400 BLOWS – Black Rainbow

Description

In the depths of the underground music scene, 400 Blows emerged as a phantom-like trio, armed with a guitar, drums, and vocals, carving their niche in the caustic melting pot of noise-rock. Under the cover of night, they would materialize in some dark, illegal basement where a small fire could have snuffed out the lives of everyone inside their clandestine performances. Undeterred, the band persevered for a remarkable 15 years, sharing their sonic revelations with anyone willing to lend an ear.
Black Rainbow, their enduring masterpiece, resonates with the same vitality it possessed upon its release. Channeling the manic energy of Minneapolis’ Hammerhead and infusing it with the economical precision reminiscent of Wire at their most vitriolic, 400 Blows carved a unique path. Poetic and occasionally philosophical, they stood as art house outsiders alongside kindred spirits like US Maple and The Blood Brothers.
Black Rainbow eschews frenetic discordance for the primitive. Tracks like “Mortar & Pestle” and “Premature Burial” echo the industrial pulse of Ministry, blended with the hypnotic throb of Amon Düül II. The result is a record that captivates with its accessibility while unsettling with its mechanical and alienating undertones, conjuring memories of the relentless grind akin to Uniform or Killing Joke.
Released two decades ago in 2003, this double LP, their second offering, marked a pivotal moment. To put in Kubrickian terms, if their debut was the cave-dwelling dawn-of-man era, “Black Rainbow” is the epoch when they harnessed the bone as a tool, evolved and propelled it into the metaphorical cosmos. This is when they figured out who and what they were and let it rip. This is Black Rainbow.