Christian Death’s thirteenth studio CD, “American Inquisition”, came out last October and it is probably the best thing that the band has done since releasing Sexy Death God in 1994. Valor’s paranoia has shifted from the ‘end of the world’ to 9-11 conspiracy theories but I wouldn’t expect anything less from a band like Christian Death.

This is somewhat of a concept album and the central theme is a protest against George Bush and the “global conspiracy” of right-wing evangelicals and neo-cons. Musically, the band has gone back to their goth/death-rock roots and there is very little of the ‘metalism’ that detracted from the last few Christian Death releases.

The album opens with a sample from George W. Bush’s inaugural speech and closes with a long track, “XIII” that strings together spoken word samples from George Bush and right-wing fundamentalists over a sparse musical backdrop. The other tracks range from straight-forward death rock (“Dexter Said No”, “Water into Wine”) to the middle-Eastern sounding “Worship along the Nile”.

Standout tracks are “Dexter Said No” and “Angels and Drugs”.

This CD is an intriguing return to form from a band that many had considered down for the count.

Links:
Christian Death's Website (newly revamped)