Sin D.N.A - Afterlife

Holy shit, I might have raved about this Texan duo a few months ago, and I might have predicted a signing, but I did not expect Sin D.N.A to join up with Jamie Nova's scene-conquering horde at Deathwatch Asia; a great combination as both artist and label can be filed under 'formulaic' and 'intense'.

Sin D.N.A are one of a minor pantheon of acts to start spilling out of Texas like a tanker crash on the border - despite having an earlier, locally released demo out there, very few people have heard this project, with exception to the track 'Fight me Bastards' - released on the stunning 'Don't Mess With Industrial' compilation (dedicated to Texan artists).

How then, do we convince Joe Public that Mario Carrasco and Sergio Ramirez are a grade above the myriad of similar sounding distorted Dark Electro artists? I guess this is where Deathwatch Asia plays a part in the story - the label has a small but strong roster, and everything thus released on it has flown off the shelfs, gotten universally stellar feedback, and propelled artist and label into the Industrial stratosphere. Sin D.N.A has to have some appeal then, right?

'Afterlife' is the result of over a year's worth of waiting and praying to see an official CD release by this duo, and in typical DWA fashion, this EP delivers us a valiant 7 original tracks, and 4 remixes; 2 of which are among the greatest I can recall hearing in years. The title track is available for free download on the Deathwatch Asia Digital bandcamp site; albeit in 128 kbps - but who cares about that? The idea is for the label to allow everyone to hear a full song in its entirety, and making it freely accessible is a kind gesture - exactly what makes Sin D.N.A special is almost tangible in this track, the clash of angry, dominating Bass, the powerful and very recognisable vocals, and the 10+ different synth melodies that run through each song just keep your Brain and Ears so busy that it's unreal.

Since 2005, only Die Sektor's 'To Be Fed Upon', Asphxyia's 'Obliterate My Fate' and Detroit Diesel's 'Lost Signal' have had this much of an effect on me immediately, and although very few acts should be propelled to such a pedestal, Sin D.N.A have all the talent to do it. Production is at the very top of its standards, everything is layered, mixed and produced so well that you can hear everything going on, and make everything out at once - If your brain doesn't explode.

'Now It's Dark' is an older Sin D.N.A track that I've personally been aware of for a while, but haven't had the pleasure to hear. The duo have done a great job in preventing anything leaking to the filesharing / bootlegging community, and despite the age of this track, it's completely new to me. It has two main synth lines that pursue the vocals, and at times the song jars to a halt like a rollercoaster to announce the title of the track, before accelerating at breakneck speed back into face-melt mode.

There's an alternate mix of 'Afterlife' which almost usurps the original, then there's 'No God' and 'Wasted Passion'.
These two took longer to get into then the rest of the EP, and although the eclectic and astonishing sound of Sin D.N.A is obvious here, I find it more subtle and introverted . Perfectly positioned tracks to slow your mind down just enough to lull you into a false sense of security before 'Plague Wielder' begins.

Intentional? Fucked if I know, but Plague Wielder is (with no hesitation), my favourite Dark Electro track of 2011, and a challenger for top 5 of all time. It is as memorable as Dawn of Ashes, Amduscia and Suicide Commando, and just like the finest tracks by the above acts, it's just full of multiple layers and programs - every single one of each as memorable to me as 'Hellraiser', 'Flat-Line' and 'Fucking Flesh'. I am no business man, and I will never tell a label what to do, but I almost wonder if Deathwatch Asia should make a promotional video for this song? Sin D.N.A NEEDS to be in the public eye as much as humanly possible.

Following this song is no mean act, and the next track 'Afterlife (Sin Piedad Remix by Dulce Liquido') is one of those "what the hell just happened?" moments. The remix is sensationally good, the sound is so full and heavy that for most listeners, they quite simply won't ever hear anything like it (with headphones on).

Soman adds another notch to the remix board with a deep and aggressive interpretation of 'Now It's Dark', Reaxion Guerrilla mixes 'Wasted Passion' (I swear, Peruvian Electro just sounds evil), and Canadian duo Dym add a remix of 'No God' - this one is fascinating. It's very minimal, very Industrial (sounds like Dym's noise-infused moments), and super slow and threatening - almost like being locked in a factory with a legion of angry Robots.

At the end of the EP, there's a slow, ballad style track called 'All Life Has Faded'.It isn't the strongest track on here, but it's a clever idea and shows that there's both substance and potential to Sin D.N.A.

All I can really say on closing this E.P is that the signing to Deathwatch Asia is a great move, and both label and artists are certain to benefit highly from this. I expect this act to be as big as Tactical Sekt, and provided the closed, callous and banshee-like whiners that reject anything new can be bothered to go to Bandcamp and listen to this E.P, purchase it, and show their support for Mario, Sergio, and Jamie Nova, I look forward to seeing a full album in a year or two followed by a tour.

If it doesn't happen, I give up. Justice dictates a huge future for Sin D.N.A. Oct 09 2011