Review by Chris Van Etten for Godflesh - Streetcleaner (1989)

“Streetcleaner” is probably Godflesh’s most praised release but personally, I don’t consider it one of their best. It’s definitely their most brutal LP, and was certainly groundbreaking in 1989, so I understand why it’s held in such high regard. It also starts off VERY strong with “Like Rats” and “Christbait Rising,” the latter of which is one of Godflesh’s all time best tracks. But the rest of the songs just aren’t as good. Everything sounds awesome -the guitar break joining “Devastator” and “Mighty Trust Krusher” is creepy as hell-but most of the album just sounds like a sequence of really cool parts, but no standout songs. Also, one of my favorite elements of Godflesh is how Justin Broadrick switches from a tough, barking vocal style to a more somber melodic one. On “Streetcleaner,” he only uses the melodic vocal as a harmony for the shouts. Again, it does sound good, but I wish it wasn’t the only time it was used. My theory is the clean vocals sounded so bad on the first LP ( which I still like) that he avoided doing them  again. For me, Godflesh really hit their stride with their next three albums (and concurrent eps) . This album is undeniably powerful, but I rarely revisit it other than for “Christbait Rising,” which is worth it by itself.