DElectTRonIcT, Vol. 3

Written by Matthew Johnson

Artist: (Various artists)
CD Title: DElectTRonIcT, Vol. 3
Label: Detroit Electronica Coalition
Reviewer:Matthew Johnson
Date: 4/14/05

The third compilation from the Detroit Electronica Coalition, this collection is noteworthy not only for the diversity of songs represented but also for the experimental nature of the songs themselves. Every genre is represented, from the rhythmic noise of Toybreaker’s “Path of Logical” to the laid-back trip-hop of CEOXiME’s “Dirty and Used,” but many tracks seem to defy both genre and logic. Venereal Injection, for example, offers what would be an otherwise average industrial rock track with “S&M,” but by making the odd choice to layer all the yelling over heavenly church organs the band creates something unexpectedly compelling. Mutual Hate Society’s “Blueberry Tart” is even stranger, with female vocals reciting a sort of nursery rhyme over mellow electro breaks, while AprAxiA combine elements of medieval, tribal, ambient, and what sounds suspiciously like an acoustic ska rhythm guitar on the beautiful “Dogma Raga.” Voltage Controlled Ficus, besides having perhaps the coolest name of any band in the bunch, give us power noise with an 8-bit sensibility on “The Drill,” while 4FR’s “Who Will Survive Us” mixes organs, drum loops, and enough college pop cleverness to keep the hipsters happy. It’s not all brilliantly creative of course; the industrial metal of Humachine’s “Twitch” is more like a second-rate Ministry or Acumen Nation than anything else, and the EBM-tinged house music of Doc Raymond’s “House of Bang” is catchy, but hardly groundbreaking. Still, even the more amateur moments, like Entluften’s homage to early Nine Inch Nails on “Broken Mold” or Silvercord’s off-key synthpop “Take,” are not without their charms. While most of these bands haven’t quite managed to be brilliant yet, many of them at least manage to be brilliantly weird. This is definitely worth checking out, if for no other reason than to discover some diamonds still in the rough.

For more information, visit the Detroit Electronica Coalition at https://headaque.tripod.com/.