Its music gorgeous, its lyrics strange, confessional and sometimes oddly comic, Shipwreck is a stunning album – a furious attempt to fashion something glorious. A former soldier in the techno-industrial ranks (Ministry, Revolting Cocks, Pigface), Connelly turned his back on sheer noise in the early '90s and with Whiplash Boychild and Phenobärb Bambalam began exploring a muted beauty far more intense in its impact. Shipwreck dives deeper still. Echoes of Bowie at his most melodramatic and of '60s Brit cult star Scott Walker resonate through songs like "Candyman Collapse" and "Detestimony III," while sheets of distorted guitar overlay found sound. The result? A trippy mix that hints alternately at chamber music, glam rock and sweeping, ambient-leaning pop. (RS 703)

PAUL EVANS