“Suzy Poling’s Pod Blotz project arrives on Glasgow label Clan Destine with Glass Tears, the latest album in a long line of releases dating back to her emergence under the name back in 2002. Hailing from Detroit, Poling has been involved in quite a wide range of artistic endeavours over the years, be it installation works, photography, video and performance art, with visual work that seems to parallel and overlap with her output as Pod Blotz.
From the very start of the album, Poling introduces a sense of tension that builds with terrifying urgency. Rattling drums weave throughout nightmarish electronics of opening track “Relay” with spine-chilling wails that expose a sense of subdued agony. Continuing the theme, the aptly named “Mirrored Tundra” has a darkly paranoid sensibility; it’s a track that largely relies on percussion, the kind of drumming and tapping that recalls youthful experiments with old pots and pans. Meanwhile, harsh electronics once again unfold beneath, lashing out like sirens in shrieks of desperation. The album hits its stride with “Die and Come Alive” which is perhaps the most accessible track of the album, with an enticing melody sung by Poling’s heavily treated vocals over repetitive synths, whilst retaining the same experimental curiosity of previous tracks…”
Read the rest of the review HERE
