Digitalis Purpurea- Emotional Decompression Chamber

Artist: Digitalis Purpurea

CD Title: Emotional Decompression Chamber

Label: Aural Music/Dreamcell_11

Genre Industrial, Electronica

Website: https://www.digitalispurpurea.net

Reviewer: Nineiz

Date: 1-26-11

Christian Marovino aka Pi Greco got his inspiration to this album from the film Fando & Liz by Jarodowski. (The film that provoked an whole world of film enthusiasts 1969 and caused a riot at the film festival due to its sadistic sex and vampire scenes.) In the intro track of “Emotional Decompression Chamber” we hear the sound of when Liz is eating the white rose in the beginning of the film. This album is an updated version of the story. Pi Greco is Black Metal from the beginning but he seems to have evolved into electro synthetics blended with real analogue sounds into some indie style for this album. (Yes, I know he is in the Italian EBM scene, called IBM there.) The only thing that seems remaining from black metal musically speaking to me is his voice which he uses in a Marilyn Manson inspired way.  I noticed his vocals in the first couple of tracks “Muscle Bound” and “Dust Devil”. In the “Magic Cube,” there is nice intro of drums that thrills me. I see before me a drummer hitting hard as hell on them. “I am a looking for a job because I need an alibi,” is a catchy refrain. “The Shedding” also got a nice intro to the song and then it turns in to a Marilyn Manson rip off. Perhaps Pi Greco is updating Manson too and doing a Manson on Manson (Marilyn Manson did this with old music once.) “Fall of Rimmel” is about a slut vamp and is very suggestive. It makes me wonder if he met a digital mistress that freaked him out or perhaps it is Fandos frustration over Liz, when he torments her and abounding her on and off again and again, that gets it's updated version this way. It is here where we meet the secret singer girl and her voice is very distinct.  I am hoping that someone will unveil this mystery pretty quick. The way Pi Greco sings “Decadent Glamour” here the pronunciation of  “glamour” makes me wonder what hidden code that is about  since he has told he is doing this “hide and seek” for us in the album.  “Blear” is another Marilyn Manson reference to Antichrist Superstar album and it reminds me of Tourniquet song, but here Pi Greco sings about “another kind of gloom.” This is about when Fando tries to find the hidden town they search and never found. Just when we think this song is over, the Marilyn Manson sound disappears and we get a nice clear piano that ends this track. “Scotch-Taped Hours,” has a back ground sound of coming from an old vinyl player like the gramophone Liz brought with her into the desert and the guitar in this one is so beautiful.  There is also a mystery sound as if from an ocarina with his heavy breathing at the end and the distorted sounds. He really captures the feeling from the desert scene in this one. Horror Pleni begins with whisker drums, then the girl and then him, in digital voices. It is like being brought into a video game. “The tears on my dress are same as on my heart” the girl tells with a giggle. This is what I call the feeling of “noir” and it makes me smile. This song mixes digital sounds with analogue ones in a very cool way.  Devote - respirator breathing with drum stomp, then piano and guitar. He sings very close to the microphone and to listen this one took too much of my energy.  Here, I lose interest even if I was curious. This man demands attention and you get a treat if you give this a listen. Black Metal still remains in its own way on this album.  “Venus Eclipse.” ends the album and I feel like I have been to the cinema. I am leaving excited and want to buy tickets to next show right away. I am not done with this.