In a year that has already had Rhys Fulber put out a new Front Line Assembly record, team again with FLA cohort Bill Leeb for the surprise re-emergence of Noise Unit, and work on the final Fear Factory record to feature vocalist Burton C. Bell among other achievements, the prolific producer extraordinaire and electronic wizard has deemed it necessary to also unveil his latest solo release to cap off 2021 and we’re all the better for it.
“Central State Institute” is beats, beats, and more beats, and a welcome sonic odyssey from one of the masters of all aspects of Electronic music. It immediately sets a kind of tone of being in your most favorite club, losing yourself in the music, and just dancing like no one’s watching as this trance-fueled aural ecstasy incessantly throbs for a profound six and a half minutes.
And this is just the beginning!
“Chemical” steps back a bit with the in-your-faceness of its’ predecessor, treading Trip-Hop territory and sharing similar DNA with an artist like Massive Attack over one that made an album called Mechanize with “Marginalized” upping the tempo and the stakes as a driving dynamic of steady propulsive pulses hits against intricate layers of synthesizers. “Fragility” is tender yet tantalizing with lush vocals from Jeza phasing in and in and out of existence like a ghost while “Pyrrhic Act” is a club thumper for sure and will have listeners uncontrollably bouncing up and down regardless of their surroundings.
“Pressure” induces a hypnotic state with the way the Jungle-esque beats blast into yer earholes with “Night Render” exploring futuristic realms and providing a soundtrack for your most favorite Philip K. Dick stories brought to life. “Rogue Minority” is a militaristic Electro stomp that brings to mind recent outings from ESA while “Nature Reclaims” is a sobering study of sustained cathartic connectivity.
Sara Taylor lends her powerful pipes to closer “Stare At The Sun” which is everything you’d come to expect from another apocalyptic collaboration between Fulber and the Youth Code artist. I’d say it’s reminiscent of The Greater Wrong of the Right and Weapon on the Skinny Puppy spectrum or Hard Wired and Tactical Neural Implant on the Front Line Assembly, ahem, front but it’s more in line with modern Fulber releases and the current YC aesthetic. Taylor sounds positively possessed with vocals that seethe and brim with an intensity building towards the chorus and ultimately one last blast of Fulber-manufactured fierceness.
Brutal Nature arrives on November 29th through FR Recordings. Pre-orders are live now and can be checked out by clicking here. For the latest on Rhys Fulber, follow the trail of socials by heading here, here, or here.