WORK, THE - See

Any album by The Work is difficult to categorize, or to pigeon-hole. The bands output has been labelled everything from post-punk to acid jazz, and yet any sort of classification just doesnt seem to do the music justice. The approach seems to exhibit the complexity of progressive rock, whilst throwing that aesthetic to the dogs, in lieu of assimilating the energy and power of early punk. The Work were among the first few post-Henry Cow bands to purposefully break their own mould in an attempt to conquer new ground, thus creating music that seems more comfortable resting on a bed of nails than precious laurels. See was the final The Work album to be issued during the bands lifetime. It showcased some of the very best material of their later years, and a penchant to move into a different, more mature setting. The electronic experimentation here perfectly meshes with post-punk appeals and terrorist-like energy, giving the listener plenty of reasons to be drawn-in to their psychotic world of extremes. Each instrument plays perfectly off of the others to send everything, somewhere else, whilst somehow holding together perfectly amidst some fiendish, white knuckler time relations. Though the vocals on this album were more sung than shrieked (as evidenced on their earliest recordings), the instrumental parts, especially the drumming, keep the group in line with its radically apparent love for showcasing a primal approach. This has been out-of-print for a number of years, so its great to have it back again. - Ad Hoc.