#birthing — Public Fediverse posts
Live and recent posts from across the Fediverse tagged #birthing, aggregated by home.social.
-
I never thought I'd have a fast birth. And yet I did! It was awesome, but once I decided to have a looksie to see which factors influence it: we know nothing*
*We do know that if a woman has had a fast birth, she will have fast births subsequently.
I have been told for this pregnancy I must call *immediately* to the midwives. No waiting to check contractions or anything else. The moment I feel something I must call them. Or else they may not get to my house on time 🙃
-
I never thought I'd have a fast birth. And yet I did! It was awesome, but once I decided to have a looksie to see which factors influence it: we know nothing*
*We do know that if a woman has had a fast birth, she will have fast births subsequently.
I have been told for this pregnancy I must call *immediately* to the midwives. No waiting to check contractions or anything else. The moment I feel something I must call them. Or else they may not get to my house on time 🙃
-
I never thought I'd have a fast birth. And yet I did! It was awesome, but once I decided to have a looksie to see which factors influence it: we know nothing*
*We do know that if a woman has had a fast birth, she will have fast births subsequently.
I have been told for this pregnancy I must call *immediately* to the midwives. No waiting to check contractions or anything else. The moment I feel something I must call them. Or else they may not get to my house on time 🙃
-
I never thought I'd have a fast birth. And yet I did! It was awesome, but once I decided to have a looksie to see which factors influence it: we know nothing*
*We do know that if a woman has had a fast birth, she will have fast births subsequently.
I have been told for this pregnancy I must call *immediately* to the midwives. No waiting to check contractions or anything else. The moment I feel something I must call them. Or else they may not get to my house on time 🙃
-
I never thought I'd have a fast birth. And yet I did! It was awesome, but once I decided to have a looksie to see which factors influence it: we know nothing*
*We do know that if a woman has had a fast birth, she will have fast births subsequently.
I have been told for this pregnancy I must call *immediately* to the midwives. No waiting to check contractions or anything else. The moment I feel something I must call them. Or else they may not get to my house on time 🙃
-
RE: https://ecoevo.social/@M_Gatta/116104159118548301
Not the subject of this article, but something that surprised me that we know nothing about what influences the speed of birth.
Like the average is about 24 hours (or a bit less, but 24 is easy). But some women (even for their first birth) can deliver babies in less than an hour. How? Why? We don't know!
-
RE: https://ecoevo.social/@M_Gatta/116104159118548301
Not the subject of this article, but something that surprised me that we know nothing about what influences the speed of birth.
Like the average is about 24 hours (or a bit less, but 24 is easy). But some women (even for their first birth) can deliver babies in less than an hour. How? Why? We don't know!
-
RE: https://ecoevo.social/@M_Gatta/116104159118548301
Not the subject of this article, but something that surprised me that we know nothing about what influences the speed of birth.
Like the average is about 24 hours (or a bit less, but 24 is easy). But some women (even for their first birth) can deliver babies in less than an hour. How? Why? We don't know!
-
RE: https://ecoevo.social/@M_Gatta/116104159118548301
Not the subject of this article, but something that surprised me that we know nothing about what influences the speed of birth.
Like the average is about 24 hours (or a bit less, but 24 is easy). But some women (even for their first birth) can deliver babies in less than an hour. How? Why? We don't know!
-
RE: https://ecoevo.social/@M_Gatta/116104159118548301
Not the subject of this article, but something that surprised me that we know nothing about what influences the speed of birth.
Like the average is about 24 hours (or a bit less, but 24 is easy). But some women (even for their first birth) can deliver babies in less than an hour. How? Why? We don't know!
-
I ended up not being allowed to deliver how I felt comfortable (bent over a table) but laying down in bed as the bloody foetal monitor did not work well otherwise 😒
I regret not using the side lying position I was taught during childbirth preparation classes. But it was all happening quite fast and I had already tried a couple of other things suggested by midwives in an attempt to see if the monitor thing would work better.
-
I ended up not being allowed to deliver how I felt comfortable (bent over a table) but laying down in bed as the bloody foetal monitor did not work well otherwise 😒
I regret not using the side lying position I was taught during childbirth preparation classes. But it was all happening quite fast and I had already tried a couple of other things suggested by midwives in an attempt to see if the monitor thing would work better.
-
I ended up not being allowed to deliver how I felt comfortable (bent over a table) but laying down in bed as the bloody foetal monitor did not work well otherwise 😒
I regret not using the side lying position I was taught during childbirth preparation classes. But it was all happening quite fast and I had already tried a couple of other things suggested by midwives in an attempt to see if the monitor thing would work better.
-
I ended up not being allowed to deliver how I felt comfortable (bent over a table) but laying down in bed as the bloody foetal monitor did not work well otherwise 😒
I regret not using the side lying position I was taught during childbirth preparation classes. But it was all happening quite fast and I had already tried a couple of other things suggested by midwives in an attempt to see if the monitor thing would work better.
