‘Buried Alive in The Rust’: The Living Tombestone, And The Frustration of Subjectivity
In the world of media, there is always one source of unending joy to humanity that I never truly dare to touch critically. Music.
This is mainly due to music being unbelievably subjective. Yes, all media is indeed subjective, one man's The Last of Us is another's Bubsy. Music though, it feels…different somehow, like there truly is no right or wrong. There is no definitive compared to how TV, movies and games are spoken about.
I truly felt this today, after sitting down with my equally nerdy partner, and listening to Rust, the newest album by fellow nerds and EDM/Rock troupe, The Living Tombstone.
The Backstory
I grew up on a very different side of the internet than those who grew up listening to early The Living Tombstone. Whilst those who frequented Tumblr sat listening to Discord or Five Nights at Freddy's , I was too busy in my Avenged Sevenfold and Call of Duty: Zombies phase to give it a passing glance. Knowing how I was back then eager to impress and be part of something, I would have either called it cringe, or unlocked that deep nerdcore part of my brain that subsists on this type of media today.
So years passed, and sometime after the release of the Five Nights at Freddy's film in 2023, I was convinced by my partner to sit down, and listen to Sam Haft's and Yova Landau's first collaborative album as The Living Tombstone…
Sadly, I wasn't impressed. I was however surprised that I didn't hate it.
Zer0_0ne
I did go into this expecting to hate it. I believe that it would be music that, though I did enjoy one of the tracks off the album beforehand, ‘'Lazy', I was expecting to give a perhaps one star, 20/100 similar to what I'd give AJR, and move on. But what's there is surprisingly decent, and at times, a well executed concept, if it does stumble along the way with some production ideas which still baffle me. Take 'Drunk' for example, a song which is quite catchy, the count upwards alongside the protagonist's reasoning for boozing, with the chorus of drunken ecstasy which is both relatable and also fun to listen to. Yet it begins with this awful 'la la la' type choir which almost put me off the song entirely. 'Can't Wait' as well, which begins with a guitar rhythm similar to something you'd find The Specials putting together, before jumping to rock, and back and forth.
That's the crux of this album. So many ideas, too many even that almost all the tracks don't have a unique Identity, more of a mish mash of genres and concepts. 'Zero One's for example at its peak sounds like a great TØP song, but at its lowest sounds like something Your Favourite Martian would create. Why do I mention this? Because overall, this seemed to be the consensus of what I read online (specifically AOTY). An overflow of 50/100’s and a collective ‘its ok’. But also, I mention it because I knew this would be the case. Again, music is subjective, but one's own opinion can feel like fact, and seeing other agreeing with that fact cemented my experience as truth. This was an ok album. That is that.
And then there's Rust.
Rust
Rust, in my listening opinion, is a gigantic step up for the duo. A short, but sweet ten track album containing bold steps forward in terms of sound and production, both keeping elements of Zero One, but improving on them tenfold.
What is here for me is something actually musically compelling compared to Zero_One. ‘Orphans’ low and gradual build to a crescendo, the catchy upbeat chorus of ‘Goliath’. The opener ‘Kill Us All’ is a real highlight for me, a more heavy, distorted track, which genuinely took me by surprise. The closer ‘This Will Be Our Year' being a sweet acoustic track with a cheery whistling melody, which begins to turn into the whistle of a bomb falling, ending with a bit-crunched explosion. It feels like The Living Tombstone, but it has evolved past what I thought the band to be. I had placed a stigma on the band, this idea of an ‘internet made duo’ for some reason meant to me that the quality of songs would never reach mainstream media, and yet this proved me wrong. There are some issues of course. The lyrics, as mentioned, are surface level, corny political 'fuck the system' lyrics which does disappoint me. I know both Yoav and Sam have improved dramatically since Zero_One, but I hate that lyrically I feel the same way as I did about songs like Drunk. Boulder as well is just...I have no idea what that song WANTS to be, or why Sam Haft decided to rap in the way he did over the strange instrumental. And of course, the runtime does leave a lot to be desired, whilst songs like Be Alone are up there as my favourites from the album, it does feel as if just one more minute would have brought the track to a better conclusion. However, as the album finished, both me and my partner came to the same conclusion. This album was an improvement. And as before, this subjective opinion became fact. Going to AOTY, I believed I'd find the same consensus.
I did not. In fact, many fans prefer Zero One to this new album.
Music and Subjectivity
This baffled me. And still does. This is such a clear improvement in instrumentals, vocals, even lyrics (though they remain the weakest of the three). I cannot see how someone could prefer ‘Drunk’ over ‘Goliath’, or ‘Lazy’ over ‘Kill Us All’. That of course, is the rub. The powerful poignancy of music. I can see how one may not enjoy the linearity of God of War , or the slow burn of The Irishman, but with music, I cannot see how someone can sit down, listen to this, and not hear what I hear. It's something I cannot get my head around, and I don't think I ever will.
This was meant to just be a simple review of Rust, of which it has developed into a half maddening rant about how reviewing music compared to differing media is so subjective that it's unbelievably frustrating. That's the fun however, and that's why I intend to, once in a blue moon, do it again. Go listen to Rust. It's out now on Spotify, Apple Music, and all other listening platforms. Tell me what you think! Are you a long time fan who is sordidly disappointed? Are you a new listener who enjoyed the album immensely? Are you in-between? I'd love to hear what you think!
And of course, follow me on Album of The Year @milkandcigs_ , which is where this review was born from!
