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The Living End: White Noise

After the chart-thumping success of their fourth album, The Living End have produced what could be their best album yet.

Editorial Review

Click here to read Citysearch's recent one-on-one with The Living End bassist, Scott Owen, and find out how White Noise nearly didn't happen.

Album review ...
Release date: 19 July 2008 (Dew Process)
In 2006, their heat-radiating album State of Emergency burnt their nerves to a crisp, and by the end of the tour, The Living End faced a real life meltdown. But now, that much needed cooling-off period is over, and it's evident the once unbearable pressure has now transformed into the birth of their magnum opus: White Noise. It's not a sequel, a rehash, nor does it abide to their proven success formula; it's a demanding soundtrack to how The Living End got their groove back - and it's the best album they've ever made.

And groove is the operative word here. Having etched a new chapter from a tumultuous 2006, The Living End have brought forth clarity and a refreshed attitude to White Noise. Repulsed with the thought of churning out another album by merely resting on their laurels, frontman Chris Cheney has returned to his band bearing gifts in the form of fired up Zeppelin riffs - How Do We Know and White Noise. Their biggest sounding album to date melds 1970's-inspired electric guitar, a commanding Black Sabbath-esque rhythm section and lyrics that capture their new, hushed headspace. But White Noise doesn't just showcase their love for fusing classic (Zeppelin, AC/DC, Sabbath et al) sounds with their signature, sonic infrastructure. Kid is a lyrically dark tune set to choral-like, harmonic vocals, bells and upbeat 1950's rock'n'roll guitar; while the moralistic Sum of Us is an infectiously catchy track featuring clipped notes (similar to Sublime's Santeria). It's a diverse, but undeniably cohesive playlist.

Capturing the vibe like an audiograph, sound engineer John Agnello (Dinosaur Jr., Sonic Youth, The Hold Steady) intuitively opted for a stripped-back recording, accommodating the Melbourne trio's all-pervasive talent, sans the opulent studio recording trickery. White Noise is back to basics, back to real music and back-to-back quality listening.

Tracks:
1. How Do We Know?
2. Raise the Alarm
3. White Noise
4. Moment in the Sun
5. Waiting for the Silence
6. Make the Call
7. Loaded Gun
8. Kid
9. 21st Century
10. Hey Hey Disbeliever
11. Sum of Us