Wargasm "Venom" (2023)

 

With refined stylistic focus, Wargasm return, honing in on their own antagonizing identity. With additional ferocity, the spirit of a Nu Metal revival is in the air. With Venom, a consistent streak of Gold Cobra era Wes Borland guitar riffs guides their Electro-Punk mania to gratifying bursts of aggression. The duo strip out the genres tired downtrodden spirit, infusing it with obnoxious club drums, dizzying studio manipulations and generalized chaos. Underpinned by an enthused energy fit for the stage, most these cuts play with visions of them tearing it up in front of a lively crowd.

Fred Durst shows up for a massive, bouncy collaboration, making influences clear and known. Its a fantastic endorsement. These big riff songs tend to be the standouts. A string of early tracks lacked these guitar elements and it didn't land the same. When the unhinged rage and jilted grooves collide, this pair are in their element. Later in the record the metallic side gets explored in varying intensities to great enjoyment. I've enjoyed Venom immensely but I'm keen to see them mature and take these ideas further.

Rating: 7/10

Darkspace "-II" (2024)

 

Surprise evaporates into disappointment. After a decade long hiatus, Darkspace mysteriously re-emerge from the void armed with negative two, a singular forty seven minute epic that adds little to their repitour. With a particular breed of cosmic Black Metal, this trio forge dense, unforgiving walls of bleak sound. A droning masquerade of astral oddities channeled through unsettling grimace. Condensed guitars thrum and whir in discontent, bleed with subtle stellar synths to brood an aesthetic mesmerizing an eerie embrace of the vast measureless void. From endless shadows, beastly groans and guttural howls malign themselves with steely tremolo plucked melodies, descending with a sinister stance. Powered on by shuddering, thudding sub kicks, the music groans, burdened by its union with the abandon of an infinite nothing.

The track is suited to ambient appreciations of its darkly flavor, maneuvering between mellowed lurches and impending brevity in bleak lengthy passages. The album feels like three distinct sections with intentional retreats from its darkest plunges. Despite this, the crawling pace didn't birth a sense of reaching anything climatic or conclusive. It simply arises, then sinks back into the black. Not to suggest the ride was sluggish, more of a suspended astonishment that never arrives. I recall being enthralled by their prior effort III I. After ten years hoping a return might one day occur, this record felt as if no time had passed at all, a very familiar sound reignited without a sniff of evolution.

Rating: 6/10

Wargasm "Explicit: The Mixxxtape" (2022)

 

Despite grinding out familiar roars of disgruntled anger, this rebellious, antagonistic duo known as Wargasm, might be one of the fresher breaths of air circulating in a stale Metal community. Underneath its chaotic veneer, the fundamentals may have more in common with the likes of The Prodigy and Aggro-Tech. A constant barrage of unsettled, gritty noise pummels through lively drum machines, sharp distortion guitars, rabid screams and screeching electronics. A fun jumble of unabashed offerings.

 The opening explanation of an all too obvious pun the name is feels redundant. The following five tracks never let up on its ceaseless energy. Gristly lulls and melodic breaks feel like soft dressing for the next moment of madness. Fiery outbreaks of crammed aesthetic erupt on every track, gratifying ensembles of noisy oddities and groovy riffs to latch upon. Tinged with hints of Rap and Nu Metal, its my cup of tea.

The pair do all production themselves. Either an individuals vision or fruits of bouncing ideas of one another, the chaotic webs of wrangled aesthetics they weave are wonderfully unhinged, yet latch onto something that clicks most of the time.

Matlock provides the consistent barrage of angered shouts. Way is a touch understated as an effeminate yet mischievous counterpart. Her presence is similar to Poppy and when in a melodic passage, offers an under explored dimension of their partnership. Wargasm are exciting, this short release is a decent appetizer.

Rating: 5/10

GGFH "Disease" (1993)

 
Weird, wacky... wonderful? This is a zany descent into dystopian depravity. Cold, sterile, emotionless, Disease plays shrouded by bleak, mechanical aesthetics. Embracing quirky synths, wavy baselines and bustling drum machine abuse, the duo known as Global Genocide Forget Heaven forge unsettled stints of misanthropic commentary. I was turned onto them by Dimmu Borgir's Dead Man Don't Rape and the two bands share little in common besides a grim outlook on humanity and morality.

