"This record - just like other Godflesh records invokes emotions and at the same time has riffs that you will remember till your end of your life! That said, I hope the end of Ilya Malafeyev (from Russia) is pretty soon since he has the cheek to be blasphemous while he knows not what he is talking! For his information - I too am a Ministry fan, and if you know about Al Jourgensen's and ALL THE Fear Factory band member's tastes, you would know that they are huge Godflesh fans themselves. In fact if you've seen Ministry's Sphinctour DVD, you would see Al wearing mostly generic t-shirts, but the only "band" t-shirt he is seen wearing is Godflesh and that too this very album you chose to desecrate. Go buy this CD and all others - all of them are masterpieces just as this one. Eagerly awaiting Jesu!"
Godflesh's best work
J. Wagner | 03/24/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Before I start, you should know that my opinion will vary wildly from what you're probably heard about this album. Fans love 'Streetcleaner', I abhore it. I also think 'Hymns' is second only to this, so obviously I'm not your common Godflesh fan.
Having only heard some 'Pure' era stuff previously, an ex-girlfriend of mine bought me this for my birthday. Well, girls come and girls go, and dammit, I still have my Godflesh 'Songs of Love and Hate'. It's that kind of album. I declared "Frail" as my favorite song, and today, it still is.
I blame this album for the rap/rock craze of the mid-90's, where the cool thing was to thank Godflesh in your liner notes. Infectious might be the word to describe the two opening tracks. Justin has always claimed that he hates metal and always wanted to bring more hip-hop influence into Godflesh. This album was the beginning of just that. Sure, there were others who did, but not with such raw anger.
The live drummer breathes new life into the tiring Godflesh formula. If you dislike the 'mechanical' sound, you might want to give this a try. Shame Brian ran off with Primus, I'd give an appendage to have this incarnation of Godflesh writing new music today. Luckily, we have the next best thing -- Jesu."
Brain adds an interesting element
Melkor | San Diego, CA USA | 09/14/2001
(5 out of 5 stars)
"It's hard to claim an album by Godflesh to be their "experimental" album, but that's what "Songs of Love and Hate" is. This is the first CD that Godflesh decided to try using an actual living breathing human drummer. They didn't think lightly about who they got to sit behind the skins either. They gave that difficult and demanding job to Brian "Brain" Mantia. Brain was the drummer of the Lymbomaniacs, worked on several projects with Buckethead and Bootsy Collins, and after this CD, went on to be the only person able to replace Tim "Herb" Alexander in the complex Primus rhythm section.I really like something about this CD. Even though the programming is beyond anything else I've ever heard anyone do on the other Godflesh CDs, there is a certain organic element that you notice on "Songs of Love and Hate". Something very human about having a human drummer. Maybe I'm just imagining it. Maybe it's all in my head.As great as this CD is, I don't think this is a starter CD, for those not familiar with Godflesh. This CD is different enough from their other material, that you may not know what your listening for. Once you have a couple of other Godflesh CDs, then I would get "Songs of Love and Hate", so you could really contrast the difference between a Brain and a Machine. IMO"
A flaming eternity
loteq | Regensburg | 03/19/2000
(4 out of 5 stars)
"As the title indicates, J.K.Broadrick & Co. show a minimum of humanity with this album, a characteristic that was in doubt of all previous GF records. Gratifyingly, GF decided to drop their increasingly formulaic sounding machine beats in favor of a real drummer. Brian Mantia once was a member of cross-over rockers Limbomaniacs. As a result, "Songs of L&H" is GF's most 'beautiful' album, but also very powerful. On songs like "Wake", "Gift from heaven", and "Almost heaven", GF expand their typical sound with ambient passages, jungular rhythm-patterns, and heavy industrial-dub. The production is fuller, the sound is more varied, and the songs are more laid-back than on GF's early albums. This gradual move towards a more club-oriented sound would find full flower on the remix album "L&H in dub" and on the subsequent effort "Us and them". On the other hand, GF have lost a bit of their edge, because some songs like "Hunter" and "Angel domain" are just standard industrial rock. Overall, this is a pretty good album, cementing GF's status as one of heavy rock's most innovative bands."
An Angry cd
loteq | 07/16/2003
(5 out of 5 stars)
"This isn't Godflesh's best record but I'll be damned if
it isn't one of their best. Brian Mantia plays drums on
this cd- the result? There really isn't much...actually if
I didn't read the liner notes I wouldn't be able to tell
really. That is until you check out the track "Frail"
the most organic song on the record. Yep- the cd flows into
usual Godflesh themes Broadrick and Green pen their anger
into obtuse imagery of religion, alienation, and non conformity.
Yupper...this cd is a must for GF fans. Proving still that they are/were a force to be reckon with and why they are possibly the
most imitated and underated bands in their genre."