Straight from the boys of MZ.412 comes Econocon.
Don’t expect the MZ.412 flavour in its purest form, no,
no. Expect harsh electric power noise and harsh vocals
to match. Some interesting material here … not all of it
portrayed with the greatest of tact but definitely some
high points (thank you Old Europa Cafe!). The lack of
tact comes in when the noise element actually becomes
unbearable according to your eardrums and not
necessarily to your taste. Other than that, the material is
arranged in a most reasonable manner and almost
comes across as ‘coordinated experimental’ at times.
There is some variation in tempo, sound, and even style.
And I don’t lie when I say that the vocals are well-suited-very in-your-face with lyrics that give the bird by
themselves. Honestly, I cannot think of another noise
project that melds the vocals so well! If you want to take
a chance, and feel kind of angsty, Econocon seems to
be a good direction to head in. – Sarah Cassady
Category: Issue 03
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Econocon – Business Solutions For The Active Terrorist
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Dark Throne – Plaguewielder
The thing I love about this band is that you always pretty
much know what you’re getting into, brutally raw in your
face black metal. Their latest release, Plaguewielder, is no
exception to this rule, delivering exactly what you’d
expect. The production is a little better than usual, with the
drumming a lot clearer and technically executed. These
guys really know how to deliver a down and dirty black n’
roll groove. You could almost say this is beer drinking
music. My favorite song has got to be “Sin Origin”,
sounding a lot like Bathory in a beer swilling stupor with
the lyric, “entertaining Satan on an wet electric stage”.
Yah man, cheers to that. This stuff is great! So break out
a six pack and throw on Plagueweilder. – Greg Manz -
Fear Absolute – The Truth
Fear Absolute claim to have influences of technically
brilliant bands like Dream Theater and Death. But after
listening to this five track demo, I thought that the only
thing that makes this Fredericton, New Brunswick –
based death metal band unique from the typical “cookiemonster
rock”, is that they don’t sound so much like their
on coke or crack (which is a good thing). Other than that,
these guys have no surprises.
However, if this death metal thing really does suit your
fancy, they are releasing their second demo in the very
near future. – Brooke Chiasson -
Mourning After Pill – Ask and Ye Shall Deceive (later renamed to Parasite Priestess)
I didn’t think a decent song could be produced using
Frooty Loops, but The Mourning After Pill proved me
wrong.
I have been aware of this project for about a year now,
and used to frequent the site to check for updates. I
would occasionally plug The Parasitic Need into my
Winamp, which is the first track off this single.
Ask and Ye Shall Deceive has some funky twists and
turns you’ll enjoy, and some you might be mildly
annoyed with – there’s a bit of boring repetition here.
Again, it’s all a matter of opinion of the individual, some
like repetition, some don’t.
AAYSD consists of four original tracks and two remixes.
Most of the songs on here have the certain appeal of a
pleasant dark ambience – the lyrics are a bit cheesy but
Mourning After Pill seems to be a hobby project. My
biggest beef is that it’s an mp3.com release, and most
know about the whole Universal problem that started in
October. I must admit, mp3.com produces better CD’s
now: shrink wrapped and less propaganda.
MAP has some creative elements worth checking out. – Azriel J. Knight -
Bad Sector – Xela
Yet again, Bad Sector doesn’t let us down (in fact, I am
finding that Italy has been providing us with more and
more intriguing artists). Everything you have grown to
love about Bad Sector is demonstrated on this album.
Xela is a re-mastered recording of the backing tape used
in the Sonderangebot performance in Berlin, 1996; a half
hour track exhibiting the classic Bad Sector grindy
drones, raw textures, intense mechanical accents, and
distinct arpeggios. The CD and inserts are cased in a
heavy metal box decorated with a spattering of paint and
the like. Not only can you have another beautiful album
by Bad Sector, you can own an eye-catching piece of
work among the plastic jewel cases on your rack! Look
for other Bad Sector discs, such as The Harrow,
Polonoid, and Dolmen Factory. It seems as though most
of what he has released is done in ridiculously small
print runs.
Limited to 989 copies. – Sarah Cassady -
Dark Muse – Sounds From Beyond The Silver Wheel
This seven track digipak brings back the days when I was
really into Silent Watcher of Dark Matter and Not Applicable, two fantastic but under appreciated bands.
Dark Muse, a solo project by Phyll Smith, has subtle and
macabre vocals. The synth work is lovely. Long, drawn
out, progressive dark ambient, utilizing panning and echo
effects that blend wonderfully with her soft cries. The
haunting ambience is gradual and minimalistic, but
extremely creative. Smith uses a guitar, a line 6-modeler, a Russian string piano, bells, nails, coils, screws, water and bowed cymbals, among other things to produce her sound. Before SFBTSW, Smith released a series of mp3.com CD’s.
SFBTSW isn’t purely a dark-ambient project, other genre
appearances in this seven track experience are ethereal,
experimental and darkwave, sometimes as a singular, but
mostly in combination.
