TERRA:CIDE- Doom of Decadence

Artist: TERRA:CIDE

CD Title: Doom of Decadence

Label: Future Fame

Genre: EBM/.harsh/aggrotech/dark electro

If you were one of the people who thought that the world was going to end in an explosion of hellfire and brimstone with the ultimate judgement of the rapture last year, then you are probably just like me, pissed as hell. You get your hopes up for a fiery end and then ..nothing. So what is a frustrated musician to do?

With the underlying threat of our impending doom, it is no wonder that bands like Vault-113 and TERRORTEK X create dark music that carries a message like "it's time to pay for what we have done". Which pretty much says that we created this mess and now we've got to deal with it. Angst and anger driven songs set to a dark and pounding techno beat can pretty much describe a lot of the bands coming out of the harsh EBM world these days. Let's face it, things pretty much suck right now more than ever and we are mad as hell. We might as well express ourselves creatively and let our freak flags fly, instead of shooting up a movie theater during a revival of The Sound of Music. But c'mon, don't say they wouldn't have deserved it...but I digress...

This is the dawn of the post apocolyptic music scene, it's like the EBM world's answer to new wave. In a sea of carbon copy soundalikes and trust me there are tons, how do you find that special band that manages to stick out in the crowd?  It is important to note that there are not many fresh, new or exciting ideas out there, or at least from what I have heard, but some are much better than others. I am happy to say that the Finnish-German collaboration TERRA:CIDE is one of the good ones.

TERRA:CIDE isn't something new or something that you haven't heard, but they do give a fresher, more polished perspective on things. German producer Johannes Scherer, (a.k.a Hannibal Terravault) from the successful apocalyptic project Vault-113, has enjoyed success with his debut album "Leichenfeier (also signed with Future Fame). Johannes teamed up with Finnish artist Miko Cellhavoc, who also has had success with his projects (Cellhavoc and Hydrocyanic) to create the new project TERRA:CIDE. Not to be confused with heavy metal act Terracide.

Sadly, as you read this TERRA:CIDE is no more. They disbanded long before their recent debut album Doom of Decadence. That just goes to prove the short lifespan of bands in this business. So why review a project that is long dead? Well, as I was researching TERRA:CIDE "Doom of Decadence" I was impressed with what I heard. I already know that Johannes is a great musician and had not heard of Miko before, but was willing to give it a try, despite the fact that they had already called it quits. I'm really glad that I did. Even though the project is now defunct, both musicians Johannes and Miko are alive and kicking and making music, so that's good enough for me. Besides, the album just came out last month and I was just given the record to review the other day, so it's all good.  The one downside, is that it technically is only three songs and seven mixes, so it's a bit hard to formulate a full opinion just based on that.  What is really impressive, is when a band can give you the experience of a full length release in only three songs. That is just what TERRA:CIDE has done with Doom of Decadence . Miko's harsh but intelligible vocals are a breath of fresh air when compared to the overly processed vocals in many harsh EBM acts. Why take the time to write cool , deep lyrics if all you hear is Charlie Brown "whomp whomp" gibberish?  Most of the remixes are dull and don't leave much to be desired. However, there are a few shining moments on the remix front. Cease2Xist's remix of God´s Creation is a powerhouse club stomper that will get bodies writhing on the dance floor. Vault-113's remix of Psychonauticx has more punch than the original version making it much more appealing.

To sum up, TERRA:CIDE "Doom of Decadence" is three post apocalyptic harsh EBM tracks and seven remixes that bounce between a harder edged dark electro and a more club oriented trancy techno style. If you are a fan of post apocalyptic harsh EBM or dark electro industrial, then you should definitely make Doom of Decadence on your list of records to purchase.

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