-
One thing I liked about my childbirth preparation classes is that we were shown a variety of positions, practiced them, and were explicitly told: you should know and ideally practice all of them, because you never know what will feel right in the moment. It will help knowing what your options are.
-
One thing I liked about my childbirth preparation classes is that we were shown a variety of positions, practiced them, and were explicitly told: you should know and ideally practice all of them, because you never know what will feel right in the moment. It will help knowing what your options are.
-
One thing I liked about my childbirth preparation classes is that we were shown a variety of positions, practiced them, and were explicitly told: you should know and ideally practice all of them, because you never know what will feel right in the moment. It will help knowing what your options are.
-
One thing I liked about my childbirth preparation classes is that we were shown a variety of positions, practiced them, and were explicitly told: you should know and ideally practice all of them, because you never know what will feel right in the moment. It will help knowing what your options are.
-
One thing I liked about my childbirth preparation classes is that we were shown a variety of positions, practiced them, and were explicitly told: you should know and ideally practice all of them, because you never know what will feel right in the moment. It will help knowing what your options are.
-
Though some of the language leaves me quite cold: "So no clinical studies have examined how these interventions actually affect the birthing body in real time. We don’t know if they work as intended, or if they could be refined to improve safety."
Stuff like positioning. Like I'd love to know what works best, theoretically. I'll make sure to practice it. But in the moment, you'll go for what feels best.
-
Though some of the language leaves me quite cold: "So no clinical studies have examined how these interventions actually affect the birthing body in real time. We don’t know if they work as intended, or if they could be refined to improve safety."
Stuff like positioning. Like I'd love to know what works best, theoretically. I'll make sure to practice it. But in the moment, you'll go for what feels best.
-
Though some of the language leaves me quite cold: "So no clinical studies have examined how these interventions actually affect the birthing body in real time. We don’t know if they work as intended, or if they could be refined to improve safety."
Stuff like positioning. Like I'd love to know what works best, theoretically. I'll make sure to practice it. But in the moment, you'll go for what feels best.
-
Though some of the language leaves me quite cold: "So no clinical studies have examined how these interventions actually affect the birthing body in real time. We don’t know if they work as intended, or if they could be refined to improve safety."
Stuff like positioning. Like I'd love to know what works best, theoretically. I'll make sure to practice it. But in the moment, you'll go for what feels best.
-
Though some of the language leaves me quite cold: "So no clinical studies have examined how these interventions actually affect the birthing body in real time. We don’t know if they work as intended, or if they could be refined to improve safety."
Stuff like positioning. Like I'd love to know what works best, theoretically. I'll make sure to practice it. But in the moment, you'll go for what feels best.
-
https://www.europesays.com/uk/364436/ Biloela Hospital on maternity bypass for three years with patients treated via telehealth #ACCESS #Accessibility #biloela #birth #birthing #births #bypass #care #doctors #Health #Healthcare #Hospital #maternal #Obstetrics #PreEclampsia #rural #Shortage #shortages #Staff #staffing #telehealths #UK #UnitedKingdom
-
Swans – Birthing [2025], una breve recensione
A più di cinque mesi dall’ascolto del primo estratto e a poco più di due dall’uscita dell’album ho trovato il fegato per mettermi ad ascoltare queste due ore di musica, e sono felice di poterlo confermare: discone, cioè, fico, nettamente superiore alle due precedenti prove in studio, siamo tornati ai gloriosi fasti di dieci anni fa, periodo The Glowing Man (di cui ricordo più che altro che era molto bello; dovrò tornarci), con qualche piacevole variazione dei toni a rendere più interessante l’ascolto. Quello che non posso confermare è che il disco sia meno cupo o che sia addirittura colorato e gioioso. Ci sono sì atmosfere più sognanti (soprattutto su I Am a Tower e (Rope) Away), ma è per lo più un incubo di quelli brutti, nella più pura tradizione Swans, con testi che sembrano insensati e che quando si capiscono ti spezzano le gambe. Avrebbe beneficiato di qualche taglio, il grande disco, di qualcuno che dicesse «qui stai sgravando amico», perché l’ispirazione non è più quella che ha partorito The Seer e due ore (un’ora e cinquantacinque minuti, ok) si fanno sentire, ma non starei troppo a sindacare, invecchiare a questo modo non è da tutti e ad avercene di geniacci sregolati di codesta pasta. Boh, 8 molto abbondante direi, col sorriso.
-
Swans – Birthing [2025], una breve recensione
A più di cinque mesi dall’ascolto del primo estratto e a poco più di due dall’uscita dell’album ho trovato il fegato per mettermi ad ascoltare queste due ore di musica, e sono felice di poterlo confermare: discone, cioè, fico, nettamente superiore alle due precedenti prove in studio, siamo tornati ai gloriosi fasti di dieci anni fa, periodo The Glowing Man (di cui ricordo più che altro che era molto bello; dovrò tornarci), con qualche piacevole variazione dei toni a rendere più interessante l’ascolto. Quello che non posso confermare è che il disco sia meno cupo o che sia addirittura colorato e gioioso. Ci sono sì atmosfere più sognanti (soprattutto su I Am a Tower e (Rope) Away), ma è per lo più un incubo di quelli brutti, nella più pura tradizione Swans, con testi che sembrano insensati e che quando si capiscono ti spezzano le gambe. Avrebbe beneficiato di qualche taglio, il grande disco, di qualcuno che dicesse «qui stai sgravando amico», perché l’ispirazione non è più quella che ha partorito The Seer e due ore (un’ora e cinquantacinque minuti, ok) si fanno sentire, ma non starei troppo a sindacare, invecchiare a questo modo non è da tutti e ad avercene di geniacci sregolati di codesta pasta. Boh, 8 molto abbondante direi, col sorriso.
