We’re sure there’ll be something on the upcoming final Ministry recordings but do you remember when Uncle Al was railing against the machine and especially the separate Bush regimes on albums like Psalm 69 and then specifically targeting GWB across a whole trilogy of records? We need more of that today. And lucky for y’all, Tairrie B has never been one to back down from a fight. Especially from a bully like the one currently “leading” the nation. But does Tairrie speak up as herself? Maybe through recent project SWTEVL?? Nah, Queen B went truly Old School with musical/life partner Mick Murphy and resurrected MY RUIN with a whole album to talk out of place called Declaration Of Resistance!
The band’s first new album in almost 13 years, Declaration Of Resistance has a little sumthin’ sumthin’ for fans of all the Murphy’s musical personalities. There’s that transitionary period from Manhole into Tura Satana before settling into the MY RUIN skin in here with even facets of the aforementioned SWTEVL seeping in along with Tairrie’s earliest roots in Hip-Hop. Genre-wise, the album is a veritable smorgasbord welcoming aspects from Mick Murphy’s Neanderthal and Teenage Time Killers to the DOR fold with elements of Groove, Metal, Punk and, of course, Nu-Metal in the mix.
Sounding as fierce as ever… no, scratch that… fiercer than ever, lead single “Compromised” starts it off and it’s as if MY RUIN never left with a terrific tirade from Tairrie B against modern tyranny utilizing her uncanny vocal flow as a weapon and accented by Murphy’s Groove-filled sonic backdrop. The next single to arrive, “The Audacity”, is a different monster altogether utilizing a Sabbathian-like Doom to get the message across yet still filled with all the things that make MY RUIN stand out.
“True Allies” featuring Call To The Void’s Jack Osborne (Please tell us you’ve already heard the CTTV collab with Tairrie B on the Edwyn Collins classic “A Girl Like You”??? If not, find it here) sees the two vocalists voices intertwine in a way that, at times, become hard to differentiate during the screamier moments and then “Contempt” is built in a way that it sounds like the song is walking a tightrope and constantly in danger of falling off with Tairrie B’s voice the guiding light, sounding as cool and as confident as ever.
Elsewhere, on that “cool and confident” kick we get “Infinite Connection” with its’ big rhythmic rumble and bigger riffage out of Murphy while Tairrie B’s subdued vitriol exquisitely matches the all around vibe. “Fragile Like A Bomb” is a nice amalgamation of Old School Hip-Hop with the very beginnings of Nu-Metal (Think the Anthrax/Public Enemy pairing, Judgement Night soundtrack in particular) with “Dark Eyes Of London” exploding as if being expelled out of a cannon with the way Murphy’s riffage slays and Tairrie B’s vicious barbs aurally brutalize.
“Lady Liberty” is both a somber and sinister spoken word sound experimentation while “Muzzle Velocity” once again highlights Tairrie B’s propensity for executing a superb vocal flow that manages to be abrasive yet filled with aura with this one in particular leading into a killer chorus. “Truth Of Consequences” is that quintessential ’90’s Nu-Metal Rap/Rock perfection right before the end comes calling in the form of “Shitlist” which is a riotous Grunge-y number and, for us at least, reminiscent of Slayer’s iconic “Payback” intent-wise but slowed down and filled with hella GROOVE.
Declaration Of Resistance is out through Magick Room Recordings NOW. You can get your copy to stream and/or download plus find the links to everything MY RUIN-related and more by visiting here.