Album Review: Lawrence English - Cruel Optimism

For a musician who began his career with industrial outfit Dogmachine, Lawrence English's recorded solo career has been relatively bereft of aggression.

However, in recent years a growing frustration with global politics has found the veteran sound artist's albums sounding increasingly scabrous and violent. Of this family of releases, Cruel Optimism may constitute his best effort. Single-minded and darkly hypnotic, English's latest release features dense waves of distortion but augments its titanic approach with fragments of surprising detail and a subtle streak of melody — sounding simultaneously intelligent, melancholy and savage. Thoroughly recommended.