-
Swans – Birthing [2025], una breve recensione
A più di cinque mesi dall’ascolto del primo estratto e a poco più di due dall’uscita dell’album ho trovato il fegato per mettermi ad ascoltare queste due ore di musica, e sono felice di poterlo confermare: discone, cioè, fico, nettamente superiore alle due precedenti prove in studio, siamo tornati ai gloriosi fasti di dieci anni fa, periodo The Glowing Man (di cui ricordo più che altro che era molto bello; dovrò tornarci), con qualche piacevole variazione dei toni a rendere più interessante l’ascolto. Quello che non posso confermare è che il disco sia meno cupo o che sia addirittura colorato e gioioso. Ci sono sì atmosfere più sognanti (soprattutto su I Am a Tower e (Rope) Away), ma è per lo più un incubo di quelli brutti, nella più pura tradizione Swans, con testi che sembrano insensati e che quando si capiscono ti spezzano le gambe. Avrebbe beneficiato di qualche taglio, il grande disco, di qualcuno che dicesse «qui stai sgravando amico», perché l’ispirazione non è più quella che ha partorito The Seer e due ore (un’ora e cinquantacinque minuti, ok) si fanno sentire, ma non starei troppo a sindacare, invecchiare a questo modo non è da tutti e ad avercene di geniacci sregolati di codesta pasta. Boh, 8 molto abbondante direi, col sorriso.
-
Swans – Birthing [2025], una breve recensione
A più di cinque mesi dall’ascolto del primo estratto e a poco più di due dall’uscita dell’album ho trovato il fegato per mettermi ad ascoltare queste due ore di musica, e sono felice di poterlo confermare: discone, cioè, fico, nettamente superiore alle due precedenti prove in studio, siamo tornati ai gloriosi fasti di dieci anni fa, periodo The Glowing Man (di cui ricordo più che altro che era molto bello; dovrò tornarci), con qualche piacevole variazione dei toni a rendere più interessante l’ascolto. Quello che non posso confermare è che il disco sia meno cupo o che sia addirittura colorato e gioioso. Ci sono sì atmosfere più sognanti (soprattutto su I Am a Tower e (Rope) Away), ma è per lo più un incubo di quelli brutti, nella più pura tradizione Swans, con testi che sembrano insensati e che quando si capiscono ti spezzano le gambe. Avrebbe beneficiato di qualche taglio, il grande disco, di qualcuno che dicesse «qui stai sgravando amico», perché l’ispirazione non è più quella che ha partorito The Seer e due ore (un’ora e cinquantacinque minuti, ok) si fanno sentire, ma non starei troppo a sindacare, invecchiare a questo modo non è da tutti e ad avercene di geniacci sregolati di codesta pasta. Boh, 8 molto abbondante direi, col sorriso.
-
Swans – Birthing [2025], una breve recensione
A più di cinque mesi dall’ascolto del primo estratto e a poco più di due dall’uscita dell’album ho trovato il fegato per mettermi ad ascoltare queste due ore di musica, e sono felice di poterlo confermare: discone, cioè, fico, nettamente superiore alle due precedenti prove in studio, siamo tornati ai gloriosi fasti di dieci anni fa, periodo The Glowing Man (di cui ricordo più che altro che era molto bello; dovrò tornarci), con qualche piacevole variazione dei toni a rendere più interessante l’ascolto. Quello che non posso confermare è che il disco sia meno cupo o che sia addirittura colorato e gioioso. Ci sono sì atmosfere più sognanti (soprattutto su I Am a Tower e (Rope) Away), ma è per lo più un incubo di quelli brutti, nella più pura tradizione Swans, con testi che sembrano insensati e che quando si capiscono ti spezzano le gambe. Avrebbe beneficiato di qualche taglio, il grande disco, di qualcuno che dicesse «qui stai sgravando amico», perché l’ispirazione non è più quella che ha partorito The Seer e due ore (un’ora e cinquantacinque minuti, ok) si fanno sentire, ma non starei troppo a sindacare, invecchiare a questo modo non è da tutti e ad avercene di geniacci sregolati di codesta pasta. Boh, 8 molto abbondante direi, col sorriso.
-
🤰What if the most powerful tool for a calm, confident birth was already inside you?
Birthing In Trance, by Michelle Brain
Free until June 26th!
