(((O))) Review: Crippled Black Phoenix – The Wolf Changes Its Fur But Not Its Nature / Honorifics Number Two (2)

Lead by the prolific talents of multi-instrumentalist Justin Greaves, the collective known as Crippled Black Phoenix have decided to release two albums at once. The Wolf Changes Its Fur But Not Its Nature is a collection of reworked songs from their back catalogue. Horrific Honorifics Number Two (2) is a set of cover versions of songs the band wanted to apply their unique style to. Without going into specifics, the “Cast of Suspects” who also appear on the albums are the ever present Belinda Kordic, Andy Taylor, Helen Stanley, Matt Crawford, Georg Paco Nitscke, Wesley J. Wasley, Ryan Patterson, Justin Storms, Kostas Panagiotou, Robin Tow and Martin Hyde. And breathe…

There’s a genuinely terrifying intro to ‘We Forgotten Who We Are’ about “devil dogs that kill” while wolves howl in the distance. Given more space and grandeur the extended piano/guitar introduction pulls at the heart strings. Everything seems amplified with waves of thick distorted guitar and more voices driving the song powerfully. Scorching guitars lay waste to the landscape with momentous crescendos. A final passage of exquisite guitar solos gets abruptly clipped just as you settle back to enjoy it. I can’t say I’ve ever heard a quirkier intro than the one to ‘You Put The Devil In Me’, but we’ve come to expect the unexpected with this band. Once again, the track sounds reinvigorated with crisp drums pounding with glorious hefty guitars and a rousing organ undertow.

Underneath the serious intent Crippled Black Phoenix have a playfulness and the sampled intro and ending to ‘444’ shows this with abundance. A slamming beat and groove takes no prisoners, the production here is excellent, they sound absolutely massive. When the chorus swings in, it’s mighty and magnificent. The final passage of instrumentation is seismic and glorious. Given the destruction we see in various parts of the world ‘Goodnight, Europe (Pt2) has a greater emotional impact. Belinda always has the knack of conveying horror with immense beauty as her voice quivers and soars. Burbling synths bring a little relief from the guitar onslaught with the spacey ‘(-)’.

‘Song For The Unloved’ begins as a melancholy acoustic fireside ballad with waspish synths/guitars spinning into the ether. Like a wrecking ball through the heart the track ramps up in volume but the emotion isn’t diminished. Ratcheting up the tension with staccato guitars the final sequence twists with monks chanting over spacy textures. Is there room for a saxophone solo over progressive rock riffage? There sure is. Not content with the genre hopping and incredible instrumentation the track effortlessly shifts to a final mass singalong with some stunning guitar solos. After the previous extravaganza the tender ‘Whissendine’ sounds minimalist as Belinda’s breathy verse is counterbalanced by the sweeping chorus. As the track winds to a windswept close, the spoken word passage fits in perfectly, despite being an oddity outside of this album. The gentle rolling piano that ushers in ‘Blizzard of Horned Cats’ is calming and warm, smashed to smithereens by a majestic drop of blistering guitars and crashing drums.

The first cover version comes with the fiery ‘Vengeance’ by New Model Army. It’s an agitated raging punk blaster with a raucous chorus of “I believe in justice, I believe in vengeance, I believe in getting the bastards!”. As I previously mentioned, Crippled Black Phoenix have an unusually playful side to them, given the seriousness of their music and message. You wouldn’t have expected them to cover an 80s pop hit, but Laura Branigan’s ‘Self Control’ takes on a whole new sound in their hands. It works brilliantly with gorgeous eerie guitars soaring in the background. Those magnificent “Whoh-oh-ohs!” are present and intact.

Fugazi’s ‘Blueprint’ sounds no less abrasive despite the guitars having a cleaner edge to them. If anything, the massive swathes of layered guitars twist the snarly original into something equally as bilious. Not being familiar with the remaining original versions, this cover of NoMeansNo’s ‘And That’s Sad’ lands a little flat to my ears as a throw away punkish barrage of riffs and understated vocals. The Sensational Alex Harvey Band’s ‘Hammer Song’ could well be a Crippled Black Phoenix song, with a leaning towards folk music. Progressive rock is a clear inspiration to Justin Greaves, the cover of Deep Purple’s ‘When A Blind Man Cries’ is a beautiful song sung with a witchy and beguiling vocal from Belinda. I didn’t know there was a band called God, so the inclusion of the Australian punk band’s ‘My Pal’ gets a thunderous remake, Crippled Black Phoenix like making a racket occasionally. Finally Built To Spill’s ‘Goin’ Against Your Mind’ is a straight up blaster of kicking drums, staccato guitars and gnarly bass.

Never ones to do anything by halves this double release is a lengthy collection to sit through in one sitting. I doubt that’s the intent though, the band found themselves unable to tour so studio productivity was always going to be on the uptake for a prolific artist like Greaves. The reworked versions are up there with anything the band have released, the instrumentation is sublime, and the band allowed themselves plenty of freedom to embellish the songs as they saw fit. As you might expect with a covers album, it’s more curiosity than necessity and you’ll find there will be replay value as the range of artists and styles is pretty wide. Once again Crippled Black Phoenix have released another righteous and rocking collection to add to their already exceptional repertoire.