Freakçontrol

An obscure album from Roadrunner, this is a real treat of truly "progressive" metal. The mix of sounds here include elements of trip hop, acid jazz, industrial, and other forms electronic music melded with a mathy prog rock/metal backing. It can be obscure and atmospheric at times, funky and energetic at times, and heavy all the same. It features a polyrythmic delivery at most times with a more technically-oriented notation. But the music is tasteful and listenable. It is heavy and robotic at times but it never lulls into something unlistenable. The electronic parts are quite fun especially when the grooves pick up.

They keys, samplers, and bass guitar are the focus of the album but the drums put on a technical show and the guitars bring about as many pedals to the show as you can possibly have. It is mastered perfectly giving just enough breathing space for whatever sound or instrument is being showcased in the moment and providing the necessary segues between typically incongruent musical passages. The closest musical comparison would be KMFDM but the music here is far more complex.

Even though it is a mostly-robotic and electronic/industrial album it has its ebbs and flows of emotion and different feelings from soulful to jovial and celebratory. The melodies are catchy and the grooves infectious. There are hardly any vocals but a fair bit of soundbites. My highlights for the album would include the whimsical and up beat football anthem Misty Tune, the funky and "jumpy" Jack the Wingbeat, the dark and sexy bass-loaded Easy Tune, the bouncy club-ready and mechanically metallic Kalimantan Rocks, the optimistic, dramatic, and orchestral Big Hose Forgery, the chic single-released track off the album Pump Probe, and the atmospheric and spooky finisher The Mushroom Fleet.

There is also a tasteful remix of the Arabic-tinged fifth track at the end which closes with an ambient nature track that slowly turns into what sounds like a jet engine, so beware. In the end there really are no down points to this album, it is engaging, energetic, and listenable. If you are looking for something well off the beaten path is is a fantastic option.

Recommended tracks: Misty Tune, Jack the Wingbeat, Easy Tune, Kalimantan Rocks, Big Hose Forgery, Pump Probe, and Mushroom Fleet