I Am Godzilla, You Are Japan

On I AM GODZILLA, YOU ARE JAPAN (2018), Deadly Avenger (AKA Damon Baxter) unleashes a darkly cinematically electro storm of tracks that all capture the energy, suspense, and existential threat of an invasion at the hands of the most famous of kaiju. At the core of IAGYAJ, the England-based Deadly Avenger taps into the spirit of Godzilla with songs that embody the feeling of fear and reverence for the gargantuan monster. Opener “Destroy All Planets” is an explosive, dark-synth slayer erupting with foreboding arpeggiations and a mechanistic drum machine that slams with each Godzilla stomp. The title cut sears with radioactive fire, its synths spiraling rapidly as buzzy rhythms unfurl. The minimalist “Super Inframan” is a retro-electro dance party for the end times — massive drum machines move with sparse kinesis underneath the reconnaissance of tight arps and catchy melodies. IAGYAJ has a softer side, too, with cuts like “Skit_The Fate of Ishiro” and “The Death of Ishiro” featuring Japan-inspired ambient synthscapes that flow with the majesty of a blockbuster film score cue. The nuanced composition of the tracks on IAGYAJ underscores a key truth at the heart of the story of Godzilla: an unsettling sense of alarm at the time-honored trajectory of the human condition. We see chaos and horror at the sight of the immense beast and his destructive tendencies, and take comfort in the tender moments as we stop to mourn his victims and our society’s path. After all, it is we who created this monster and it is we who’ve ultimately done this to ourselves. We are both the destroyers and the destroyed. Aaron Vehling