I don’t know: is there some secret goth rule stating that every goth band must be dark, gloomy, and morbid? If so, apparently Colorado-based Beryl Beloved never got the memo. Their new, 2012 release Count the Days is anything but. This thing is loud, simply for the sake of being loud. (What, goth bands can’t rock out too?) It’s noisy, it’s raucous (with a couple exceptions,) it’s full of boisterous guitar riffs that slam your eardrums into submission, it’s got fat, groovy bass lines, and a singer who sometimes sounds like Peter Murphy--although he would beg to differ—and it works. Beautifully.

The last we heard from Beryl Beloved, it was on their 2010 EP Dressed for Burial. On that EP the band made it clear where they were coming from—a little Bauhaus here, a little Siouxsie and the Banshees over there, some Christian Death for good measure, and it made for a nice little release. With Count the Days, Beryl Bacavis (vocals, guitars, keyboards, violin,) and bassist Hands Without a Face (they’re backed by a drum machine called The Mechanical Hound) took those influences, smeared them together and cranked the noise up to 13 (the album was intentionally released on Friday the 13th,) and rocked the hell out while still managing to satisfy most goth enthusiasts.

“The Profiteer,” for instance, chugs along in early Banshees fashion, with Bacavis tossing out tasty guitar riffs that would have made John McGeoch proud. In fact, “Prey” is eerily reminiscent of the early Banshees (perhaps it’s the drumming?) while “Open Hands” is a speedy, in-your-face slab of goth, much in the same way Children on Stun used to do prior to breaking up. And “Walls” is a glorious, chaotic guitar fest that Bauhaus might’ve released back in the day, only this is much, much louder than, say, “In the Flat Fields,” even. And the title track has a thick, nasty bass line and still more groovy guitar riffage to make it worth recommending.

The guitar-heavy “Asleep” rocks out with gusto, only slowing down long enough for a Bacavis violin solo. “Maybe (It’s Love that Frightens Me,) meanwhile, is an enjoyable slice of pop-goth that, if you give Bacavis a lower register, wouldn’t sound all that out of place on a 69 Eyes album, or (better yet,) if Bauhaus had developed the wicked pop sensibility that Messrs. Ash, J, and Haskins found when they founded Love and Rockets. Either way, this one would make for a nice single for play in the goth clubs.

On the other hand, it’s not all fun, noisy chaos. Bacavis has shown, intentional or not, a proclivity for sounding a lot like Peter Murphy, and he does a near-perfect imitation on “Ethyl Carbamate ,” a sparse acoustic guitar piece that eventually explodes into a fuzzy, distorted fury. And “Those Wasted Years” is a cool little acoustic number made fun by some programmed Budgie-style drumming. Meanwhile, “Depart” is a gorgeous piano and violin track that closes the album on a somber note.

I quite enjoyed Count the Days. Beryl Beloved could’ve taken the safe route and went all gloom and doom (and they’d probably be good at that as well) on us. Instead, they brought the noise and chaos while still managing to remain a goth act at heart, all within a scant 32 minutes. To paraphrase my fellow writer pyfr, it’s nice to see that someone is defending the walls of Castle Goth, and Beryl Beloved are defending them very nicely, thank you. If all you’re looking for is the next Fields of the Nephilim, or the next Sisters of Mercy, or even the next Mission, you aren’t going to find that here, although you should still find much to like. If you’re interested in hearing a young band taking over where Bauhaus left off, with some Christian Death and early Banshees added to the mix, then Count the Days is right up your alley.

Available on iTunes and through avenues such as CD Baby and the bands website.

Recommended: Yes