-
Swans sort 'Birthing', un nouvel album de sept titres pour près de deux heures de musique. La messe est dite. Chronique et écoute intégrale : https://www.mowno.com/disques/swans-birthing/
#swans #birthing #newmusic #musicnews #newalbum #nowplaying #nowlistening #nowspinning #michaelgira -
Swans sort 'Birthing', un nouvel album de sept titres pour près de deux heures de musique. La messe est dite. Chronique et écoute intégrale : https://www.mowno.com/disques/swans-birthing/
#swans #birthing #newmusic #musicnews #newalbum #nowplaying #nowlistening #nowspinning #michaelgira -
Swans sort 'Birthing', un nouvel album de sept titres pour près de deux heures de musique. La messe est dite. Chronique et écoute intégrale : https://www.mowno.com/disques/swans-birthing/
#swans #birthing #newmusic #musicnews #newalbum #nowplaying #nowlistening #nowspinning #michaelgira -
By Dear Hollow
It’s hard to keep up with Swans. Since 1982, Michael Gira and company have cranked out sixteen studio albums, eight EPs, and ten live albums (not to mention all the compilations and side projects), influencing underground stalwarts like Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Neurosis, Godflesh, and Napalm Death, as well as more mainstream acts like Nirvana and Tool. No genre was safe, as noise rock, no-wave, industrial, sludge, post-punk, and post-rock were impacted in the process – yet Swans have always had their own inimitable and uncategorizable sound. In Gira’s words, “Swans are majestic, beautiful-looking creatures – with really ugly temperaments.” Seventeenth studio album Birthing, a supposed end to the big sound of Gira’s millennial reformation, is an affirmation of both why some love them and why others stay far away. Maybe the real Swans were the friends we made along the way.
The path of Swans has been one of blending ugliness with a sheen of pristineness. They’ve had it all, from the ugly industrial sludge of Filth and Cop, the more regal industrial noise rock of Greed and Holy Money, the Gothic rock groovers of Children of God, the lush starkness of White Light from the Mouth of Infinity, the post-rock-imbued apocalyptic prophecies of The Great Annihilator and Soundtracks for the Blind, the trancelike 2010s comeback My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky, the formidably monolithic trilogy The Seer, To Be Kind, and The Glowing Man, to the minimalist folk-embedded Leaving Meaning and The Beggar. If you wanted to devote a week to the Swans discography, have at it. Or get into the process of Birthing.
In spite of its higher focus on more acoustic textures and Michael Gira’s wild baritone, Swans’ use of repetition is a tether to which their grasp of reality is consistently mutilated, interspersed with moments of sparse accessibility. Seven tracks and nearly two hours of content greet the ears with repetition both nauseating and hypnotic, tracks undeniably modern-era Swans: folkier, more acoustic and organic, and retaining that trademark longwindedness and industrial/noise barb, shifting from mood to mood with ease. You’ll hear painful dissonance, ritualistic passages of pounding percussion, Gira’s unnerving vocal lines, and synth-heavy crystalline atmosphere exchanged across mammoth runtimes. Especially in the first act, ugly stretches stitch together more uncanny valley passages of accessibility, like a synth rock jam session with pulsing basslines (“I Am a Tower”), beautiful piano ballads graced by spidery melodies and Jennifer Gira’s haunting vocals (“Birthing,” “Guardian Spirit”), catchy little choral “bum bums” (“The Merge”), and instrumental ambient swells (“The Healers,” “(Rope) Away”).
Gira and company find themselves in an odd predicament: in the shadow of their own influence. Swans has smartly focused on more acoustic and organic textures with their most recent releases, but in comparison to the 80’s and 90’s, and even the 2010s, Birthing cannot hold a candle. No one can do music like Swans, but it feels as though the trilogy of The Seer, To Be Kind, and The Glowing Man was Tsar Bomba, and every subsequent release has been the fallout. Likewise, the raining ash of Birthing is lethal, unnerving, and undeniably Swans, but it doesn’t feel as monumental. The only track that feels crucial is the absolute fever-dream “The Merge” in its wholehearted dive into the abyss. Each track features Swans-isms that sear themselves into your brain if you let them, but therein, very few moments justify why you should devote two hours to listening to them – especially if you are not a fan to begin with. Their focus has never been to be catchy, impress with riffs, or go wild with novelty – as such, the trademark tapestries of droning dissonance (“I Am a Tower,” “Guardian Spirit”), free jazz/industrial noise explosions (“The Merge”) are just difficult – aside from Swans’ inability to edit.
I may be Swans lone apologist at AMG HQ, and maybe I’m insane for it. Birthing is nowhere near the influence of its predecessors – while retaining that noise and industrial sneer throughout, it’s a far more gentle album than the ugly classics of the band’s heyday. However, it’s probably the best of its era, blending its bad temperament with its more post-rock atmospheres and semi-accessible passages that keep listeners this close to insanity. That being said, it’s still Swans. And a whole lot of Swans. Two hours of Swans. Yay/ugh.
Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kb/s mp3
Label: Young God Records
Websites: swans.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/SwansOfficial
Releases Worldwide: May 30th, 2025#2025 #35 #Ambient #AmericanMetal #Birthing #Experimental #ExperimentalAmbient #FreeJazz #Godflesh #GodspeedYouBlackEmperor #Industrial #May25 #NapalmDeath #Neurosis #Nirvana #NoWave #Noise #NoiseRock #NonMetal #PostRock #postPunk #Review #Reviews #SludgeMetal #Swans #Tool #YoungGodRecords
-
By Dear Hollow
It’s hard to keep up with Swans. Since 1982, Michael Gira and company have cranked out sixteen studio albums, eight EPs, and ten live albums (not to mention all the compilations and side projects), influencing underground stalwarts like Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Neurosis, Godflesh, and Napalm Death, as well as more mainstream acts like Nirvana and Tool. No genre was safe, as noise rock, no-wave, industrial, sludge, post-punk, and post-rock were impacted in the process – yet Swans have always had their own inimitable and uncategorizable sound. In Gira’s words, “Swans are majestic, beautiful-looking creatures – with really ugly temperaments.” Seventeenth studio album Birthing, a supposed end to the big sound of Gira’s millennial reformation, is an affirmation of both why some love them and why others stay far away. Maybe the real Swans were the friends we made along the way.
The path of Swans has been one of blending ugliness with a sheen of pristineness. They’ve had it all, from the ugly industrial sludge of Filth and Cop, the more regal industrial noise rock of Greed and Holy Money, the Gothic rock groovers of Children of God, the lush starkness of White Light from the Mouth of Infinity, the post-rock-imbued apocalyptic prophecies of The Great Annihilator and Soundtracks for the Blind, the trancelike 2010s comeback My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky, the formidably monolithic trilogy The Seer, To Be Kind, and The Glowing Man, to the minimalist folk-embedded Leaving Meaning and The Beggar. If you wanted to devote a week to the Swans discography, have at it. Or get into the process of Birthing.
In spite of its higher focus on more acoustic textures and Michael Gira’s wild baritone, Swans’ use of repetition is a tether to which their grasp of reality is consistently mutilated, interspersed with moments of sparse accessibility. Seven tracks and nearly two hours of content greet the ears with repetition both nauseating and hypnotic, tracks undeniably modern-era Swans: folkier, more acoustic and organic, and retaining that trademark longwindedness and industrial/noise barb, shifting from mood to mood with ease. You’ll hear painful dissonance, ritualistic passages of pounding percussion, Gira’s unnerving vocal lines, and synth-heavy crystalline atmosphere exchanged across mammoth runtimes. Especially in the first act, ugly stretches stitch together more uncanny valley passages of accessibility, like a synth rock jam session with pulsing basslines (“I Am a Tower”), beautiful piano ballads graced by spidery melodies and Jennifer Gira’s haunting vocals (“Birthing,” “Guardian Spirit”), catchy little choral “bum bums” (“The Merge”), and instrumental ambient swells (“The Healers,” “(Rope) Away”).
Gira and company find themselves in an odd predicament: in the shadow of their own influence. Swans has smartly focused on more acoustic and organic textures with their most recent releases, but in comparison to the 80’s and 90’s, and even the 2010s, Birthing cannot hold a candle. No one can do music like Swans, but it feels as though the trilogy of The Seer, To Be Kind, and The Glowing Man was Tsar Bomba, and every subsequent release has been the fallout. Likewise, the raining ash of Birthing is lethal, unnerving, and undeniably Swans, but it doesn’t feel as monumental. The only track that feels crucial is the absolute fever-dream “The Merge” in its wholehearted dive into the abyss. Each track features Swans-isms that sear themselves into your brain if you let them, but therein, very few moments justify why you should devote two hours to listening to them – especially if you are not a fan to begin with. Their focus has never been to be catchy, impress with riffs, or go wild with novelty – as such, the trademark tapestries of droning dissonance (“I Am a Tower,” “Guardian Spirit”), free jazz/industrial noise explosions (“The Merge”) are just difficult – aside from Swans’ inability to edit.
I may be Swans lone apologist at AMG HQ, and maybe I’m insane for it. Birthing is nowhere near the influence of its predecessors – while retaining that noise and industrial sneer throughout, it’s a far more gentle album than the ugly classics of the band’s heyday. However, it’s probably the best of its era, blending its bad temperament with its more post-rock atmospheres and semi-accessible passages that keep listeners this close to insanity. That being said, it’s still Swans. And a whole lot of Swans. Two hours of Swans. Yay/ugh.
Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kb/s mp3
Label: Young God Records
Websites: swans.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/SwansOfficial
Releases Worldwide: May 30th, 2025#2025 #35 #Ambient #AmericanMetal #Birthing #Experimental #ExperimentalAmbient #FreeJazz #Godflesh #GodspeedYouBlackEmperor #Industrial #May25 #NapalmDeath #Neurosis #Nirvana #NoWave #Noise #NoiseRock #NonMetal #PostRock #postPunk #Review #Reviews #SludgeMetal #Swans #Tool #YoungGodRecords
-
By Dear Hollow
It’s hard to keep up with Swans. Since 1982, Michael Gira and company have cranked out sixteen studio albums, eight EPs, and ten live albums (not to mention all the compilations and side projects), influencing underground stalwarts like Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Neurosis, Godflesh, and Napalm Death, as well as more mainstream acts like Nirvana and Tool. No genre was safe, as noise rock, no-wave, industrial, sludge, post-punk, and post-rock were impacted in the process – yet Swans have always had their own inimitable and uncategorizable sound. In Gira’s words, “Swans are majestic, beautiful-looking creatures – with really ugly temperaments.” Seventeenth studio album Birthing, a supposed end to the big sound of Gira’s millennial reformation, is an affirmation of both why some love them and why others stay far away. Maybe the real Swans were the friends we made along the way.
The path of Swans has been one of blending ugliness with a sheen of pristineness. They’ve had it all, from the ugly industrial sludge of Filth and Cop, the more regal industrial noise rock of Greed and Holy Money, the Gothic rock groovers of Children of God, the lush starkness of White Light from the Mouth of Infinity, the post-rock-imbued apocalyptic prophecies of The Great Annihilator and Soundtracks for the Blind, the trancelike 2010s comeback My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky, the formidably monolithic trilogy The Seer, To Be Kind, and The Glowing Man, to the minimalist folk-embedded Leaving Meaning and The Beggar. If you wanted to devote a week to the Swans discography, have at it. Or get into the process of Birthing.
In spite of its higher focus on more acoustic textures and Michael Gira’s wild baritone, Swans’ use of repetition is a tether to which their grasp of reality is consistently mutilated, interspersed with moments of sparse accessibility. Seven tracks and nearly two hours of content greet the ears with repetition both nauseating and hypnotic, tracks undeniably modern-era Swans: folkier, more acoustic and organic, and retaining that trademark longwindedness and industrial/noise barb, shifting from mood to mood with ease. You’ll hear painful dissonance, ritualistic passages of pounding percussion, Gira’s unnerving vocal lines, and synth-heavy crystalline atmosphere exchanged across mammoth runtimes. Especially in the first act, ugly stretches stitch together more uncanny valley passages of accessibility, like a synth rock jam session with pulsing basslines (“I Am a Tower”), beautiful piano ballads graced by spidery melodies and Jennifer Gira’s haunting vocals (“Birthing,” “Guardian Spirit”), catchy little choral “bum bums” (“The Merge”), and instrumental ambient swells (“The Healers,” “(Rope) Away”).
Gira and company find themselves in an odd predicament: in the shadow of their own influence. Swans has smartly focused on more acoustic and organic textures with their most recent releases, but in comparison to the 80’s and 90’s, and even the 2010s, Birthing cannot hold a candle. No one can do music like Swans, but it feels as though the trilogy of The Seer, To Be Kind, and The Glowing Man was Tsar Bomba, and every subsequent release has been the fallout. Likewise, the raining ash of Birthing is lethal, unnerving, and undeniably Swans, but it doesn’t feel as monumental. The only track that feels crucial is the absolute fever-dream “The Merge” in its wholehearted dive into the abyss. Each track features Swans-isms that sear themselves into your brain if you let them, but therein, very few moments justify why you should devote two hours to listening to them – especially if you are not a fan to begin with. Their focus has never been to be catchy, impress with riffs, or go wild with novelty – as such, the trademark tapestries of droning dissonance (“I Am a Tower,” “Guardian Spirit”), free jazz/industrial noise explosions (“The Merge”) are just difficult – aside from Swans’ inability to edit.
I may be Swans lone apologist at AMG HQ, and maybe I’m insane for it. Birthing is nowhere near the influence of its predecessors – while retaining that noise and industrial sneer throughout, it’s a far more gentle album than the ugly classics of the band’s heyday. However, it’s probably the best of its era, blending its bad temperament with its more post-rock atmospheres and semi-accessible passages that keep listeners this close to insanity. That being said, it’s still Swans. And a whole lot of Swans. Two hours of Swans. Yay/ugh.
Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kb/s mp3
Label: Young God Records
Websites: swans.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/SwansOfficial
Releases Worldwide: May 30th, 2025#2025 #35 #Ambient #AmericanMetal #Birthing #Experimental #ExperimentalAmbient #FreeJazz #Godflesh #GodspeedYouBlackEmperor #Industrial #May25 #NapalmDeath #Neurosis #Nirvana #NoWave #Noise #NoiseRock #NonMetal #PostRock #postPunk #Review #Reviews #SludgeMetal #Swans #Tool #YoungGodRecords
-
By Dear Hollow
It’s hard to keep up with Swans. Since 1982, Michael Gira and company have cranked out sixteen studio albums, eight EPs, and ten live albums (not to mention all the compilations and side projects), influencing underground stalwarts like Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Neurosis, Godflesh, and Napalm Death, as well as more mainstream acts like Nirvana and Tool. No genre was safe, as noise rock, no-wave, industrial, sludge, post-punk, and post-rock were impacted in the process – yet Swans have always had their own inimitable and uncategorizable sound. In Gira’s words, “Swans are majestic, beautiful-looking creatures – with really ugly temperaments.” Seventeenth studio album Birthing, a supposed end to the big sound of Gira’s millennial reformation, is an affirmation of both why some love them and why others stay far away. Maybe the real Swans were the friends we made along the way.
