Since 2015, when Final Coil released their debut EP, Closed To The Light, they have been on an upward trajectory both critically and with their own ambition. Concept albums are nothing new but releasing an inter-related triptych of such material is something few bands attempt. Beginning with Persistence of Memory in 2017, followed by The World We Left Behind For Others in 2019, Final Coil examined our past and the societal failings that have brought us to our troubled present. Commenting on the band’s second album, guitarist / vocalist Phil Stiles paints a somewhat menacing picture, “The World We Left Behind For Others, was an attempt to look at how the experiences of the older generation created the world in which we live today. It was not an album of absolutes, but rather one that presented possibilities for the listener’s consideration. Rooted in the experiences of my ill-fated grandparents, it was a tribute to my late grandmother (who passed away during the recording of Persistence Of Memory), and a meditation on the series of political missteps that led to issues such as the Brexit referendum of 2016, or Trump’s election in the same year.”
On The World We Inherited - the final part of the Persistence trilogy - Stiles (the band's main songwriter) turns his scrutiny to the future and the shadows of anxiety and discord that threaten to obscure its horizon. The World We Inherited is heavily inspired by a labyrinthine conversation with Killing Joke’s Jaz Coleman and supplemented by amongst others the visionary, dystopian fiction of George Orwell (notably but not exclusively 1984) and The Politics of Fear by Fuerdi. Mirroring the myriad of influences, The World We Inherited is a complex, bewitching but occasionally uncomfortable, chilling and distressing album – certainly lyrically. Dealing with the increasingly inherent suspicion and uncertainty of the media, politics and the ominous recesses of discussions relating to these on the web, there is no shortage of depth to the topics explored. Phil Stiles: “We live in an era of unprecedented threat. Flashing headlines, endless conflicts both inter and intra-civilisational in nature, and the swirling voices of social media have coalesced to create a cold and unforgiving world. We heard freedom’s call, but we failed to keep it within our grasp.”
From the opening moments of the album (which begins with the title track – a masterclass in building tension throughout), there is an overwhelming sense of deliberate unease. A repetitive, portentous piano motif becomes increasingly perturbing through the addition of unsettling guitar and half-spoken, half-sung vocals that even this early in the album threaten to overwhelm the emotions. The light of a billion suns / Illuminates what we’ve become / A void in everyone / The voice of tyranny’s won. Two minutes in, the song ignites, our protagonist expounds his fractured views on the modern world, and thus begins his freefall into an unforgiving, swirling maelstrom of internal angst. I threw myself to the wall / I heard freedom’s call / Shot down before we could crawl / Sacrifice myself for it all. It is an uncompromising and disquieting prologue to a demanding but ultimately rewarding journey.
Musically, Wires ramps up the intensity. It is full of brutal riffs and raging vocals from Phil Stiles, with Jola (wife of Phil) Stiles’ blistering bass compelling and emphatic throughout. Drumming is handled by experienced session player Barry French and Wires allows him to fully demonstrate the range of his technique from the groove driven beginning, to the quieter Nick Mason-esque mid-section which bares more than a passing resemblance to the drumming during the opening of Time. Appearing lyrically simplistic - Wires, wires, move inside and they feel alive – the track in fact refers to Morgellons disease. Characterised by a belief that parasites or fibres are emerging from the skin, people with this condition (which many doctors believe to be a delusional infestation) often report feeling as if something is crawling on or stinging their skin. During the song, the sensation relates to the unrelenting feeling that the world is not as it should be and how this is perpetuated by the media for their own end.
