Who Will Survive, and What Will Be Left
of Them?, the Indiana quintet’s second album, tells
the story of a western town plagued by the devil; a concept
that, without such exquisitely written music and finely-crafted
narrative would fall flat on its face. Thankfully, though, Murder
by Death succeed in bringing a brooding and thoroughly believable
atmosphere to the record, and furthermore, one which looks to
evaluate mortality and hope, to stunning effect.
The cause is helped further by the sheer musical
talent of the band; Adam Turla’s guitar and vocals bring
a true dirty country rock and roll feel to the proceedings,
backed up by Sarah Balliet’s piano and Cello, which can
change from sublime to sinister in the blink of an eye, whilst
always working perfectly with the superb rhythm section.
The far-more famous (and at the time, label-mate)
Gerard Way lends his vocals to opener 'The Devil in Mexico'
with a shouty performance that will please the angsty fans of
MCR but ultimately provides the one low-point on this impeccable
album.
Stand-out tracks include ‘Until Morale
Improves the Beatings Will Continue’, on which Pink Floyd
guitars flow onto an atmospheric country crunch as Turla broods
“I’ll drink whisky instead of water, ‘cause
I can’t stand to be sober in this place”, which
by now we are learning is a very bad place indeed.
With ‘Three Men Hanging’, the listener
can’t help but be engrossed in the doom-laden soundscape
we’re presented with and, like the most compelling films,
we can’t wait to see what happens next.
Large parts of the album sound like Queens of
the Stone Age’s darkest moments, only delivered with far
more conviction and spirit, making it not only a thrill to listen
to but also one of the best albums of 2003 and 2007.
