It is not uncommon for bands to go through line-up changes but listening to Stick Around (the first song released by the current line-up of this innovative and exciting group) it is clear that Puppet Cell have now hit upon the perfect combination of vocals, lyrics and music. In many ways, the track is not fully indicative of the wide range of influences at play on this album but without a doubt, the song sets the level for the quality and assurance that Puppet Cell have produced on this intense but beguiling album.
Bands work hard to achieve the perfect track order and Puppet Cell have ensured the listener is taken on an impassioned journey as the album progresses. Drummer Paul Wray: “It’s a progression of sorts. Despair through to hope in the last couple of songs.” It is easy to understand this take on the album as lyricist Ryan Cronk grabs us by the throat from the very first line.
Opener Love To Hate creeps eerily into life and twenty seconds in explodes with electrical fervour. The opening lyrics set the scene from the outset. Take it in / Saturate your mind with all the bile you imbibe from your screen. A damning indictment of the state of modern society and our fixation with obtaining information, dwelling on the opinions of others and the public vitriol we are exposed to every day, together with the rather unhealthy way this is beamed to us 24 hours a day.
The potency of the album is evident from these first moments. Infectious guitar riffs abound and despite (or maybe because of) the deliberately challenging and uncomfortable subject matter (the album demands we look at ourselves, our own prejudices and our own opinions), it is an album that hooks us in immediately and refuses to let go until we are spat out 40 minutes later wondering what the hell happened while being more than ready to dive straight back in.
Second track Open Your Eyes begins with a crunching riff reminiscent of mid-period Metallica and maintains its urgency throughout. You grew like a cancer sucking life from me / Turbulence is not a valid form of therapy intones Cronk as he delivers the lyric with a biting malevolence. It is one of the most mordacious songs on the album as the protagonist falls deeper and deeper into the void. This confrontation opened my eyes / This was all I could take / This medicine won’t numb the pain / You want to watch me break. Puppet Cell drag you into their world and it is addictive as hell. The track ends with a battering ram of a riff once again bringing back feelings of Metallica at their most acerbic (in this case the last few seconds of The Day That Never Comes).
There are a number of notable guitar solos on the album (expertly handled by Andrew Deans with the exception of the truly stunning solo by rhythm guitarist Paul Owen on Wake Kill Repeat). Deans demonstrates a range of not only aggression and belligerence but one of colour and beauty as the grandeur of his work on Stick Around demonstrates.
During the following two tracks (Hollowed Out and Hopeless), Puppet Cell prove that alongside their power, they also have groove to spare. Drummer Paul Wray’s inventive and intuitive patterns and fills never become cliché and are perfectly synchronised with the different atmospheres which pervade each song.
Puppet Cell clearly draw on a wide variety of inspirations and their own social media biography states Grunge. Metal. Heavy Rock. Guitar Based Shamanism – call it what you will – we call it Puppet Cell. This statement sums up everything the album has to offer. Throw in their punk type attitude and that is a compelling mix for any music fan. Nevertheless, this eclectic range of styles never becomes confused and the well thought out track listing maintains the cohesion and coherence of Freaks and Heathens.
It is almost impossible to pick out an individual track as the best on the album but Poison Of Guilt comes close. Lyrically, the walls are crashing down around us, deep as we are in the mysterious and disturbing place Puppet Cell have created. How do you do it all alone and isolate yourself. Wray’s insistent drumming, together with Rob Sutton’s driving bass, does not let us breathe for a second as the trenchant lyric consumes us. The venom takes your life / It’s the poison of guilt. A feeling each of us dreads but ultimately one we all face at some point in our lives. It is a masterpiece of lyrical savagery and musical vehemence.
Puppet Cell have been tweaking this album for some time and for a band of this nature, the production is flawless. Every driving groove and every metallic riff sparkles from the speakers. Produced by guitarist Paul Owen, each instrument is clear and vibrant; however, in no way does this diminish their grit, power or temerity.
Wake Kill Repeat is a brutal and uncompromising illustration of PTSD which has hints of Nirvana. Thanked for his service as he walks down the street / Drone killings cheered on TV every week / If they could only hear the children shriek / They’d understand why he week. The strength of Puppet Cell is that having decided to tackle a range of challenging subjects, they do not hold back in their delivery. They have also balanced the album perfectly as shown by the heart-breaking solo in Wake Kill Repeat. It reflects the small moments of relief that “Andy” (the subject of Wake Kill Repeat) manages to find within the horror and anguish his condition almost endlessly delivers.
Never Too Late is one of the most groove-laden moments. Imagine the groove of Pantera with the delivery of Soundgarden and you will not be far away.
Stick Around sits perfectly towards the end of the album and the first rays of hope begin to force their way through the bleakness experienced thus far. Salvation is still some way off (She makes her money in the middle of the night-time / Where the freaks and heathens patrol the streets) but the quite exquisite beauty within the music of the verses is the first bud of optimism. There’s only one thing that springs to mind / When she falls asleep tonight, what if she wakes up and she’s free.
The album ends with Better Man and as drummer Paul Wray promised, there is indeed a sanguine confidence. I will create a world that’s colourful for you / I will hold the sky until I cannot stand / You can lean on me for anything / Remembering to always be a good man. Better Man has the most melancholic introduction of the album and from the first moment, it is clear that something different awaits. The slower pace allows us to immerse ourselves as we come down from the incredible odyssey on which Freaks and Heathens has taken us, albeit with an ending which leaves the listener wondering if redemption really is at hand. Have I done right by you? / Time will only tell and I can’t wait / Have I rubbed off well on you?
Puppet Cell’s debut album is certainly not something to reach for as an easy Sunday morning listen but the more discerning listener willing to give time to this unbending yet rewarding album will find there is a wealth of wonder to discover. As their own words proclaim, they do not pigeon hole their music. They call it Puppet Cell and as the last moments of the final track die away … so will you.
Freaks and Heathens is released on 4th May 2023. Listen to Stick Around here https://open.spotify.com/album/0ITTPW0J34Ckc1Lz6MfWMw?si=lL74L5VwROOi0yGtDaFkEg
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