by Dan Goldin (@post_trash_)
Following a string of singles and EPs, Philadelphia’s Ruah are set to release Ruwa, the project’s brooding full length debut. Make no mistake though, this isn’t their first rodeo. Benjamin Schurr has cut his teeth over the years with solo records (as Br’er) and as a member of both Luna Honey and Nyxy Nyx, all while running BLIGHT. Records, a beacon among the Virginia and Philly DIY communities. His focus though is clearly locked into Ruah, and with this record he’s really exploring the outer reaches of post-punk, industrial, and manipulated electronic punk. There’s a big shadow of gothic 80’s dread and doom, capturing the essence of bands like Joy Division and INXS while pushing further left-field. Due out May 9th via BLIGHT and Strange Mono Records, the album lives and breathes within a mechanical framework, built on sinister synths and haunting croons.
“Synthesized Skies” is the record’s second single (following the Eastern pulse of “Guidance”), a song that slinks and crawls along a creaky bed of analog carnage, grinding bass, and atmosphere so thick it threatens to strangle it all. With chimes that reverberate in open space, ringing like a warning that dread is near, Schurr’s shaky vocal croon calls to the heavens looking for a relief, but fully resolved to watch the terror consume. All hope feels lost and desolation would appear the only option. Let it burn, indeed. It’s an interesting composition, skeletal in construction, but full of dark and depraved nuance. The rhythm of programmed drums lumber with a slow density. The bass is more tonal nightmare than anything rhythmic. It’s Schurr’s detached piano accompaniment and the power of his voice (which at times recalls John Congleton’s work in The Paper Chase) that add a human element to the impending gloom.