To Cross Or To Burn

01. Stay With Me02. In The Shadows03. Truth04. Stain Of Pain05. Spiderweb06. Burnt Paper07. Holding On To Nothing08. Animal Magnetism09. Numb10. To Cross Or To BurnDAVE LOMBARDO has spent a lot time confounding expectations over the last 30 years. Everyone knows what he can do behind a drum kit; the first five SLAYER albums are basically untouchable, but everything else about the man’s musical life has come as a revelation. From multiple collaborations with Mike Patton including MR. BUNGLE, FANTOMAS and DEAD CROSS, to transatlantic hookups EMPIRE STATE BASTARD, surprise stints with SUICIDAL TENDENCIES, and his own solo work, 2023’s percussion-led “Rites Of Percussion”, Lombardo has proven himself a renaissance man, with one foot planted firmly in left field. His ongoing collaboration with wife Paula provides arguably the most riveting contrast with his work in the metal world. As showcased on debut album “Drown In Emotion”, the Lombardos deal in dark pop, singer-songwriter fragility, and an almost gothic sense of crestfallen seriousness. Anyone hoping for a redo of that kick-drum break in “Angel Of Death” will be bitterly disappointed, of course, but there is always a price to be paid for not paying attention.There were some sublime moments on “Drown In Emotion”, but many of its production quirks pointed towards a fairly mundane, mainstream way of doing things. On “To Cross or To Burn”, VENAMORIS really begin to explore the potential of their colliding inspirations. It begins with a curious, LOW-like sonic trick involving Paula Lombardo’s sonorous voice being assailed by distortion. Suddenly, it snaps into full-blown production splendor, bowed cellos and double bass conspiring to fashion a noirish, misty-eyed torch song. Next, “In The Shadows” takes the duo into shadowy, quasi-industrial territory, with wub-wubbing bass, clanking beats and ’60s spy film chord changes. Dave Lombardo’s girthy rhythm is wonderfully languid and measured, and Paula’s vocal is rich in blank-eyed, monochrome, post-war European vibes, both romantic and ice cold.This is a far more imaginative record than its predecessor. At times, VENAMORIS seem to be coining their own semi-organic, DIY version of ’90s trip-hop, with Dave’s drums providing an anchor to the rock world, but everything else pointing to unbridled ingenuity. Songs like “Truth”, “Spiderweb” and “Animal Magnetism” exist in world that is at least aesthetically adjacent to the existentialist dub-rock ambience of TRICKY and PORTISHEAD, albeit with occasional grimy guitars and the reassuring thud of a drumming expert on duty. Meanwhile, the breezy, bittersweet “Stain Of Pain” sounds like a through-the-looking-glass companion to BLACK SABBATH’s “Planet Caravan”; and “Burnt Paper” is a sinister, waltzing nursery rhyme with traces of folk horror ritual. “Numb” is the most overtly rock-oriented song here, with strong echoes of the ’90s alt-rock explosion and a swaggering, sardonic vocal from Paula Lombardo. VENAMORIS prefer a gentle crescendo and a low-key melody to anything more extroverted, but the closing title track comes close to delivering a catchy chorus, in the midst of an unsettling, patchwork barrage of beats and tones.Experimental but accessible, intimate but ambitious, “To Cross or To Burn” is a glowing advertisement for creative lives, lived in love and music. Whatever happens next will be fascinating.[embedded content]