Considering Ethan Kath spent a good chunk of the last couple years getting dragged through coals, Amnesty (I) is a valiant attempt for Crystal Castles to push through its growing pains after the highly-publicized departure of band co-founder, Alice Glass.
While details surrounding Glass and Kath’s split remain pretty vague, there's been lots of public #drama that could fill a book. Most famously, Alice politely influenced CC’s removal from a feminist showcase at SXSW earlier this year after Kath had foolishly said she didn't appear on CC’s “best-known songs” (hello, “Alice Practice,” “Crimewave,” “Baptism,” “Plague,” every live Crystal Castles performance on YouTube ever). Though he quickly pulled this statement, the damage had already been done, going down as yet another example of how common female erasure happens in the music industry.
Alice Glass was the face of Crystal Castles. While Ethan stayed behind the scenes, she was wildly unpredictable and chaotic live. She climbed stage monitors, regularly crowd surfed, got into scuffles with security, and even shared her liquor with audience members. Most importantly, she didn't give a fuck about categorization or being anything other than a whirlwind of a lead singer and total badass. It's in this vein she became a feminist icon based on the pure aggression and power she displayed, which paved the way for other prominent lead women in music to flourish outside of the traditional pop act.
It's in this regard that newcomer Edith France has very big shoes to fill. While we’re still collectively adjusting, loads of discussions on her merits seem to come from her appearance and if she can pass as a clone. Yes, Edith Frances is new, but she also doesn't fucking owe it to you, or anyone for that matter, to be a replica of Glass to keep Crystal Castles afloat. Judging from her vocal work, Frances excels at taking up the mantle. She adopts the aesthetics of the CC brand while making it her own and standing out as an original.
“Femen” opens up rather slowly but then gets into glitchy breakbeats over ghostly choir girls. The opener is indicative of the songs' structure, particularly those in the back catalog. Patience goes a long way for tracks like "Chloroform," "Frail," "Concrete," but it's the ones that hit hard and fast on Amnesty (I) that's more of the band’s signature flair.
If there’s any song that's indicative of Frances influence going forward, it's “Fleece." Here she matches the wailing and high-octane vocals set as precedence by Glass, yet she is a little tamer and knows when to dial it down or go on a roar. It reminds me of a sweaty basement rave laced with strobe lights, the calm being violently jolted by Kath' synths. Her vocal range also seems to be much higher, as indicative on the following track "Char." "Char" is a deep and brooding meditation on what makes CC CC. It's a callback to prior material that shows you can make this change without losing the feel of the band.
The first half of the record is very strong, yet it does falter starting with the filler "Teach Her How to Hunt." The album is conceptual and all, but bookmark pieces shouldn't also be code for filler. It shares the title of weakest link along with the digital copy closer “Their Kindness is Charade."
"Ornament,” the penultimate track, features a lot of deep flourishes and heavily chopped sample work by Kath. No doubt it'll join the ranks of killer tracks like “Untrust Us” or “Not In Love.” It's the strongest statement that Kath has made the decision to keep going onward, despite Glass writing off CC when she very publicly departed in 2014.
"Kept," a physical copy exclusive (thought you can find an unofficial video with the track here), is a huge banger as well, and the most danceable upbeat track offered on the album. All proceeds from Amnesty (I) physical sales will go to Amnesty International, a sign that Ethan Kath isn't entirely a dick after all.
One could argue that including the (I) in the title is its own form of shade. However, it's also necessary to highlight how Glass truly was her own CC era, and that Frances proves that she is the new one. Newcomers always have something to prove when stepping into somebody else’s shoes. Is it fair to hinge all of the success of Crystal Castles on their new female vocalist, Edith Frances? No, but the scrutiny and pressure faced from fans is indicative of one simple truth: a band’s brand can be just as important as the music they produce.
