A7ie - Narcissick

A year on from "The Shattering", and it's immediately clear that Gyom has found his natural progression. The album was smothered in glowing reviews, and on the back of the positivity, the 'Narcissick' EP was announced.

Despite some delays, we finally got the CD (or limited Edition boxset) this summer, and the artwork and shots of Gyom and Charlene (Synths + Live Sequences) are not disappointing. A darker, alternative take on Snow White's "Mirror, Mirror" scene seems to be the general idea of this EP, and it's both ambitious and intriguing.

Two original tracks may seem off-putting (there is also a 3rd, highly controversial track available for download via a link in the insert), but "Lullaby of Pain" is possibly the best A7ie track ever released, and "The Blaze" is good enough to have been on "Shattering". The real shock here is the quality of the 10 remixes (I've included the tracklisting at the foot of this article) - in a word, Wow!.

Some of the finest and most loved acts are on here, as well as some of the most popular, and established acts : 'Dolls of Pain' , 'Stahlnebel & Black Selket', 'Centhron', 'Syndrome x/209' and 'Project Rotten' . Complimenting them are upcoming acts 'Twilight Freakshow' and 'RSM'. There's also remixes by 'Kaos-Frequenz', 'Nexus VI', and 'Niteshift'.

With a line up this intense, where do I start? Firstly, the Kaos-Frequenz mix of "Some Kind of Hate" is extremely good, despite being the most minimal track on here. RSM's remix of the same track is phenomenal, and Project Rotten's mix of 'The Blaze' is difficult to stop listening to.

Stahlnebel & Black Selket take on 'I,Liar' with their traditional excellent approach, and hearing Gyom's sickness interpreted through other minds is an experience.

None of the mixes on here are weak, and each act has done a great job of selling themselves. I'm not a huge fan of Remix releases, but this is one of the best I've heard in a long time. Aug 09 2011