Track one, Queen of the World of Spirits is haunting, dark
and therapeutic in some respects. Certain Angst, our next track has a tribal feel, but not up and close, more like, just beyond your sight in the distance at sunset, again, very subtle. Calm is where I hear the reminiscence of mp3.com artist Not Applicable. Calm has a tunnel effect so to speak. You’ll have to listen to understand what I am trying to get at. LunaFlow (The Deep) is track four. If Silent Watcher of Dark Matter wasn’t such an unknown artist I would swear this was a blatant rip off, but instead it’s more like re-created originality I swooned at Phyll Smith’s ethereal vocals, a lot of hums and hoos, and they don’t overpower the synth work – it mixes very well. Smith takes advantage of the concept of her voice being an instrument and not a centerpiece to take away from the surrounding objects. This is a must-buy for people who seek out candle and incense music. – Azriel J. Knight -
Sephiroth – Cathedron
I have decided that anyone who claims to be a Cold
Meat Industry fan is in fact not such if Sephiroth’s
Cathedron is not already floating around in their CD
collection. This is a beautiful example of dark ambient at
its finest and should not be overlooked. This full-length
album gives us dark ominous drones, tempos that can
change direction as easily as the wind, powerful tribal
drum arrangements, and gently threatening sounds that
make up the melodies and fill in the body of each track.
Sephiroth brings forward compositions that sound real
and impose a cold, comfortable atmosphere. So far this
is the only release from Sephiroth, but if you’re lucky,
you can also find some of his early recordings under ‘Ulf
Soderberg’ – worth looking into if Sephiroth has turned
your head. All in all, it only took one spin of this disc
before I was officially addicted – highly recommended.
– Sarah Cassady -
Skinny Puppy – Back and Forth Volume 5
So, despite the bad blood that Nivek Ogre had with the
other members of Skinny Puppy in 1996, he and cEvin
Key reunited possibly for one time only at the Doomsday
Festival in Dresden Germany in August 2000. Thus
bringing us the recording of “Doomsday: Back+ Forth Vol
5 – Live in Dresden”, under the Nettwerk record label.
Like just about everything else from Skinny Puppy, this
really isn’t a CD that I would rush out and pay twentysome
dollars for. There are only a few tracks that really
catch my attention (i.e.: Deep Down Trauma Hounds and
Harsh Stone White) and a few others that sound a little too weird (not that weird is a bad thing), and a few that were a little too repetitive for my liking.
Whether or not I’d recommend this CD to a devoted
Skinny Puppy fan is a completely different question
altogether. Being somebody who has been a bit indifferent about their music for a long while all I can suggest is to give it a listen to first and decide for yourself.
– Brooke Chiasson -
Behind The Scenes – Homeless
German based Behind the Scenes has brought us a
fantastic release that is best described as Goth-Pop, or
Goth-Electronic. If you don’t like either of those titles, pick
the other one. It’s been a while since I have been able to review a CD with so many memorable tracks, so bear with me while I attempt to express my passion for Behind The Scenes’ “Homeless” I first encountered BTS through their label, Dancing Ferret Discs. DFD has some great gems, Neuroticfish, Paralyzed Age, The Cruxshadows, and of course, Behind the Scenes.
Behind the Scenes has a fantastic blend of guitars,
electronics, and vocals. The guitars play a great part in
contribution to the overall character of each track, the
electronics compliment the character of these tracks and
the vocals give you that warm fuzzy feeling inside. I really
enjoyed the vocals of BTS – it always seems like there is
more than one man singing, this is most likely done with a
slight echo effect, but regardless of the technical work, it
does have an emotional response for me.
Each track has it’s own distinct flavor, but the great part is
that once you are a seasoned fan of BTS, you will recognize them right off the bat when hearing them in a club.
Every track has great appeal, but to narrow it down, the
tracks that stand out the most would be Human, Protection, Plastic Love (a great track for clubs) and Dark Agression.
– Azriel J. Knight -
Decoded Feedback – Mechanical Horizon
Mechanical Horizon is a creative roller coaster ride
thoroughly enjoyable throughout! Every song features well crafted melodies, which morph seamlessly into creative programming, and solid, powerful rhythms. There’s a lot of rich texture in this release, which never seems to fade after repeated listening. Decoded Feedback are a hard act to review for the simple reason that every time I get a chance to listen to them, someone will inevitably borrow the disc for an extended period of time. Mechanical Horizon is no exception and has been enthusiastically snapped up by fans of Goth, Trance, and Electro genres. There is a perfect balance between Gothic atmosphere and technological prowess allowing the listener to be mesmerized and interested in what is to follow. Mechanical Horizon is an all around energetic, captivating listen, and a very danceable release. The vocals are reminiscent of Carl McCoy without sounding contrived and they suit the atmosphere of the music very well. Marco’s voice is not only expressive but is clear and the lyrics are well conveyed. Mechanical Horizon is one of those rare gems that can be listened to from start to finish and can be enjoyed at home or on the dance floor.
‘Reflect In Silence’ is my overall favorite and my cats would
tend to agree. There is an added bonus in the form of a
video on the disc for the ‘ Relic’ track. Well, what does the
future hold for Decoded Feedback? We have Shockwave
to look forward to in September!
– Regan R. MacLeod
