Roué

The dictionary defines roué as “a man devoted to a life of sensual pleasure; a debauchee; a rake.”

There’s no sensuality to be found on the debut full-length from Cleveland’s Roué. However, it is clear that the band is devoted to a life of sonic debauchery. Upward Heroic Motive is a loud, noisy and frequently ugly slab of art punk.

Destruction seems to be the album’s unofficial theme. The incendiary blasts of distorted guitars and howled vocals on songs like the aptly titled ‘Danger! On Fire’ create an aural firestorm that leaves little standing in its path. ‘Rockin’ This Disaster’ is a short and to the point explosion of boisterous hardcore.

Frontman Justin Coulter’s voice swings unevenly between a sneering nasal monotone and a hair-raising shriek.

A few melodic moments do manage to bleed through a blaring wall of noise that defines many of the album’s tracks. ‘To the Click’ answers the question of what it would have sounded like if Richard Hell had recorded a song with My Bloody Valentine while the sharp punk of ‘Bender Season’ sounds like an outtake from Television’s genre defining classic Marquee Moon.

Upward Heroic Motivewill shake you, stir you and frequently leave you breathless. Although the unremitting intensity does start to wear thin over the course of the album’s 10 tracks, the sheer power of this effort obliterates any trivial complaints.