Test Dept. bildades i sydöstra London redan 1981, släppte sin första kassett året därpå och den late skulle nog kunna nöja sig med att beskriva dem som Englands svar på Laibach. Men även om de poetiskt uttrycksfulla konst-industriella vibbarna på Disturbance stundtals påminner en del om den nyss nämnda serbeiska aktens musik, så för spår som de tungt maskinella och hårdslående “Landlord” och “Full Spectrum Dominance” även tankarna till landsmän som Portion Control och Cabaret Voltaire. Ljudbilden har dock snarare sina grunder i en Sheffield-influerad brittiskt stålform än Laibachs folkmusikinfluerade dito och albumet innehåller en ordentlig bredd av allt från udda ljudexperiment till mer lättlyssnade spår med mörka och rakare technoindustriella undertoner.

Tre intressanta gästspel återfinns också på det här albumet. Michelle Outram bidrar med sitt cellospel på inledningsspåret “Speak Truth to Power” och pianisten Roz Corrigan medverkar på “Debris” medan soloartisten Laura Thompsons sång återfinns på “Gatekeeper”.

Tracklist

01. Speak Truth to Power (06:21)
02. Landlord (04:41)
03. Debris (04:33)
04. Full Spectrum Dominance (07:27)
05. Information Scare (04:50)
06. Gatekeeper (05:32)
07. GBH84 (04:20)
08. Two Flames Burn (07:55)

(English version below)

Very political but still highly relevant

“The future is here. The past rules the present. Are we witness to the triumph of capitalism?”

These phrases opens Test Dept. comeback album Disturbance, the UK act’s first studio album for more than two decades. And the album proves to represent as much a political and artistic statement, from one of those acts that has never been particularly successful but that, for many years, has constantly inspired a large number of other bands in this context.

Test Dept. formed in South-east London already 1981 and released their first cassette the year after and the lazy-minded would probably describe them as England’s response to Laibach. But even though the poetically expressive art-industrial vibes on Disturbance sometimes remind me of some of  the Serbian act’s music, tracks like the heavy and hardhitting “Landlord” and “Full Spectrum Dominance” also reminds of fellow countrymen like Portion Control and Cabaret Voltaire. The overall sound, however, is rather based on the classic Sheffield-influenced steel-form than from the folk music inspired Laibach approach. The album contains a proper breadth of everything from the interesting and odd sound experiment to more easily enjoyable dark and techno-industrial undetones.

Three interesting guest-appearances are also included on this album. Michelle Outram plays her cello on the opening track “Speak Truth to Power” and pianist Roz Corrigan has contributed on “Debris” while vocalist Laura Thompson is to be found on “Gatekeeper”.

Disturbance is an interesting reflection of our present day and eight tracks prove to be quite sufficient to underline that Test Dept. still remains highly relevant in a time showing increased affinity of capitalism’s backside and the political abuse of power.