Album Review: Lingua Ignota – Caligula

There are many appellations you could throw at Lingua Ignota – real name Kristin Hayter – but perhaps the simplest would be ‘uneasy listening’. From blending abrasive noise with eerily spiritual melodies, to dissecting the physical and mental violence of domestic abuse on 2017 debut album All Bitches Die, everything she does sets the teeth on edge. But by God, you will listen. Caligula builds on these themes, holding a mirror up to corruption and skewed power dynamics in wider society.

The push-pull between fragile piano and ruptures of psychic static is arresting, but by far Kristin’s most captivating weapon is her voice. She stacks vocal harmonies like a droning church organ on Do You Doubt Me Traitor, before disintegrating into a throat-shredding wail that channels every moment of pain, injustice and powerlessness into a sonic bullet. It’s an awesome work of extreme beauty and brutality that will leave you speechless.

Verdict: KKKK