Much of the records charm stems from passages of rhythm that lock in with its synthetic counterparts. In these strides the grim atmosphere carries some passing joy. Otherwise its an unsettling oddity that rarely feels welcoming, a confrontation slog, forcing one to reflect on the dark subject matter at hand. Snarling, distorted soft shouts bark off through the record with a continual rigorous dissatisfaction.

Its an inescapable grasp, a downwards pull as alien melodies swirl around aimlessly. Vocal snippets from horror movies and the like help paint the music with more strange darkness. The atmosphere is vivid and intentional. Only Plasterchrist detours from its core chemistry. Tense lullaby like bells toy with menace, contrasted over top warm symphonic strings. Its within reach of relief and reprise, yet holds firm to its limbo.

 Overall I am impressed by how clearly theme and intention are executed but on a personal level this examination of humanities worst was lacking the musical jive to pull me in. It could be intentional, to keep the music confrontational and inches from comfort. A fun listen but after a few spins I'm good.

Rating: 5/10

Health "Rat Wars" (2023)

  

Housing four cuts from Ashamed, Rat Wars has been a swift brake in. Retaining their distinct flavor of broody, downtrodden dystopian atmospheres, Health navigate morose and self defeating emotions through the soft, sullen, effeminate voice of Jake Duzsik. Lyrically dark and dejecting, they eerily drift in the cracks of fiery Electro-Industrial pounding. Its inebriating, an alluring chemistry, entrancing and gripping yet on examination, a glum reality composed of crumbling urban sprawl and self abuse.

Many of its thudding kick and bassline grooves feel reminiscent of youthful days, hellbent on escaping ones demons through drugs, enjoying the dance while ignoring the imminent suffering. These entrancing drives of rhythm often feel like falling down a rabbit hole of self delusion. Only (Of All Else) and (Of Being Born) take the foot off the gas, the later sobering up its magnetic march with a grim groan of reality from an earth acoustic guitar to conclude the song. The other explores an acoustic limbo, the plucked strings hold off a frenzy of tense distant synths, ready to unleash in an instant.

 The record is finely crafted, its instruments oozing with texture and intensity, matched wonderfully to serve this nihilistic vision. I fumbled on first listen as Demigods struck me with Deja-Vu. Although not perfectly similar, the same melody can be heard playing out on Old Tower's Moonchamber track. Its amusing how memory works, instantly plucking it out of the darkness. Just a curious footnote for my experience with this darkly persuasive record. Its impressive, will have to seek out more from Health.

Rating: 7/10

Nova Twins "Supernova" (2023)

Hailing from London, the Nova Twins are a dynamic duo with a typically modern broad assemble of aggressive, abrasive inspirations. Clearly children of the Internet era, one can hear echos of 90s Rap Rock energy and Nu Metal syncopation, with 00s darker electronic music shades manifesting beyond prior crossover restraints. Attitude is its a driving force, shouted raps, soft screams and occasionally Pop R&B tinged sung lines, all emphasizing prominence and status spitting in the face of external adversity.

 Their songs are varnished with an electronic, noisy textural vaneer. Often crashing in with crunchy guitar grooves, the accompanying atmosphere feels as unconventional as un-melodic sounds weave into the fold. Somewhat similar to the worbling of Dubstep drops, these noisy groans are softly abrasive, hard and barely rhythmic yet mixed with a forgiving presence to make their songs rather accessible to my ears.

Its an odd approach considering there is a lack of melody and catchy knacks to latch onto. The drumming is rather dull and predictable, leaving a lot resting on the vocals and grooves. Choose Your Fighter is the records best track, a moment where the instrumental ideology swells around a compelling moshable groove. The rest of the record falls short of this feat and feels mediocre, occasionally dull on its weaker cuts.

