With their faces disguised by black, tar-like cloth--shaded further by dark top hats, enshrouded in ostentatious suiting--grunge-rock duo The Lost Poets are equal parts visual and sonic, building a shadowy artistic experience with image as much as with their instruments.
These masked men will tell you they hail from the world of Insubordia, a location "bound not by time nor place." In the studio, however, they are David Rosengren and Petter Strömberg of Stockholm, Sweden--two talented musicians working hard to revive the heavy rock sound of the Pacific Northwest in the 90's with ocular flourishes fit for 2016.
Their latest release, Insubordia, Pt. II (a follow-up to 2014's Insubordia, a debut LP that received positive critical attention abroad) features enough protracted echoes and hammering bass and percussion to transport any listener back a few decades, to a time when grunge guys with stuff to get off their chests literally just screamed it out.
Capped by howling, grinding vocals, the album is reminiscent of the old scene's finest, like Godsmack, Audioslave, Soundgarden, Pearl Jam, Stained, and Fuel. Many songs would mash-up excellently with "Hemorrhage," particularly the song's soaring "In my hands, in my hands again..." refrain.
Brooding piano and synths on "Beyond Redemption" make it a standout track, leading directly into another solid tune, "In a Wasteland," a hard rock ballad sure to get you moshing, if only in your car seat.
"Monomyth," Pt. II's final track--and, for me, the strongest on the album, featured above--sets itself apart from the rest with acoustic strums and muted vocals, delivering a cool and haunting new sound, and new take on the long-serving grunge genre. It's the tune that gets me most excited for what could come next from the Poets--hopes for breathing new life into a musical movement that essentially soared to its peak in its own time.
Keeping things visual, The Lost Poets will be featured in Dolph Lundgren's forthcoming feature film Without You I'm Nothing, as well as their own short film, Tales From Insubordia. For a taste of the project, watch the trailer below.