Deadliner
Wardencliffe
20 Track Album
Juggernaut
Released 8th May 2014
Out now!
Written
for Grave Concerns eZine
Deadliner
– Chicago, Illionois
Links:
Genre:
Industrial/Electronic
This one man band started out in 1990. The first track ‘The Eidetic’ is like a punch to the
gut as the song burst frantically through the speakers and leaves its mark. The
rambunctious rhythms are heavy and unforgiving. Labelled as Industrial and
rightly so for the clanking thumps and bangs within the track, although no vocals
but further on the melodic shuffle just brings the track alive.
‘Transmitter’ is a real stomper, you can feel your limbs twitching as this one
starts to play. The beats and rhythms are tumultuous and constant through-out
its reign and very addictive.
A far cry from the previous two tracks with sweeping synth melodies ‘The Radiant’ lives up to its title and
is a very sophisticated piece of writing. It has its antagonistic moments of
jabbing rhythms but still surrounded by an awe of inspiring sound.
‘World System’ just sonically manifests itself and devours the ears with a rippling
of madness that builds to an almighty level. One can almost imagine machinery
turning to this one, with its industrial element ever present. Superb track!
Samples begin on ‘Remote
Field’ with heavier rhythms coming in at intermittent stages and then a
choppy synth intervenes giving it a crisp edge with a wiry sound and the drum
beats really adding to its changing depths.
The sparseness on ‘Polarized’
gives it a simple sound until a resonating beat enters and sweeping keyboard
that allows for a beautiful melody and is quite a poignant track, However it
holds a dark side of bristling rhythms that feed feverishly on the psyche and
the ambient samples sound like they are being transported to earth from a
distant planet.
‘Brehmstrahlung’ is a very interesting track of twisting and winding rhythms that play
out to a mesmerizing and intense little melody. It immediately involves the
listener to go into some form of trance and feed off its beauty.
‘Stationery Waves’ leaves its mark up and down your spine as dark edged notes sweep
slowly back and forth like a brimming tide, quite unlike the title. Nothing is stationery,
although it is a bit sparse in places but that just adds to the anticipation of
the track.
‘Near Field’ holds some dark samples along with bongo type beats and is rather a
mish mash of sound but not removing itself entirely from its industrial nature,
and as it evens out the flow of sinister rhythms brood passionately giving its
grey a darker and highly intense edge.
‘Static Coupling Feat
UCNX’ bursting from its outer limits, a scathing
whispering vocal emerges along with deep powerful rhythms. Quite a blazing
potent track fuelled with intrigue and chilling consistency. I feel the vocals
here really make the track come to life.
‘The Decay’ is a very unusual and
highly diverse opener here. The sweeping melody is ever present but there is
also a heavier, darker side that takes over and it literally cuts down your
spine like a shard of glass harnessing a very unique sound indeed.
‘Alternate’ starts off very grand and then explodes into a feverish array of malevolent rhythms that twist
like a knife through tender flesh and is again a very ingenious track that
manages to carve its name in your memory.
On a lighter note ‘The
Lichtenberg Figure’ is a melancholic adventure which pulls the listener
into its perfectly blended structure and keeps them there through-out the
entirety of the track. Its haunting screams in the background really add to its
calibre.
‘Cathode’ is rather a ‘chunky’ track that wouldn’t be frowned upon in an
alternative club – so be prepared to don the furry boot covers - go grab a spot
on the dance floor and make your own history. A very worthwhile repeatable
track.
‘The Believers’ is a beautiful sweep of piano that offers enlightenment for the
listener. Its notes are carved with
painstaking love and attention to detail. The way it builds but doesn’t go all
out – just keeping you on the edge of your seat is highly teasing.
------------------------------------------------
“The music is highly sophisticated
and captivating in its own right. It really catches you ‘off guard’ with
beautiful passages and paints out imaginative scenery that the listener can put
their own interpretations to, which is very clever indeed!”
------------------------------------------------
‘The Alien Property’ is a darker edged piano ensemble
but the melodies come into their own here and house a classical feel to its captivating
surroundings.
‘The Doldrum’ explodes into a wild orgy of rippling rhythms and hard edged beats
that make it interesting and adding energy to the list. Lavishly embellished
with higher energy grooves and biting atmospherics it is another great track.
‘The Futurist’ moves back to a more classical feel with an orchestral sound that
sweeps over the ears tenderly and couldn’t be further removed from its
industrial genre if it tried.
‘Anna’ has Spanish influences on guitar and a haunting keyboard flourish, again
a very diverse track which is exciting to the listener as it plays out.
And to finish Steve has gone for an up tempo beat with classical
tendencies on ‘Discharge’ the
melodic sway here is just phenomenal without being too over the top and pushy.
It’s gentle, atmospheric and very imaginative.
To Sum up:
I was expecting the usual industrial electronic bouncing melodies
and hard wired sound and what I experienced was something a lot more
sophisticated – not that I am complaining, but the old saying ‘Don’t judge the
jam by the label on the jar’ comes to mind here.
This entire album has been an absolute pleasure to review from start
to finish. You just don’t know what to expect with it. It is industrial in
places but moves away from that at times and brings in highly condensed
classical features which was a pleasant surprise.
The fact there are no vocals (apart from on Static Coupling Feat
UCNX) didn’t really matter too much as the music holds the listeners attention
span and doesn’t let it drop for a second.
The music is highly sophisticated and captivating in its own right.
It really catches you ‘off guard’ with beautiful passages and paints out
imaginative scenery that the listener can put their own interpretations to,
which is very clever indeed.
A very diverse album and one that holds imagination in abundance. It
may not be all singing all dancing, but when a dance track does appear like
Cathode it just changes the listener’s perceptions so all in all a fantastic and
surprising listen.
10/10
Track List:
The Eidetic
Transmitter
The Radiant
World System
Remote Field
Polarized
Brehmstrahlung
Stationery Waves
Near Field
Static Coupling Feat UCNX
The Decay
Alternate
The Lichtenberg Figure
Cathode
The Believers
The Alien Property
The Doldrum
The Futurist
Anna
Discharge
Members:
Steve Christie - Everything
