Cute is truly the polar opposite of its title, which the dictionary defines as appealing in a pretty or endearing way. The eleven-track album finds the  UK pushing their extreme and uneasy sound down sonic avenues such as psycho-ambient, intense electronica,  jagged & bent beat scaping, nihilistic electro-punk and beyond.

Sutcliffe No More project started in the year 2021- it brings together Kevin Tomkins & Paul Taylor, both formally of infamous/ but often creative Power electronics Sutcliffe Jugend- who ran from 1982 to 2018- releasing thirty-two albums, as well of course a fair selection of singles/ EP’s/ etc. Cute is the project's fifth album, and it finds the duo pushes their sound both away & towards PE- to bring us another harrowing, intense, yet highly creative record.

The album opens up at the more ambient, though still uneasy side of the project's sound with “Salt”. It brings together a sinister bubbling, at times almost meditative selection of synth tones. On top of this, we find a hushed but- at points near aggressive spoken word story detailing a woman pouring salt on her perverse & depraved partner- before pleasuring herself. 

As we move on we have the disfigured beat slurs & electro buzz of “Unholy Poem” with lyrics regarding( I think ) losing faith in a filthy, drug-addled, and cruel lover. “Never The Swan” is built around what sounds like rapidly roaming backwards organ discord/ doomy clanking-which towards its resolve slips into blunt/ eerier piano stabs. all topped with intelligent yet sweary put-downs.

As the album winds down we move to the title track, which opens with a slow swelling ambience,  before suddenly switching into a distorted & doom organ-like plod ‘n’ hover. In time the distant ranted-to-pained warbled vocals come in, as well as skittering ‘n’ swirling electro beats. There is a wonderful feeling simmer malevolence about this track, which I don’t recall hearing before from the project.

We play out with the short track “Overwhelmed By Your Violence” which brings together climbing harmonic stringed-liked electronica, electro tone twitches, and muffled chanted vocals- with the musical elements suddenly shifting backwards as the track resolves.

Cute is another highly consistent, creative yet of course troubling release from Sutcliffe No More. It shows the two-piece both homing and expanding their sound.  The release has a relatively small edition of 300 copies- so I’d suggest acting sooner rather than later to secure a copy of this CD album- drop by  here  to do so.