Geomatic- Control Agents

Artist: Geomatic
CD Title: Control Agents
Label: Triumvirate
Reviewer: Matthew Johnson
Date: 9/18/05

For a concept album based on government mind control conspiracies, Geomatic’s debut full-length is surprisingly pleasant listening. You’re not going to find yourself singing along in the shower, of course, but compared to such other Triumvirate artists as Dissecting Table and LAW, this album is more moody and atmospheric than outright confrontational. “Stimulating Electrode Implant” does have feature some appropriately painful whining frequencies amidst the whirrs and buzzes, but it fades into an altogether groovier dub-inspired rhythm, while “Intruders” builds from minimalist drones to a subtle percussive beat that hints at tribal influences. “Implanted Thoughts” is more in the vein of ritual ambient, and with chanting effects that pan across the speaker channels, echoing flute-like sounds, and clicking insect noises, it’s a bit like Robert Rich with the exotic mysticism replaced by postmodern paranoia. “Skinner Box” is by far the most chillingly evocative, exploring Geomatic’s fascination with psychological torture through echoing gongs, frightened breathing, and the incessant drip-drip-dripping of Chinese water torture, while “Thoughts Get Louder” ends things on a suitably hopeless note with distant voices, muffled organ tones, and the occasional hollowed-out percussion sample. While the themes Geomatic chooses to explore are by no means relaxing, this is album is crafted with enough balance between horror and mood that fans of more conventional ambient might enjoy this almost as much as devotees of the darker, noisier stuff.

For more information on Geomatic, visit the Triumvirate record label at www.citadel-gate.com.