Albums
Eminent Domain Music: Sail We Must
2018
Genre: Rock
Release Date: 2018
By Miles Bowe
Reviewed March 1, 2019
Showcasing the darker, noisier side of Ron Morelli’s industrial-electronics label, this collection creates a cohesive whole out of jagged contrasts.
The full name of New York label L.I.E.S. is Long Island Electrical Systems. That might seem better suited to a utility company—until you hear the music coming out of it. Over a wide-ranging catalog of sputtering electronics, noise, and on-the-fritz club music, L.I.E.S. brings to mind Throbbing Gristle’s “industrial music for industrial people” slogan, right down to its well-oiled release schedule. A notable early showcase was the 2013 compilation —a fitting title for its dark, murky, hermetic take on electronic music. With the new , a self-described collection of “subterranean American electronics,” L.I.E.S. drags some of the underground’s finest basement dwellers into the sunlight, and it’s one of the label’s best compilations yet.