \u201890s will reform sooner rather than later. But of all the groups to reunite in recent years<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"jetpack_post_was_ever_published":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_access":"","_jetpack_dont_email_post_to_subs":false,"_jetpack_newsletter_tier_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paywalled_content":false,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":"","jetpack_publicize_message":"","jetpack_publicize_feature_enabled":true,"jetpack_social_post_already_shared":true,"jetpack_social_options":{"image_generator_settings":{"template":"highway","default_image_id":0,"font":"","enabled":false},"version":2}},"categories":[2],"tags":[34,589,590],"class_list":["post-1381","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","hentry","category-album-reviews","tag-album-review","tag-swans","tag-young-god-records"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.1.1 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Swans To Be Kind - The Agit Reader<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/agitreader.com\/wp2\/swans-to-be-kind\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Swans To Be Kind - The Agit Reader\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"It\u2019s an inevitability that any band that broke up in the \u201890s will reform sooner rather than later. But of all the groups to reunite in recent years\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/agitreader.com\/wp2\/swans-to-be-kind\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"The Agit Reader\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:publisher\" content=\"https:\/\/www.facebook.com\/TheAgitReader\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2014-05-16T14:34:16+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:modified_time\" content=\"2014-05-26T14:20:55+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"http:\/\/agitreader.com\/wp2\/wp-content\/uploads\/2014\/05\/swans-to_be_kind.jpg\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Dorian S. Ham\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:creator\" content=\"@agitreader\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:site\" content=\"@agitreader\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Dorian S. 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