SIIIII
‘Ancient'
AF-MUSIC

Acting as a precursor to their immanent second studio album ‘Modern', Siiiii's 2006 debut gets a well-deserved re-release courtesy of their new label AF-Music. ‘Ancient', a collection of early material from the Sheffield band's original 80s incarnation, is an interesting if somewhat poignant look back at what could have been.

All the tools for a big band are here, the dystopian atmosphere of Joy Division, the melancholic pop of ‘Pornography' era The Cure, and rough charm of Bauhaus' early BBC sessions. Everything looks to be in place to have ensured their place in the annals of goth history, but they were condemned to a mere footnote. Yet since this album's release in 2006 the band's status has increased exponentially.
With songs like ‘Split', ‘Still Waters', ‘Speaking In Tongues', ‘Fixing' and 'Over' it isn't hard to understand why Siiiii have finally found an audience. Alternating between forceful post-punk with driving basslines and guitar hooks, to swampy blues and even into avant garde spoken word pieces the effect is always captivating.

Where the album falls down is in the inconsistent production. As a collection of early songs, there was always going to be variety in their presentation but a uniform reworking could have just ironed out the creases. What is most evident about this album though is the energy and hunger that it exudes with every beat and chord, which is perhaps the bands most endearing quality. It will be interesting where they go on their follow-up.

[3/5]