Zex Model - Mind Slaughter

'First Mutation' was a great debut by Russia's Zex Model. It had all the ingredients that would lead one to believe good things were to follow. The enormous raw power pummeled and slammed an all out audio earthquake right down our ear canals and topped it off with a cranial depth-charge into hypothalomous. Fast forward to December 2013, 'Mind Slaughter' is finally released as a limited edition LP (300 copies) on grey vinyl, courtesy of Desire Records, home to such acts as: The Present Moment, A Terrible Splendour, Phosphor, Hula, Crossover, Xander Harris, Ike Yard, Keluar, Tresors, //Tense//, and TSTI.

'Mind Slaughter' showcases a more polished production than that of 'First Mutation'. The heavy influence of 80's Wax Trax and Nettwerk is scattered methodically thoughout the album. There is a sleekness mixed with an all out assault of crazed and tweek-out sounds that breathes life into each song, enticing the sonic explorer to dive deeper into the Zex Model soundscape. "Water Prison" kicks off the LP with pounding drug-induced beats set to themes of Anime horror such as The Curse of Kazuo Umezu and Goku Midnight Eye. The sampling adds a nice touch to create a very memorable song. 'Damnation' continues the electro-industrial invasion with more noisy tweeking and electro stimulation. There is no doubt that elements of Skinny Puppy circa 86-88 are intricately layered into a lot of the music on 'Mind Slaughter'. Such tracks as "Filth" , "Inverse", "Neurotoxin", "Odyzzey", "Kill", "Great Beast" and "Lord" conjure up the spirits of 'Cleanse Fold And Manipulate' and 'VIVIsectVI' while Paul adds the Zex Model touch to it. "Shining Blade" raises the bar for the entire album. It wanders away from the formula that makes up 75-80% of 'Mind Slaughter'. "Shining Blade" is a slow and churning piece that prepares the body and mind for the cold descent into a world collapsing on both a personal level and a global level. The vocals steer clear of the Ogre and move into the goth/80's coldwave realm.

Every song is strong with no let down or filler to be found. I am hoping with the next release to hear more in the vein of "Shining Blade" and a nice blend of both production styles from 'First Mutation' and 'Mind Slaughter'.

This is a solid vinyl debut! Look out for a Statiqbloom/Zex Model split now in works! Jan 22 2014