Terror Terror – Traps
Pierre Arthur Lejeune is a musician of many guises, all of which are uniquely his and, as we’ll come to, identifiably him. The Belgian artist will be known to many visitors to these pages primarily for his work as The Oslo Deadtrash Project, a lo-fi electronica act primarily employing analogue synths. Since then he has switched to Hudson, a full band set up based on 90s grunge, Britpop and shoegaze. I was there the night Lejeune smashed his guitar at the end of Hudson’s set. It was only an album launch event, a beginning, but it felt like the end already. “I just had to do it” he told me, before signing someone’s album, giving me a hug and slipping away into the Brussels night.
When Terror Terror surfaced I instantly recognised the usual ‘Lejeune’ tropes. The melancholic material may have given way to more violent subject matter but the vocal melodies, and catchy, downbeat choruses are unmistakable. The Facebook Page says “horror pop”. I say, see past the songtitles and imagery folks. Terror Terror may write and sing about ‘knives’ and ‘graves’ but extreme noise anarcho punks they are not. Yes it’s scuzzy, yes it provokes, but Terror Terror is nothing to be afraid of. The music is accessible in its own way. ‘The Villain’ as well as the opening, title track are Oslo Deadtrash Project songs in all but name. Whereas ‘Sequela’, with its clear Nirvana influences, could have been a Hudson song. Fair is to say, there are other tracks which could only be Terrror Terror. ‘Neurotransmitter’ is one such. The common denominator is clearly Lejeune himself. A unique talent to be both cherished and hopefully discovered by a wider audience; Sometimes I think of him as a control freak and perfectionist , aspects which could be perceived as cold, heartless even. He isn’t either. Underneath the surface, behind the image, lies a man of true feelings and boiling passion. It’s these passions which drive his musical direction at any given time. Like the guitar smash, i think he just ‘has to be’ Terror Terror right now. Yet no matter what clothes he wears, whatever name he takes, – it all him.
He might fool a stranger but he could never deceive a friend.
Traps is a limited cassette release, plus digital. Standout tracks here include ‘Dig Your Grave’, ‘Warm Gun (Die My Friends)’ the latter of which should be a single in my humble opinion. The more I listen to this album the more the strength of the songwriting comes through.