The Attrition Of Reason

by ATTRITION

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rikm "The Attrition of Reason" is an excellent example of Attrition's early 80s experimental electronic work. There's still a concept of songs as discrete pieces here, but boundaries are pushed in terms of the structure and approach to songwriting, resulting in a fascinating and impressive musical blueprint that the band would explore and refine throughout their later work.

A very impressive and foundational release from a very impressive musical project...

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Full Digital Discography

86

releases

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Includes unlimited streaming via the free Bandcamp app, plus high-quality downloads of The Black Maria, Prayer for the Head - Live at The Recession Club, Hackney. Oct 1983, Live in The Cage 07.02.2023, The Switch EP, ATTRITION - Live at Projektfest, Chicago, USA - 1996, A Great Desire (1986 - 2004), Death House Variations - Live at The Tin. Coventry. 10.09.21, The Alibi, and 78 more. , and , .
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1.	Day I Was Born 04:08		buy track
2.	The Redoubt Of Light 04:49		buy track
3.	You Will Remember Nothing 07:25		buy track
4.	Take A Walk 05:08		buy track
5.	Beast Of Burden (take a walk) 03:09		buy track
6.	Behind Innocence, lies 06:33		buy track
7.	The Decline 04:07		buy track
8.	Prayer For The Head 09:10		buy track
9.	The Next Day 04:16	info	buy track
10.	The Outer Edge 03:57	info	buy track
11.	Across The Divide 03:22	info	buy track
12.	Reflections 07:01	info	buy track

credits

released August 9, 1984

Originally released on Third Mind records in 1984.

Musictap.net - USA. - 2007

Martin Bowes' remastering and reissue project of his Attrition albums continues with the reissue of his debut album, The Attrition of Reason (1984). Created in a time where gothic music was more distinctive – and popular – than it is now, Attrition was the experimental side of a wider genre. Remember the success of Cure, Bauhaus, The Damned, and others of that ilk, and you'll remember how much Gothic played a part in that time. While Attrition wasn't as popular as the aforementioned bands, their impact, nevertheless, gave rise and influence to much of the industrial music popularity that sprung up later in the 80s.

Martin Bowes brought sounds and elements into the construction of his songs to create a strangely satisfying and truly gothic experience and he has evolved that Attrition sound in the years that followed. In order to fully realize the Attrition sound, Bowes managed to stay outside the confines of larger labels so as to not compromise the integrity of what he wanted his audience to enjoy. A few years later, Attrition would find a suitable home in Projekt Records where, within the realm of a few years, a large collection of his Attrition music would become accessible to a US audience.

Marrying gothic with late night horror film creep, The Attrition of Reason delivers, first by way of its cover and then by its music, the look and feel of a walk through a ancient house of evil. The album's opener track, “Day I Was Born,” sounds like the ghosts of the past communicating by singing in a mix of banshee backing vocals and a monotone voice, accompanied by eerie keyboards not uncommon in classic horror. But to pin the entirety of The Attrition of Reason on this board would be wrong. While the elements of horror remain throughout the album, there are songs that explore the juxtaposition of sounds to excellent effect and making for an album of note.

On “You Will Remember Nothing,” there is an element of a suspenseful movie score with a consistent looping electronic track and whispering, ghostly, movie-like vocals (voiceovers?). Other songs, like the highly experimental instrumental cut “Take a Walk,” with its dance beats, and its sister, “Beast of Burden (take a walk),” also a dance track, add to the heart of this album. Added to this reissue is the 4-track EP, The Voice of God (1984). This EP's collection of songs are all danceable, sounding more like the 80s period of pop tunes that you remember.

The Attrition of Reason stays true to its gothic roots and explorations of horror in its 8 tracks. That element was explored by bands like The Cure but never cut into the arm as deeply as Attrition does. With this reissue's expanded addition of the 4-song EP, The Attrition of Reason is a greater collector value. Fans should be quite happy to get this next remastered disc for their Attrition library.

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about

ATTRITION UK

official page for legendary UK dark industrial electronic act ATTRITION

"Forever there will be the speculation that the exploration of darkness as a beautiful place will lessen our fear of it all, ease the pain a little..."

" Creating and exploring rich shadowy electronic soundscapes...interweaving the ephemeral with the operatic, the sound can at once calm your soul and chill your bones..." ... more

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