In a way, I am reminded of Limp Bizkit, a love hate band who's fans were most likely fresh to the ideas of Metal and Rap. I could easily see my teenage latching on to the wildness this record presents but as a seasoned listener, little here feels special, I've heard it all before. They do show signs of promise however, some musical evolution on this chemistry may turn heads in the future but right now its a touch juvenile.

Rating: 5/10

Health "Ashamed" (2023)

 

Jumping around their discography, looking for an entry, it was this latest single I really latched onto. Health are a Californian trio that have been at it for almost two decades. Having many remix albums intermingled among their main efforts, its a dense wall of releases venturing in collaborative directions. This four track Ashamed has a balanced mix, two originals and two features. Their sound aligns with Agrro-Tech and Industrial Metal. Its similar to Author & Punisher, deploying meaty slabs of noisy synth over subtle distortions like an assault vehicle guided by tight, hard hitting, snappy drums.

The mood is doom and gloom, a synthetic cyberpunk dystopia traversed at night under neon light. Vocals bleed dour, plain and monotone, then ascending with breezy respite when musical chemistry shifts and a little reverb carries them away. This is the transition of its first two songs, a complimenting shift that lines us up for Sicko.

A sample of Godflesh's classic Breed slips into this one, nestled among its rebuilt core bass and drum groove. Recycling its charm, dreary flat vocals drift by in a haze, lining up an alarmist descend of hellish synth to dazzle one in its sudden urgency.

 The last track, featuring Sierra, bustles with a dark dance floor energy, stepping up its pulsing energy to match the likes of Carpenter Brut and Mick Gorden's Doom Eternal soundtrack blueprint. It retains Health's distinctness, a dense wall of harsh synths turned to a gloomy outlook with its softly pessimistic singing. A powerful introduction to a band who's coming full length I am likely to enjoy!

Rating: 5/10

Code Orange "The Above" (2023)

My own unrivaled excitement for this release has manifested into a glum disappointment tainting The Above. Their previous outing, Underneath, set high expectations. The glitched out dystopian mania shook up a violent foundation, breathing new life into a genre where fresh territory is hard to find. Partially recoiling from such brutal intensities, the band intermingle a reinvention of 90s nostalgia.

Most prominent, their typical approach to Hardcore brutality seem skewed towards Nu Metal. The most aggressive riffs deploy the dissonance and syncopation flavors of that era with a subtlety that blunts its edge. Trademark manic spurts of chaos groan with the downtrodden vibes of a once ridiculed genre. Their tight technical execution absent in favor of this loose, dirty, moody aesthetic inspired by past trends.

Subtly woven in, the texture of Grunge and Alternative Metal has its moments too. On The Above, the band weave through a fair set of intensities and ideals but little about the record feels like a cohesive vision. More so, an exploration of loosely connected ideas drawing from the decades various styles. Some songs step into radio rock friendly verse chorus exchanges, others meander through an arsenal of riffs.

Reba Meyers gets to offer more of her voice, sometimes accompanied by string sections, yet the step into new territory feels off. Mirror is a redeeming experiment. Its unusual Trip-Hop beat seems to aid the songs swell of emotion. Other than that, the record offers little I wanted to come back too. Its angsty downtrodden inspirational origins did manifest with uniqueness. It was just not too my taste sadly.

 Rating: 5/10

Godflesh "Purge" (2023)

 

Six years on from the remarkable inspirations of Post-Self, the Industrial duo return lacking a refresh in creativity. Purge echos their early 90s output. Harsh bounce oriented drum samples loop incessant. With a thud, thump and hammer, simple kick snare patterns drone in repetition. Over top, burly shouts ripple into the void and dissonant guitars toy with distressing chords wedged between chunks of dense meaty groove. Its forty four minutes explore these ideas rigidly, with little to break the norm.

This gives Purge a keen sense of self. A moody, downtrodden, alienated and grim tone to wallow within. Highly repetitious, barely shifting tempo or switching gears, each song grinds out its point. The later tracks delve into atmosphere with expansive reverb casting shadowy spells and offering respite from its aggressive counterparts. Its a subtle diversity yet never leaves this deeply troubled musical space.

