Legion Within- The Empty Men

ARTIST: Legion Within

ALBUM: The Empty Men

LABEL: Wretched World Music

REVIEWER: Matthew J.

DATE: 6-20-07

Combining the avant-garde sensibility of Bauhaus with the innate rhythms and political edge of KMFDM, Legion Within's latest EP is sure to please goth and industrial fans alike. Lead singer William Wilson's reedy vocal work invites instant Peter Murphy comparisons, but on the darkly romantic "She Chides" his layered spoken parts and wordless harmonies are less evocative of Bauhaus than Peter Murphy's solo tracks "Socrates the Python" and "Blind Sublime." For brooding epics, you can't do much better than the keyboard-laced "Wrath of the Empty Men," while "Rise" simmers with dissodent rage. Perhaps the best offering, though, is the angry but intelligent "Fascisti," which starts off with goth bass guitar before bursting into an industrial metal chorus, complete with George W. Bush samples. The KMFDM similarities are no coincidence, and Sascha Konietzko himself provides a techno mix sure to win hearts, minds, and booties at a goth club or revolutionary safe-house near you. Despite the obvious comparisons, however, Legion Within have a unique sound, simmering with political angst as well as delicate beauty; think of them as reluctant New Romantic warrior poets for the 21st century.

Don't be empty men! Go to www.legionwithin.com to get your fill!