Compilation and soundtrack (M) reviews


Mind/Body Compilation Volume 2

This is a most excellent compilation of music that spans the spectrum of possible sounds that can be called industrial noise. From raw grating noise, dynamic rhythms, and short segments of seemingly unrelated music intertwined together to catchy synthesiser driven rhythms with the occasional dissonance... this collection has it all. The former category (vaguely) includes songs by Spleenclutch, Not Breathing, Area_39, Verge, Ciborium, Circular Firing Squad, Scar Tissue, and ECM. The latter includes groups like Smothered Hope, 30 Helens Agree, Wonderland, ATD Convention, Sphere Lazza, Drone, Strukter, Hex80, Cyber-G and Screaming Meat Prophet. Some groups like Noisia, Fuzzboy, Ipecac Loop, Soma Holiday, The One, Bureau of Control, and Mindfluxfuneral take a middle ground where they merge catchy melodies with hard noise.

My favourite tunes are The Shadows Lie by Arcana which is almost classical, Industrial Blues by Graveyard Cafe (funny), Informatik's Autonomous (which reminds me of Pet Shop Boys' In the Night), The Empty Clown, Shape Factor Moment (highly dissonant), and Ethering's Slip. This is the only underground industrial music compilation done with a peer review process.


Music ram-blings || Ram Samudrala || me@ram.org