Army Of Non raises an eyebrow for its inclusion of a classic Hip Hop sample "Check it out yall". Its nestled quietly in there, a throwback to Pure and Let The Rhythm Hit Em. Broadrick's affinity for Hip Hop never quite manifesting into something radical, remaining a warm peculiarity for fans like myself. This moment gave a glimmer of what might follow but as laid out its a consistently dark and dismal record retreading old ideas competently but leaving one with an appetite for revived freshness.

Rating: 6/10

Skinny Puppy "Rabies" (1989)

 

Where this journey ends, others shall begin. Having occupied a fair portion of my auditory real estate, I've come conclude there is little left for these Canadian Industrial pioneers to offer. Despite legendary status among the Industrial Metal I adore, the unearthing of the disjointed musical ideas that informed them has become a dull drone. On this fifth outing, Skinny Puppy recycle their dissident formula for dystopian soundscapes again. Lined with malfeasant movie snippet samples, inhuman percussion and jolting baselines, Rabies oddly offers the most accessible incarnation yet. Even so, its mediocrity has songs failing to favor themselves with memorability beyond brief surges of unsettling noise and claustrophobic vocal distortions.

A few songs are distinguished with a new dimension for the group. A metallic drive, as Al Jourgensen of Ministry lends his guitar craft to his musical idols. Thrusts of enthused yet blunt distortion riffs grind in repetition to lend a familiar aesthetic. Sadly the meld is a dull one, perhaps peaking with Facist Jock Itch, although its rampant snare drum abuse is a grating one. Other than this chemistry of note, the records aesthetic and atmosphere echos so much I've adored of their influence yet again fails to connect. Warlock manages a special moment, its alien vocals emoting deep pains with fascinating guile. As its concludes, the rising synths birth something unique. It reminds me fondly of Dysmorphik. There are more records in the catalog but currently the exploration seems futile and thus another journey concludes itself.

Rating: 4/10

Skinny Puppy "Vivisectvi" (1988)

 

Stylized as VIVIsectVI, this fourth machination of darkly Industrial and sporadic electro tones is one I vaguely remember from over twenty years ago. Revisiting it has not rekindled any youthful memories or sparked any further intrigue in Skinny Puppy. Once again the approach of Ogre and Key alludes me. Their dystopian soundscapes running detached from a convention I'd connect with, like groove or atmosphere.

Harsh drum machine percussion pounds its persistent drone, a shuffling assault of stabs and jerking motions as jolty synth basslines busy themselves with energetic resolve. A persistent theme arises once again, the emerging instrumental pallet heard better used by others later on. Vivisectvi has its moments of chemistry, often brief and wedged between Ogre's bare screams, grisly spoken shouts and plenty of sampled snippets that attend to emphasizing a darker side of society and human behavior.

For me, this one barely amounts to more than the sum of its parts, however for the year I can see how fresh and different this experience might of been. Vivisectvi bridges its fidelity into a more digestible format, the music sounding visible. Crisper instruments and synthetic instruments play boldly. Where it looses me is after Testure, another notably Synthpop adjacent song with melodic convention and gleaming bells juxtaposing the dystopian madness with a touch of hopefully, if not naive, light.

With a touch of Dejavu, the record descends into a sprawl of chaotic ideas after this song. State Aid and beyond leans hard into distortion and battering percussion, never quite recovering the atmosphere once flirted with. I've heard these ideas re-imagined by others further down the line and packaged so much better. I can give it merit for exploring these grounds but the end result isn't satisfying, simply of curious nature.

Rating: 4/10

Skinny Puppy "Cleanse Fold And Manipulate" (1987)

 

 

Fine tuning the dials of its industrious abandon for a noteably consistent peruse through nightmarish dystopias, Skinny Puppy loses any spark on this third and fiendishly monotonous outing. Its opening however, suggests new ground as janky and flustered bursts of softening symth seem organized. They spew murky unease alongside subtle sensibilities that suggest a slight Synthpop influence. One can hear a keen sampling of Kraftwork on First Aid. The following Addicition strides to a cohesive expression, where its disjointed elements cast a worried spell of personal struggle and abuse, between injections of obnoxious samples that brake up Orge's snarly shouts.

