First Alcoholocaust and now Narcotica. Sense a theme? No wonder the two members of Invisigoth — Cage on all instruments and Viggo Domino on all vocals — call this their "headphone record." And while hearing it under the influence of something might enhance the listening experience, it's already pretty potent.
More melodic and less gothic than its predecessor, Narcotica presents nine songs that echo Peter Gabriel, Pink Floyd, Porcupine Tree and the Flower Kings while still retaining their originality. This is tough music to slot into any neat category, making for adventurous and rewarding listening. Five shorter pieces — including the groovy rocker "Scars and Dust" and the seductive, thought-provoking "Pornocopia" — allow Domino to stretch his voice and Cage to work within more structured musical settings. Those songs are sandwiched between a four-part epic called "Dark Highway." Two parts each begin and end the album, and they each average about 10 minutes, pulsing with Middle-Eastern swirls, symphonic elements and dramatic sonic imagery, The entire piece easily is this duo's most ambitious work, brought down only slightly by some strange spoken-word passages.
Taken as a whole, Narcotica emerges as a moody and textured album. It's at once complex and accessible, dense and sparse at the same time, and wholly intoxicating.
Track Listing:
1) Dark Highway Part 1: Transmission
2) Dark Highway Part 2: Before First Light
3) Shine On
4) Scars and Dust
5) Pornocopia
6) Narcotica
7) A Beautiful Disaster
8) Dark Highway Part 3: New Rome
9) Dark Highway Part 4: Take the Blood
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