Chemtrails and By Starlight follow and show the differing influences - everything from dark ambient, electronica, post-rock, grunge and rock to progressive metal - by which the band are inspired. Chemtrails is an unrelenting, bulldozing track which Phil Giles names as one of the heaviest the trio have ever recorded. “There’s definitely some Killing Joke influence in there, not least in the vocal; while the relentless riff mirrors the overwhelming certainty implicit in the chorus – but I won’t stop, they won’t drown me out, their lies spread, but I never doubt. It’s a dark song, and while it’s great to play live, there’s a lingering air of violence that hangs over the piece that makes it slightly uncomfortable.” By Starlight offers the listener relief from the all-consuming claustrophobia of the opening three songs. Exploring the possibility of using our own memories as places of sanctuary during difficult times, the songs uses three of Stiles’ own happiest recollections. And when these memories form / I know that the world is not empty / A home where we belong, a place / A place where we’re accepted. Stylistically varied, the track contains some harmonious guitar and sometime wonderful piano by multi-instrumentalist Richard Awdry.
Nowhere are the Orwellian themes that raise their heads throughout the length of the album more obvious than on The Growing Shadows which strides and stomps like a rampaging abomination. Separate the sheep / Burn them in their sleep / Slit the throat and watch it bleed / Drain them for our verdant greed / The shadows growing on the hill / The voice of reason’s gone, and now we want to kill / Spread suspicion as we burn / Control the media, they won’t know which way to turn. Then, as if to deliberately point out the variance in their songwriting, Stay With Me mirrors nuances of Massive Attack, Nine Inch Nails and even Tricky. Phil Stiles explains the abrupt change in style, “This started out as a sketch and I hadn’t initially intended to keep the electronic percussion until I realized that it worked so much better in this format.” Wandering through a pensive, confused haze, Stay With Me tackles the premise of social media becoming a new digital family at the expense of the physical one, how those addicted to its false promises find it inescapable and the bitterness it can ultimately cause. Far away / You drift inside a cloud of hate / The strangers that just don’t relate / Reaffirm and isolate.
Even within the realms of this challenging album, Final Coil are not afraid to tackle thought-provoking subjects as they do with the utterly bone-chilling Purify. “The track is written from the perspective of someone who, emerging from the fear instilled by conspiracy, embraces the right-wing. It is not a mindset that I have ever wanted to inhabit, there’s a level of raw hatred there that I find deeply disturbing. However, I firmly believe that if you are to understand something, you have to consider the viewpoint that led to it even if you ultimately reject it.” With such deeply worrying subject matter, the song needs to be handled sensitively. The band do so by withdrawing the pummelling riffs of previous songs, replacing them with some of the darkest but most exquisite music on the album, and allowing the vocals - operating like a twisted mantra - to brainwash those who are incapable of resisting. Step this way / There’s nothing left to fear / You strip away these clothes / And simply step in here / See the water, take this piece of soap / We care about you, we want to give you hope. Purify is a brave riposte and damning commentary on the state on mind of some in the world today.
Out of Sorts (a short instrumental) and Humanity – a pounding industrial metal track complete with moments of murky electronica - signify the final descent into complete insanity and paranoia; in his instability, does our protagonist have any control whatsoever on how his fractured mind is now operating? I tend my hatred obsessively / I feed my life antipathy / I destroy all those around me / My life’s unfettered fragility. Humanity is the most visceral moment on the album.
Completing the ruthless, unrelenting odyssey, The End of History sees the death of the protagonist in an eruption of animosity. Night falls on all my pasts / I know nothing can ever last / At the end of history / This world is not for you and me. Ending as it began with gloriously understated piano, in this case both melancholic but tinged with a glimmer of hope, The World We Inherited leaves us wondering if the governments of the world, those who control the media and indeed our own resistance or improved understanding of both can lead to a better world.
It is difficult to believe that The World We Inherited is only 45 minutes long such is the scope and depth of the music and the pure primeval emotion that it ignites within the listener. Whether the breadth of influences – everyone from Tool, Pink Floyd, Alice in Chains, Nirvana, Katatonia to the aforementioned Massive Attack – will prove to be too wide for some, remains to be seen. For those prepared to invest time in the music - and just as importantly the lyrics, The World We Inherited will make you look internally towards your own values and consider what difference you can make not only to your own world but to those around you who might be struggling in silence. As a listener, will you join Final Coil and question everything you hold true in modern society?
Written: 20th December 2023
The World We Inherited is released on 16th January 2024
Watch the video for Chemtrails below.