Current 93 — If A City Is Set Upon A Hill

Apocalyptic neofolk poet David Tibet has created music since his beginnings with the industrial movement of the early 80's, creating numerous visionary works of spoken word in a style one might describe as interdimensional divination informed by intense theological and historical research.  In 2022, years after what he may have previously predicted would be the end of the world, we find David's soft and expressive voice still singing.

My attention having strayed from the world of Current 93 in recent years, I find in returning to him, his voice is charged with greater hope and energy than on such frail, ghostly works as HoneySuckle Æons, some vitality regained.  The feeling of imminent dissolution so present in that era, his most apocalypse-centric, has receded in this recording.  The subject matter in his lyrics is clearer; personal and introspective rather than esoteric and referential.  The scope of his description has shrunk down from the imminent collapse of human reality on Earth to the warm comfort of his bedroom and immediate surroundings.

Typically, I would describe Tibet's style as a form of thespian speak-singing, but here he has moved closer to traditional folk singing styles and melodies, in a wispy freeform way that allows for his verbosity.  I find this transition comfortable and natural for him, at this point.  Comfortable, indeed, is the best description of Tibet's performance on this recording, as his texts seem woven with greater coherence and texture this time around; no awkward lines to spark laughs from me, as in the past.  I am immersed completely in the nostalgic yet ageless feeling of what he has created, the grieving of all things lost as time passes.

Often, I have attributed the greatness of Current 93's best albums to the influence of departed collaborator Michael Cashmore, whose mesmerizingly simple folk guitar stylings were instantly memorable and deeply emotive.  While Cashmore's absence is still felt here, I think this is the closest Tibet has been to achieving that distinct atmosphere without Cashmore.  Nurse With Wound and Cyclobe members Andrew Liles and Ossian Brown ensure that the classic darkly luminous post-industrial sound is achieved, and for the first time in a while, there is a convincing medieval flavor.  The flutes and strings of "There Is No Zodiac" bring me back to moments of Thunder Perfect Mind and Black Ships Ate the Sky, the crowning jewels in the C93 catalogue.

For the first time since Black Ships Ate the Sky, David Tibet has assembled a neofolk ensemble capable of equalling his best works, and written tastefully powerful texts to match, from a more reserved yet more exacting and subtle point of view which is welcome to my ears.  Prior to hearing this album, I wasn't sure if I'd ever care to return to Current 93, but this is honestly one of their greatest.