And then a sudden descent into mediocrity, every following song until conclusion seeming to allude any potent melody or enticing chemistry beyond its disheveled industrial exterior. Broken baselines thrust notes forth between the shuffling of metallic percussion, banging and clattering along without a settled rhythm. In flood samples and crude hissing shouts that too fail in amounting to anything of merit. Despite this extended lull, one hears an occasion echo of some aesthetic chemistry, to be repeated by Industrial Metal juggernauts to come. Other than that, it lacks on all fronts.

Rating: 2/10

Backxwash "His Happiness Shall Come First Even Though We Are Suffering" (2022)

Traversing deeper into painful themes that have defined Backxwash's raw, hopeless expressions, this newest installment of darkness suffers familiarity. Scarcely making ground on I Lie Here Buried With My Rings And My Dresses, an unhinged rattle of caustic demonic beats accompany now accustomed flows. They run formulaic as the Canadian rapper settles on her flat tone and biting cadence for another round lyrically battling her demons. Its plays as a war siren of distress, simmering in a difficult intersection of ignorance and bigotry. Select samples of pastors preaching illuminate these struggles aptly, focusing the records somewhat conceptual scope to a degree.

 His Happiness Shall Come First Even Though We Are Suffering sums itself up well. A tale of religiosity preaching division and judgement. Although not a sole focus, it fits a discomforting darkness felt through its rough instrumental abrasion, a continual unease suited to the evils parading as morals highlighted. When on point, a potent chemistry. Yet a lack of subtle bombast, groove or sensible musical appeals bounds it tightly to a thorny bed of pain. Weaving layers of disorienting noise, soft distortions and broody bass, gospel samples and estranged companions stir a wild atmosphere. These instruments peak curiosity but lack command of simple pleasures to sway one.

Almost brilliant yet a spark is missing, or just all too familiar. An issue becoming stark in Backxwash's cadences, especially later in the record, Juju a prime example. The hard rhyme inflection and pacing of words becomes repetitive and stale, adding to a sense of stagnating style. The albums ambient feeling one retreading horrors expressed before with an interchangeable nature. One distinction apparent this outing were a select few songs hiding uplifting or beautiful instruments within its mix, burying them a dense darkness, occasionally surfacing them for false relief.

Rating: 7/10

Skinny Puppy "Mind: The Perpetual Intercourse" (1986)

Unlike the exploratory oddity predecessor Bites, Skinny Puppy's sophomore reeks of conceptualization. In presentation, aesthetic and an unwavering tone, Mind assaults the listener. With janky, discombobulated elctro-percussion, uneasy distorted samplings and the strained snarky chords of Nivek Ogre, one is plunged into a nightmare realm of their ghastly making. Striding into a rotten discomfort, these songs mostly build from unsettled origins into clusters of claustrophobic noise and howling.

Kicking off with One Time One Place, a restrained Ogre groans as airy synths brood in the distance, quite the spellbinding atmosphere. Its a navigation through pain and discomfort that's gratifying thanks to its soft melodic backing. Sadly, as the most accessible song, what follows descends into a madness with a specific shade lacking the allure to pull me in. These disjointed melodic phrases get roughly pushed aside by punchy Industrial drum kits with an assembly of noises seeming to only loosely fit together. Its hell bent on painting a dark and grisly dystopian soundscape and gets halfway there.

Despite having occasional spurts of curious chemistry to charm and capture ones attention, the janky nature of its inhuman rhythmic drive seems to steer the music into maddening piles of disorientation that ended up being my lasting impression. Some merits lay in aesthetic exploration, where intriguing Industrial textures emerged to be recycled by many more in the genre later on. Sadly though it didn't amount to much beyond the sum of its parts that became apparent after just a single spin.