The path of Swans has been one of blending ugliness with a sheen of pristineness. They’ve had it all, from the ugly industrial sludge of Filth and Cop, the more regal industrial noise rock of Greed and Holy Money, the Gothic rock groovers of Children of God, the lush starkness of White Light from the Mouth of Infinity, the post-rock-imbued apocalyptic prophecies of The Great Annihilator and Soundtracks for the Blind, the trancelike 2010s comeback My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky, the formidably monolithic trilogy The Seer, To Be Kind, and The Glowing Man, to the minimalist folk-embedded Leaving Meaning and The Beggar. If you wanted to devote a week to the Swans discography, have at it. Or get into the process of Birthing.
In spite of its higher focus on more acoustic textures and Michael Gira’s wild baritone, Swans’ use of repetition is a tether to which their grasp of reality is consistently mutilated, interspersed with moments of sparse accessibility. Seven tracks and nearly two hours of content greet the ears with repetition both nauseating and hypnotic, tracks undeniably modern-era Swans: folkier, more acoustic and organic, and retaining that trademark longwindedness and industrial/noise barb, shifting from mood to mood with ease. You’ll hear painful dissonance, ritualistic passages of pounding percussion, Gira’s unnerving vocal lines, and synth-heavy crystalline atmosphere exchanged across mammoth runtimes. Especially in the first act, ugly stretches stitch together more uncanny valley passages of accessibility, like a synth rock jam session with pulsing basslines (“I Am a Tower”), beautiful piano ballads graced by spidery melodies and Jennifer Gira’s haunting vocals (“Birthing,” “Guardian Spirit”), catchy little choral “bum bums” (“The Merge”), and instrumental ambient swells (“The Healers,” “(Rope) Away”).
Gira and company find themselves in an odd predicament: in the shadow of their own influence. Swans has smartly focused on more acoustic and organic textures with their most recent releases, but in comparison to the 80’s and 90’s, and even the 2010s, Birthing cannot hold a candle. No one can do music like Swans, but it feels as though the trilogy of The Seer, To Be Kind, and The Glowing Man was Tsar Bomba, and every subsequent release has been the fallout. Likewise, the raining ash of Birthing is lethal, unnerving, and undeniably Swans, but it doesn’t feel as monumental. The only track that feels crucial is the absolute fever-dream “The Merge” in its wholehearted dive into the abyss. Each track features Swans-isms that sear themselves into your brain if you let them, but therein, very few moments justify why you should devote two hours to listening to them – especially if you are not a fan to begin with. Their focus has never been to be catchy, impress with riffs, or go wild with novelty – as such, the trademark tapestries of droning dissonance (“I Am a Tower,” “Guardian Spirit”), free jazz/industrial noise explosions (“The Merge”) are just difficult – aside from Swans’ inability to edit.
I may be Swans lone apologist at AMG HQ, and maybe I’m insane for it. Birthing is nowhere near the influence of its predecessors – while retaining that noise and industrial sneer throughout, it’s a far more gentle album than the ugly classics of the band’s heyday. However, it’s probably the best of its era, blending its bad temperament with its more post-rock atmospheres and semi-accessible passages that keep listeners this close to insanity. That being said, it’s still Swans. And a whole lot of Swans. Two hours of Swans. Yay/ugh.
Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kb/s mp3
Label: Young God Records
Websites: swans.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/SwansOfficial
Releases Worldwide: May 30th, 2025#2025 #35 #Ambient #AmericanMetal #Birthing #Experimental #ExperimentalAmbient #FreeJazz #Godflesh #GodspeedYouBlackEmperor #Industrial #May25 #NapalmDeath #Neurosis #Nirvana #NoWave #Noise #NoiseRock #NonMetal #PostRock #postPunk #Review #Reviews #SludgeMetal #Swans #Tool #YoungGodRecords
-
By Dear Hollow
It’s hard to keep up with Swans. Since 1982, Michael Gira and company have cranked out sixteen studio albums, eight EPs, and ten live albums (not to mention all the compilations and side projects), influencing underground stalwarts like Godspeed You! Black Emperor, Neurosis, Godflesh, and Napalm Death, as well as more mainstream acts like Nirvana and Tool. No genre was safe, as noise rock, no-wave, industrial, sludge, post-punk, and post-rock were impacted in the process – yet Swans have always had their own inimitable and uncategorizable sound. In Gira’s words, “Swans are majestic, beautiful-looking creatures – with really ugly temperaments.” Seventeenth studio album Birthing, a supposed end to the big sound of Gira’s millennial reformation, is an affirmation of both why some love them and why others stay far away. Maybe the real Swans were the friends we made along the way.
