God’s Gifts “Pathology”

(Hyped2Death) Why this Manchester band remains incredibly obscure while Joy Division, the Smiths and the Fall still have teenagers contemplating suicide to this day is a mystery. OK, it may be because this retrospective CD features some of the most delightfully ultra-minimalist, ultra-miserable music ever recorded. The real money shot on this compilation of recordings from 1979-1084 is the 12” version of “No God.” If the 12” format was invented for dance records this almost qualifies as parody: it’s a dirgelike drone that is for the most part played on one (unaccompanied) string and sung in pretty much one somber note, convincingly giving sonic evidence to back up the chorus’ claim that “there is no god!” “The Shroud of Turin was a good trick,” indeed! Other toe-tappers include “Creep In” (which sounds like someone left a “Bela Lugosi is Dead” vinyl in direct sunlight), “People,” which sounds like it  is played on funereal flugelhorn, and the surprisingly peppy “Deicide (Their Soul is Hate).” If I am underselling this I apologize. I not only like this more than Morrissey and not only does this hit the mark more than Mark E., but I’ll say this out-Manchesters Freddie and the Dreamers and Oasis.