Rating: 4/10

Arca "Kick III" (2021)

 

In picking out a peculiar sounding project featured on a top list, I've fumbled into territory truly beyond what makes music tick for me. On first listen I though this might be the most abominable record I've heard in some time. Having stuck with it, I've now grown somewhat matured comments to share on the radical harsh venture this project is. I have no context in which to address this wildly experimental music in relation to the three other chapters of Kick released in daily succession towards the end of 2021.

If this is Arca, AKA Alejandra Rodríguez's normal style, then she is certainly an artist with a distinct voice and vision. One of confrontation, dissonance and discomfort where an emerge of groove or melody from within the dystopian abrasion has alluded me. Two songs have grown on me. Their textural ambiguity and sonic assaults offering a novelty of sorts. The rest of the record sadly dulls with each listen as much of the disorienting tapestry tires in its rebellious circumvention of musical norms.

With harsh electronics, the worlds of Glitch and Noise converge on the back of unconventional, seemingly disjointed and random percussion. Its thudding bass kicks jolt off beat and zaps, buzzes and fuzz replace the rolls of snare and cymbals. Those two rattle without structure. Its more tuneful sounds seem hell bent on subverting melody, each song inducts a random assortment of sounds without direction. After a spin or two many aesthetics becomes very obviously vocalized. There is a plethora of manipulation and plugin work at play here that I could sadly not appreciate.

Once noticed, every kick and and assumed noise has a hint of vocal timbre. Alejandra mostly delivers her Venezuelan lyrics through this manipulation too. If every interesting or musing, its often buried in a dread of brutal dystopian madness. The opening Bruja & Incendio deliver some brash and swift native wordings that become quite enjoyable in their foreign nature. As a strength in the record, its use is minimal.

Beyond its reasonable opening, the record devolves into its own unusual nature, where I could find little beyond the occasional instrumental texture sparking curiosity. There was really nothing for me to resonate with. The critical acclaim makes me feel as if people are appraising the bizarre oddity it is, which is all fair game but I am personally looking for the ground where the oddities abridge an emotional connection with the listener which alluded me entirely. Maybe the continuous dreamy vocalizations on Intimate Flesh came close but that would be all.

Rating: 2/10

Kero Kero Bonito "Time 'N' Place" (2018)

 Going forth with a bold stylistic shift, Kero Kero Bonito introduce a rather gristly over driven guitar tone into the mix! Not only do they dial back the childish quirk and charm established prior, the keys too recoil from punchy unabashed aesthetics. Time 'N' Place has the trio trying on new shoes. When sticking to their guns, they find a glossy, serine temperament stepping into classic Pop vibes with a modern edge. On the other front, hints of Grunge, Indie Pop and Shoegazing push them towards the uncanny valley as creative ideas clash with a touch of imposter syndrome lurking nearby.

Alongside the strives into guitar driven territory, the group take failing inspiration from the abrasive scenes of Glitch and Noise music. Three tracks in and Only Acting grates away with intentional CD skips leading into a ear aching assault of sharp fuzz on the listening. It seems so pointless, a barrage of disorientation that doesn't resolve to anything of interest. Fortunately these grating oddities are few and far between.

It doesn't look good among a series of misses. Opening with Outside, the Shoegazing kicks off on an odd note, not quite gelling with the sparkling synths found glittering around its chord progressions. From their most the songs land on odd footings, just not landing a charm as they low through a string of simple themes and old timely vibes. Late in the track listing, Sometimes is another stride beyond means. Aiming for a youthful, folksy pub sing along, the brash acoustic guitar strumming clashes with unrehearsed singing. The VGM 8bit synth jam that takes place alongside sours too.

Most the songs are inoffensive but oddly mediocre in the shadow of their other works. It makes for a dull, lukewarm listen that often drags. Bit of a shame considering how interesting I've found this group up to this point. In fact what comes after with Civilization II is remarkable, a major difference from whats to be heard here. Time 'N' Space feels like the new ideas they brought to the mix didn't have the chemistry.

