Quote the Joker : Face Your Demons : 5 out of 10

The songs from this drum’n’bass metalist are way, way too long. That’s the first thing that I’m gonna say. ‘The Gateway’ is six-minute and some seconds; ‘True Evil’ is eight-minutes and some seconds, and ‘The Demon’ is seven-minutes and some seconds. And, what’s worse, is that while Quote the Joker’s beats aren’t that bad, they certainly aren’t the best; rather average and mediocre for a genre that’s a bit oversaturated. One of those releases where if you’ve heard one drum’n’bass metal songs, you’ve probably heard a ton more. While there’s some variation in each of the songs, there’s not a whole lot to split up the monotony of them. Needs something more to stand out from the crowd. This isn’t doing it.  

Dracula Party : Nightmare Things : 5.5 out of 10

Dracula Party can best be described as horror EBM; a fest of hardened dancefloor beats and a dash of old-school horror cinema. Does it come out great? No. Does it come out decent? Also no. A little below average? Sure. ‘Nightmare Things’ is crisp and clear, so production is there, but the main issue with the track is that it sounds like a constant build-up with no payout. There’s never a moment where the song completely opens up and becomes this excellent dancefloor anthem; it sounds like a tease more than anything. The vocals are alright, pretty standard for the genre; slightly distorted vox with a bit of whisper. ‘Hack-O-Lantern (Satanic Panix Mix)’ ha the opening credit crawls of an obscure eighties horror move in the background as the main beat does the work. I don’t understand the need for equalized vocals or whatever effect they put on the vox for this song; it sounds off and doesn’t come off well. The final track is ‘Trick or Treat (Cult of Thorn Mix)’. I understand what Dracula Party was going for on this song; a sort of glitchy release. But I think they utilized the glitchy part a bit too much so the song sounds rather disconnected and all over the place. There’s potential in Dracula Party, but this isn’t showing me it. 

Left Spine Down : The Fall : 6 out of 10

Ah, Left Spine Down. A band that I suppose I’m supposed to be familiar with but I’m not; I think the first time I heard of them was when they signed to Re:Mission Entertainment as it is. Coincidentally, this is where they released this album. The titular title track is a raw blend of metal, drum’n’bass, and industrial. It’s a quick two-minute and forty-five second jamboree that can easily get anyone’s blood pumping. Kind of reminds me of something that could’ve easily popped up in a THPS video game. ‘Bithead’ takes a more alternative rock approach; not a fan of the drowned out vocals that sounds like nonsensical screaming from a fever dream into the mic. Following are four different versions of ‘The Fall’, wherein everyone will have different takes. The only one I’m not a huge fan of is ‘Angelicus Infirmus’ as it sounds like an unproduced demo. There are three other songs on the album that are each titled ‘Lost Transmission’ and conform by number. I’m a fan of the first and third ones, which are electro-industrial and minimal flavored respectively. The middle one is a garbage noise piece that doesn’t do anything for me except feel like I’m trying to fix a broken TV by repeatedly smacking it with my palm.  

Shhadows & Small Planets : E : 6 out of 10

I’m a bit timid when it comes to witch house as I find most of it to be derivative or similar to other releases within the scene. Few artists come to mind who manage to make the genre exciting; Sidewalks & Skeletons and White Ring are two notable ones. So, Shhadows and collaborator Small Planets worked on this single together. The beat is…Well, it’s on point with what I expect from a witch house single. Dragging electronic beats and ambiance; nothing crazy about it, nothing exactly bad about it either. The vocals are decent, I’m just not sure that they fit too well with the song; they sound slightly off from the beat. And I don’t think the digital effects placed on the vocals were necessary when the voice sounds so good already. Still, it’s not terrible, and I could see myself putting this in a witch house playlist.

Fact Pattern : Retail Therapy (Blak Emoji Remix) : 5.5 out of 10

I loved the original version of the song, let’s start there. The remix? It’s alright. Taking Fact Pattern’s industrial metal song and transforming it into a sometimes minimal, sometimes metal, all over the place remix wasn’t the best idea. While it somewhat follows the theme of the original song in terms of placement and theme, it takes it to another level and I often find it to be disjointed and mismatched; as if wearing a white crew cut sock and a long, black athletic sock. Doesn’t really make sense, does it? 

 

Fragment King : Angel Position : 7.5 out of 10

Ah, here we are with someone who knows how to use noise to their advantage. I had a lot of noise submissions for this fun little experiment and most of them have been horrid beyond reason. But Fragment King understands that noise is a tool to be utilized within other genres; so his mix of power electronics, industrial, and doom metal is a palpable formula to take in. A dirty, gritty, and grimey display of filthy electronics from start to finish with bouts of drum’n’bass that cuts through the polish. Well produced hardened electronics for a niche audience.  

The Healthy Dead : Hey : 5.5 out of 10

I’m not sure what it is with industrial and experimental artists trying to fade out their vocals to the point it sounds like they’re in a different room. Does this sound good? No, not really. It sounds rather terrible; as if they aren’t confident in their own voice to be singing in general. Better vox come later in the song in a digitally altered state which sound decent. Artistic choice, I suppose, but one I don’t support. The music isn’t too bad, nothing great, a bit repetitive industrial rock that’s expected of the scene. A song I could pass up on any given day.  

Dissonance : Something Unforgivable : 6.5 out 10

I can’t tell if I like the vocals on this album or not. Which is an odd thing to say for a reviewer, but it’s the truth. On one hand, it sounds like Dissonance has an excellent voice through and through, but on the other, every song that I play has a ton of digital effects on the voice that sounds a bit tacky. ‘I Don’t Like Who You Are’, ‘Waste Me’, and ‘Bridges’ are all fine examples of that. It makes sense on certain songs such as the punchy EBM inspired track ‘Truth’, but on others I think a clean set of chords would work easily. The music, on the other hand, is pretty good. A vast array of dark electronic genres are at play, from EBM, to darkwave, to gothic with a ton of collaborators on board. The production I feel could be a bit cleaner, but that’s nit picking at this point. 

Sutras : A Lotus Like Mouth : 4 out of 10

I sometimes feel as if reviews can be done by answering a simple question. Such as: Have you ever listened to ambient music before? Then you’ve listened to this song. Nothing all that grand about it, kind of boring, and just…Bland in general. Needs something to stand out from the crowd, a phrase I’ve been using a lot during these little “Review Everything” articles.