Music Review: Youth Code - Anagnorisis

Last month, I finally got to see Skinny Puppy live (in the event I don't write my thoughts on that show, it was purely amazing, theatrically and musically sublime from start to finish). Opening for them was a band I'd heard of, but hadn't listened to or seen before - Youth Code. Suffice to say, that night, the duo from Los Angeles won me over as a fan. They've also recently released a two song 7", Anagnorisis, that we'll look at today. The long and short of it all - this is a group that is going places and you'd be wise to keep an eye on them.

2015's Anagnorisis from Youth Code

Before getting to the music, allow me to say that the first thing that struck me was the make-up of the group - Ryan George taking on duties as programmer, synths, and mostly backing vocals and Sara Taylor taking lead vocals live (providing additional sampling and synths in the studio). Let this sink in. Can you name any industrial/EBM bands fronted by a woman? That night at the show, I strained to. Roughly a month later, I'm still drawing blanks. This is part of what makes this group so unique and begs the question - why aren't more women leading industrial bands? Because if Taylor is any indication, we women sure can KILL it!

Okay, personal anecdotes and musings aside, we look at Anagnorisis. The self-titled track opens with synths mixed with an audio sampling, starting light enough. As the song progresses, additional electronic elements begin to enter, even featuring a moving part slightly reminiscent of early Gary Numan before Taylor's gritty, caustic distorted vocals kick in. It becomes an instantly catchy tune and it's hard to not bop your head in time. As the song progresses, Taylor backs the screaming off, clearly resonating the lines "This is a trigger/This is despair." Afterwards, the song begins to fade out, dropping elements one by one until a white noise of sorts takes over, leaving the end fuzzy, broadcast out, so to speak.

Youth Code - Ryan George, left, and Sara Taylor, right

The other side holds "Shift of Dismay," a song that starts off musically as a mashup of Nine Inch Nails, Rammstein, Skinny Puppy, and Front 242 (as in very familiar in sound to some of the songs each group has made over the year, yet still distinct and unique to Youth Code). The song builds into Taylor's vocal entry, taking on a very militaristic marching feel meshed to biting industrial electronic undertones. After the first minute and a half, the song transitions, backing off the electronics slightly, and bringing in a brooding, echoing vocal cascade, creating a lavishly sinister tone that consumes the listener.

Last night the group played in Miami and it appears they may be taking a small break to round off the year, but keep an eye out for them next year. Looking to score Anagnorisis? Sadly, all three presses of the 7" have sold out, but you can stream them on Spotify and check out Youth Code's other work on their Bandcamp site.