Rating: 4/10

Author & Punisher "Krüller" (2022)

 

 Krüller is fantastic. It had me going back to Beastland to feel the difference, which is colossal. Author & Punisher is an Industrial musician with an edge. Using his own custom built VST controllers, Author manifests a physicality to his music. The punishing landscapes of weighty mechanical monotony birthed through sweat and tears. Beastland had a unruly harshness about it. With time, it faded from memory. Krüller on the other hand opens up with streaks of color nestled between its slow grudging strikes of percussion. His voice, now melodic and sustaining, gushes with painful emotions. Alongside the streaking synths that burst brief sparkles of reprieve, it becomes a memorable craft. The best of this musician I've heard to date so far.

Although this mostly speaks to the opening song, the through line is often the relation between voice and what offerings of melody come by. The record is dense in atmosphere, a wash of fuzz and static broken apart by the smashes of snares and collisions of kicks as its percussion arrives with a force overcoming any obstacle. They drag and groan, slugging with a lethargic crawl that subtly gives way to the fuzzy atmospheres as the record broods with each passing song. Through its lengthy drives, often six or more minutes, creeps of resolve briefly emerge, always fizzling back to the shadows. Its a burdensome experience. One worth enduring for its glimmers of hope.

Glorybox is my favorite song. The gravitas of pain the album encompasses initially had me hearing it as a transsexual expression. The cries of "Give me a reason to be a woman, I just want to be a woman" so harrowing and wrought with anguish. It mirrored pains of bodily identity, however turned out to be a cover of Portishead's original. Now I know it, I can hear the difference in the music, best revealed by the guitar solo. It still is a remarkable cover on a brilliant record that may be a little to weighty to remember every moment with the same thrill of its better parts. It must be said its peaks soar to a punishing and unique place you wont forget in a hurry.

Rating: 7/10

God "Possession" (1992)

With a wealth of music just a few clicks away, my reading tangents of band connections, genre exploration and general curiosity is no longer manifesting an obscure list of music I'll never actually get around too. My recent unearthing of Techno Animal's Re-Entry led me to find out what its other half, Kevin Martin, was up to with God! What a band name, I wonder how it had not been scooped up early, perhaps held by some iconic artists. Its competition in the shadow of the church and religion is no cause for a lack of prevalence here, the music rather obscure and unwelcoming.

Labeled as Avant-Guard Industrial Rock and Metal, I thought there is a fair chance of finding some appeal. Sadly these length tangents of manically droning exhaust whats decent and smother it an onslaught of tonal assault that forever meanders on its repetitive structure less form. From its shortest four minutes into the lengthy stints topping out at seventeen minutes, every song hinges on a baseline and drum pattern backbone. It works away, iterating itself at the same tempo incessantly! Then a fog of samples, random noises, distant voices and a zany Jazz Saxophone slowly wash in. Each song finds its flavor, a distinction but they all grind on endlessly.

The Sax performance is rather impressive with some vibrancy and illumination often steered into a maniac frenzy of squirrely notes bordering on mental illness. Its other instrumentation, sometimes pianos, other percussive sounds and shrill sounds, often feel intentionally out of step with the core musical loop. Its result just doesn't spark a magic for me. A couple of songs may have a strong drum groove or meaty distortion guitar lick going for it but when that crops up, its repeated to death.

Don't get me wrong, I had a fair bit of fun with this. The first listen was the strongest with walls of maddening sound a treat to pick apart. The texture and intensity is wild on first glance but once a songs played twice its all to apparent how lacking the depth the project is. The songs have no direction other than to drone and all its ebbs and flows of accompanying madness just seem random and without much intent. Reversing those trends could of yielded but sadly the whole record is a bore.

Rating: 3/10

Techno Animal "Re-Entry" (1995)

Today marks the beginning of a new era! I will no longer own my records... Finally I've got with the times and made the migration to Spotify. In doing so I haphazardly stumbled onto this record I couldn't find anywhere after listening to Ghosts back at the beginning of this blog. Techno Animal is an experimental side project manned by Justin Broadrick of Godflesh and Kevin Martin of God, two musicians deep in the early Industrial Metal scene but exploring a very different breed of sinister music here.

