There was an imminent darkness in quite a number of the best bands coming in the eighties – from Joy Division and Swans to The Sounds and Echo & The Bunnymen.
That prevailing darkness seems to reflect the current times too well, so it is not a wonder that quite a number of artists coming up recently feel the need to further explore the similar themes, as well a similar sound.
One such artist is Chicago’s Jamie Berkes, who works under the moniker of Killed by The Architects, particularly as expressed on his latest (third) album Tabula Rasa.
Actually, Berkes has a somewhat unique story. He came to Chicago in 1998 to pursue a career in medicine, which he practices to this day. Yet, as a big music lover, he decided to try his hand at it himself, although he didn’t know how to play an instrument.
Still, with the mentorship of Chicago artist and producer, Antony Ablan, he turned out to be quite a quick learner, as he has come up with three albums so far (two in 2021).
Yet, to come up with something substantial in such a short period of time, you have to have a deep feel and knowledge of music, and on the evidence of Tabula Rasa, Berkes certainly does so.
Hinging his music on all the above-mentioned greats, including quite a few more, Berkes has come up with quite an effective take on the eighties indie guitar sound and its dark thematic explorations, evidenced in tracks like ‘Cinema’ and ‘If You Don’t Know What You Want’.
For somebody who only started playing an instrument only a few years back, Berkes has come up with quite an achievement.
