Starting out as the solo project of Jordan Morrison, All Your Sisters turned into an intriguing duo with the addition of Mario Armando Ruiz on bass and synths. The band draws influence from mainly from the '80s new wave scene, paying tribute to the post-punk and noise rock styles of the era, but with an industrial edge and an ambient touch. Having previously released their debut album in Modern Failures, Uncomfortable Skin sees them return with a more complete offering for their vision.
In big part this record is built around the post-punk element. Overwhelming and influencing heavily the song structure, the duo goes through the raw tone and the darkest moments of the era. However, they do not remain static in just straightforward post-punk, enriching their sound with a darkwave quality, creating a veil of darkness over their rock tones, and also an avant-rock, no-wave ethic, making parts quite reminiscent to early Swans, in terms of the mechanics of the progression. Coupled with an industrial backbone, the abrupt sense and the bleak perspective becomes more realistic, crafting an interesting dystopian setting, with an off-kilter quality.
The two further elements that make Uncomfortable Skin stand out is on one hand the choice of sounds and on the other the ambient tone. The synths of the album encompass some quite whacky sounds, able to switch through different modes with great ease. At times they can radiate with a surf rock sense, in a more obscure manner, and at other times they take a black metal approach, reaching a majestic peak. That is where the dark ambient element also works wonders, since the band is able to explore this side of their sound on its own, as is the case with the intro of the album, or carry its pessimistic and asphyxiating characteristic through different parts of the album.
Morrison has stated that he draws inspiration lyrically from his personal experiences, most of which come from his time as an EMT (ambulance driver and paramedic) when he had to interact with the most dark and vulnerable state of people, something that deeply changed him. Through the twists and turns of this record, they are able to awaken these memories, creating an album that is dark and personal, something that would work as a perfect companion to a work like The Death of Mr. Lazarescu.
