Nilagia McCoy can often be found fronting Boston based garage pop/power pop/alternative band The Jacklights. In the main, their Drive Thru Facelift project couldn’t be any more different, stylistically speaking. Billed as “two humans and a drum machine writing a soundtrack for our dystopian times”, the duo explores a sound that blends industrial loops with deep, goth influenced bass grooves, creating a dark yet danceable sound that has a heart in the very early 90s.
‘Control’ makes the duo’s musical interests more than clear with an intro that couples a programmed beat with a deep bass sound. Initially, the rhythm and melody has hints of very early New Order, but soon, the dominant bass and industrial-goth hybrid sound steers everything further towards sounding like a relatively tuneful tribute to a deep cut from Al Jourgensen’s WaxTrax label. It’s dark and oppressive, but certainly never inaccessible. The bass riffs are actually strong enough to carry everything with a confident and reasonably accessible feel, but layers of guitar also punch through with a great industrial sound, lending a fuzzy sound that compliments a distorted vocal perfectly. Add a militaristic drum beat to a busier chorus, and that creates a superb backdrop for a furious lyric, where McCoy repeatedly calls out those who are eroding democracy and, ultimately, peoples’ safety. “Does it feel good to be so cruel / To twist the knife into those who haven’t done shit to you?” feels like an especially pointed question delivered at a time of ICE related murders, and the knife itself could also represent the metaphorical hold an increasingly corrupt government has over a crumbling nation.
‘Call Him Daddy’ isn’t quite as interesting, but it certainly isn’t any less angry. Heavy beats and programmed handclaps provide a bass for another dirty bassline. It quickly feels like DTF are about to drop more of the same, but a clean, almost pop-infused vocal with McCoy channelling the legendary Kay Hanley ensures this feels very different. Despite the accessible vocal, it doesn’t skimp on the ominous moods, of course, and a fuzzed up guitar, samples about spanking and a very DIY approach to recording provide another great insight into the duo’s unsettling world of noise. A pointed guitar riff creeping in during this song’s final bars provides a slightly closer link to The Jacklights, but everything else continues to flaunt those massive industrial-goth grooves very effectively.
The core of the Drive Thru Facelift sound may well seem like a huge stylistic shift from The Jacklights, but these two tracks share a familiar vocal behind the distortion, and ‘Control’, in particular, shows off McCoy’s gift for a great hook, even if it’s destined to reach a very different audience. On the surface $5 might seem quite expensive for a two song download, but all monies earned are being donated to a charity campaign that helps immigrants in Massachusetts – something that’s vital at the time of this release, in a failing US driven by fascism. For those keen to revisit an early 90s sound in a way that feels hugely nostalgic but still conveys a genuine vitality, this is definitely worth investigating.
January 2025