Balaam And The Angel - 'Love Death Wealth Water' EP Review

4 minutes ago
2 min read

Tracklist:

1. Wealth

2. Fear of Poisoned Water

3. You Are Dead To Me

4. Love You Too

The post punk scene in the UK became a fertile breeding ground of creativity in the late 70s and 80s. Taking the "anyone can do this" mentality that punk provided, bands would add various other influences to create often unique musical soundscapes. Balaam and the Angel were no exception.

Centering on brothers Mark, Jim and Des Morris (vocals/bass, guitar and drums respectively), Balaam would fuse their songs with a gothic and rock flavour, touring with acclaimed bands and artists like The Cult, The Mission and Iggy Pop. They would originally wind things up around their fifth album 'Prime Time' before making a return to recording in 2024. "Love Death Wealth Water" is their latest release, a taught EP that's rife with tension and melody that reflects on each of the subjects in the ep's title.

Opener 'Wealth' opens proceedings in an epic manner with chiming guitars and keyboards (provided by fourth member Karen Morris), before being driven along by galloping drums in a style similar to Killing Joke and Bahaus. Mark's vocals are cleaner and tuneful with the chorus refrain of "Wealth I need it/Wealth you need it/Wealth we need it" lifting above the controlled chaos.

'Fear of Poisoned Water' kicks off with a wandering synth line before the band join in, it's high hat, snare and kick are almost disco like before the guitars drop kick it into next week. The song's breakdown section adds menace before building back into the chorus. 'You Are Dead To Me' features Mark's vocals sounding confident and smooth, it's pace slightly slower than the previous tracks. It's almost an anti-ballad in some respects. A Hammond organ sounding solo adds a nice touch. Closer 'Love You Too' allows the vocals a lot of space to breath and is used to great effect, especially when married with the stop/start beat of the verses.

The "Love Death Wealth Water" EP sounds great. The production allows the band to showcase their sound. They marry the The Cult's canny knack of song writing with Killing Joke's mix of punk and futurism. With this return it's hard to see why the band weren't as big as their peers back in the day. Hopefully Balaam and the Angel are able to tap into new audiences, something that they deserve on this strong showing.