Re-Entry isn't as dark as I remember Ghosts being. It does however lean heavily into unease, tension and dread as its droning soundscapes venture on psychedelic depravity. Its a mental trip of looping sound design, organically unfolding with incremental changes that can transform a song over mostly lengthy outings. Its two CD format boasts halves of six tracks each, often clocking in well over the ten minute mark. The result is oddly meditative and soothing in an adventurous way. Dreamy music for setting atmosphere and tone to let the mind focus on other demands.

These compositions are near density, every instrument seemingly tuned for that slow meandering shift that occurs over its lengthy duration. Subdued percussive drums keep pace as Elctro-Industrial synth tones layer in a little zap and bleep tone texture, seemingly at odds with the music but melding in. Its best experiments seem to come on Flight Of The Hermaphrodite and Demodex Invasion. The first using Middle Eastern sounds and instruments to visualize a drug trip in Arabian deserts. The later morphs its drum loop through dizzying distant tonalities that wash in and out of focus.

Though in its worse, the remarkable chemistry of these tracks feels underdeveloped and neglected. Most of these songs are lumped in the second half, Catatonia and Red Sea are examples of experiments that didn't quite come together and lack direction. The twenty minute Cape Canaveral feels even weaker as a dull Black Ambient drone piece. The closing Resuscitator too is a lone drone of eeriness and without that lavish layering of odd noise and drums, it becomes unremarkable in comparison.

Its really just a handful of songs that shine here. Even then some feel stunted by a lack of progression. Moments to break the mold and give these songs a sense of arrival or event would really elevate it. There is however fascinating chemistry and visceral trips to be explored. With less filler and more focus this could of been something great but for the context of times, this experimental Avant-Guard release is quite unique and remarkable. How they got signed to Virgin Records, even more so!

Rating: 5/10

Ministry "Moral Hygiene" (2021)

My first few spins of this record had me in an astonishment I wasn't sure would hold. With my listening pleasures interrupted by a sickness impairing my ability to hear, I now return to Moral Hygiene with that initial exuberance intact. It would seem that forty years as Ministry has armed these rebellious musicians with a craft and voice to boldly express their social-political dissatisfaction with a vigor that reaches back through the years. The new music pulls up shades of many avenues explored before in their back catalog. The result is magnetic, gradually pulling you into its grasp track by track.

Things start gently, brooding a dystopian atmosphere with chunks of grisly guitar melody, echoing shouts roaring over the marching baseline and shuffling percussion. If not for the distinctive use of vocal snippets it could easily be mistaken for a modern Killing Joke track, a band that massively influenced them. The gears then shift up with Sabotage Is Sex. A busy throbbing baseline drives the track forward with a maddening power and groove as Jello Biafra lends his classic voice to the growing criticisms.

The albums theme blossoms as Disinformation samples former president Trump's voice back into the mix to shine a light on the fake news problem we all face in this polarized time. Typically his words are manipulated as are that of various newscasters. Personally I love the dystopian tone and contrast it stirs in the reflection of Edward Snowden's trusting words. Unsurprisingly there is no holding back when it comes to the political sphere with Greta Thunberg and other key voices in the world being sampled in to contextualize the themes that play out in these broody songs.

The Industrial Metal madness plays out over the next few tracks in its various shades. With each spin I'm grabbed intensely as its lyrics and snippets give me much food for thought and reflection. Then things reach a sublime height of madness with the two closing songs. Death Toll marches a carnival baseline groove through Kenneth Copeland's absurd declarations of interventions by God in the annihilation of Covid-19. Contrasted against the rising death toll... Its just a work of art in my mind.

It rolls into TV Song #6 seamlessly to frighten you out of its hypnotic persuasion. Toying with gristly Grindcore blast beats, ridiculous adrenaline fueled instrumentation and noise manipulation, the whole affair ends with a deliberate lack of resolve. Its as if there are no answers to the topics anguished over. The world is in strange place and the solutions are yet to be found. Its chilling but musically thrilling. I'm amazed Ministry came back so strong. At a time when I am thinking of trying to get out of my groove and find new artists, turning this one down would of been an unknown tragedy!

Rating: 8/10