The path of Swans has been one of blending ugliness with a sheen of pristineness. They’ve had it all, from the ugly industrial sludge of Filth and Cop, the more regal industrial noise rock of Greed and Holy Money, the Gothic rock groovers of Children of God, the lush starkness of White Light from the Mouth of Infinity, the post-rock-imbued apocalyptic prophecies of The Great Annihilator and Soundtracks for the Blind, the trancelike 2010s comeback My Father Will Guide Me Up a Rope to the Sky, the formidably monolithic trilogy The Seer, To Be Kind, and The Glowing Man, to the minimalist folk-embedded Leaving Meaning and The Beggar. If you wanted to devote a week to the Swans discography, have at it. Or get into the process of Birthing.
In spite of its higher focus on more acoustic textures and Michael Gira’s wild baritone, Swans’ use of repetition is a tether to which their grasp of reality is consistently mutilated, interspersed with moments of sparse accessibility. Seven tracks and nearly two hours of content greet the ears with repetition both nauseating and hypnotic, tracks undeniably modern-era Swans: folkier, more acoustic and organic, and retaining that trademark longwindedness and industrial/noise barb, shifting from mood to mood with ease. You’ll hear painful dissonance, ritualistic passages of pounding percussion, Gira’s unnerving vocal lines, and synth-heavy crystalline atmosphere exchanged across mammoth runtimes. Especially in the first act, ugly stretches stitch together more uncanny valley passages of accessibility, like a synth rock jam session with pulsing basslines (“I Am a Tower”), beautiful piano ballads graced by spidery melodies and Jennifer Gira’s haunting vocals (“Birthing,” “Guardian Spirit”), catchy little choral “bum bums” (“The Merge”), and instrumental ambient swells (“The Healers,” “(Rope) Away”).
Gira and company find themselves in an odd predicament: in the shadow of their own influence. Swans has smartly focused on more acoustic and organic textures with their most recent releases, but in comparison to the 80’s and 90’s, and even the 2010s, Birthing cannot hold a candle. No one can do music like Swans, but it feels as though the trilogy of The Seer, To Be Kind, and The Glowing Man was Tsar Bomba, and every subsequent release has been the fallout. Likewise, the raining ash of Birthing is lethal, unnerving, and undeniably Swans, but it doesn’t feel as monumental. The only track that feels crucial is the absolute fever-dream “The Merge” in its wholehearted dive into the abyss. Each track features Swans-isms that sear themselves into your brain if you let them, but therein, very few moments justify why you should devote two hours to listening to them – especially if you are not a fan to begin with. Their focus has never been to be catchy, impress with riffs, or go wild with novelty – as such, the trademark tapestries of droning dissonance (“I Am a Tower,” “Guardian Spirit”), free jazz/industrial noise explosions (“The Merge”) are just difficult – aside from Swans’ inability to edit.
I may be Swans lone apologist at AMG HQ, and maybe I’m insane for it. Birthing is nowhere near the influence of its predecessors – while retaining that noise and industrial sneer throughout, it’s a far more gentle album than the ugly classics of the band’s heyday. However, it’s probably the best of its era, blending its bad temperament with its more post-rock atmospheres and semi-accessible passages that keep listeners this close to insanity. That being said, it’s still Swans. And a whole lot of Swans. Two hours of Swans. Yay/ugh.
Rating: 3.5/5.0
DR: 7 | Format Reviewed: 320 kb/s mp3
Label: Young God Records
Websites: swans.bandcamp.com | facebook.com/SwansOfficial
Releases Worldwide: May 30th, 2025#2025 #35 #Ambient #AmericanMetal #Birthing #Experimental #ExperimentalAmbient #FreeJazz #Godflesh #GodspeedYouBlackEmperor #Industrial #May25 #NapalmDeath #Neurosis #Nirvana #NoWave #Noise #NoiseRock #NonMetal #PostRock #postPunk #Review #Reviews #SludgeMetal #Swans #Tool #YoungGodRecords
-
CW: Bug sex doujin pages featuring pregnancy/birthing
-
CW: tentacles/futanari
Finished up a first draft of the MAIN story for this #oviposition/ #birthing based #futanari #tentacle book. There's still a LOT of extra full-color content to translate, so I'm not out of the woods just yet. Keep an eye out for more updates!
-
CW: nsfw, muscle, mpreg, male birth
Part 4 of 4 - the grand finale.
There is a lot of headcanon about how the tribe's chieftain removes all his regalia and heads into the forest all by himself, giving birth to his cubs under the same tree as his father and grandfather before him - but let's just enjoy the eyecandy for now.
Series drawn by Ilitia Forever.
-
CW: nsfw, muscle, mpreg, male birth
Part 4 of 4 - the grand finale.
There is a lot of headcanon about how the tribe's chieftain removes all his regalia and heads into the forest all by himself, giving birth to his cubs under the same tree as his father and grandfather before him - but let's just enjoy the eyecandy for now.
Series drawn by Ilitia Forever.
