Artist: Defence Mechanism
Title: Invasion of the Robot Brains from Planet Zero
Genre: Electro
Release Date: 1st June 2010
Label: Danse Macabre
Album Review
DEFENCE MECHANISM is a Canadian formation which started as an electro-industrial band in late 2003. After the release of the debut album ‘A Shameful Display of Superior Intelligence’ in 2006 came a long period of silence and only on the 1st of July 2010, the band finally got ready to hit the dance floors with the out coming elaborated album. As the band itself states, they are “a team of Canadian specialists chosen for their high level of skill at doing a bunch of cool things” that “continues to risk life and limb, and makes cool music, to keep these insane interplanetary robots from completely destroying the planet Earth”.
From the first track it becomes obvious that the band has diverged from the aggressive and harsh electro-industrial sound in favour of more melodious future-pop. With the sound of siren in the album opener ‘Dance Ex Machina’, DEFENCE MECHANISM declares the invasion of the “robots from outer space sent here to exterminate”. Highly danceable drum patterns amplified by the distinct bass line turn this song into a potential dance floor breaker. The following ‘The Brains Are Coming’ as well as ‘The Diabolic Plan Summed Up By Doctor Syntax’ and ‘The Infernal Growths Spawned From The Jelly Beast Of Archon-Z-Alpha’ is a short instrumental track composed of various mechanical noises, sinister threats, whispers and freezing cosmic sounds creating an obscure sci-fi atmosphere. Nevertheless, such atmosphere isn’t peculiar to the rest of the album. On ‘Shiny Metal Brains’, for instance, rather hopeless predictions of the annihilation of the human race are delivered in a pretty cheerful manner. Such miserable destiny befalls humanity not accidentally: “But one reason that’s sure / the Earth can’t endure / the way we’re abusing the whole damn place”. Well, a kind of radical measure to save our planet, but in some cases only the most extreme measures are efficient. Anyway, it is laudable of the band not to forget about the environmental problems.
‘The Robots of Dawn’ commencing with the ethereal sounds that come up with the speech samples and finally break into the beat with synth lines dilutes the clear vocal delivery of the other songs with the robotic vocals. ‘Maybe I Won't’ slows down the tempo a little bit and the ingratiating and viscous deep vocals add some ballad-likeness to the track. The lyrics of the song relieve the alien concept of the album by dealing with relationship. ‘Last Man on Earth’ is definitely a tribute to either book or movie ‘I Am Legend’. The song draws a grim picture of despair of the absolutely lonely person doomed to constant struggle for existence. In the end of the track the mild voice of Daniel X perfectly well conveys the bitter perception of hopelessness and resignation to fate. The dramatic keys in the album closer ‘Revenge of the Snake Charmer’ set the mood before being drowned in swirling sequences which resembles me the same of ‘Metropolis’. As a whole, ‘Invasion of the Robot Brains from Planet Zero’ is a solid, entertaining album with a great potential to fill the dance floors packed up in a catchy style of the 70’s sci-fi movie that only lacks some diversity of the sound.
Tracklist
01. Dance Ex Machina
02. The Brains Are Coming
03. We're Gonna Fade
04. Shiny Metal Brains
05. The Robots of Dawn
06. Maybe I Won't
07. The Diabolic Plan Summed Up By Doctor Syntax
08. Grid Bugs and Tanks
09. Metropolis
10. The Infernal Growths Spawned From The Jelly Beast Of Archon-Z-Alpha
11. Let's Get Out of Here!
12. Emergency Population Control
13. Last Man on Earth
14. Revenge of the Snake Charmer
Line-up
Dr. Daniel X - The (mad) Scientist - Vocals, Programming, Synths, Sampling, Beats
Alexander J. Parker - Electrocommunications - Analogue Synths and Percussion
Paul K. - Explosions - Electronic Drums, Programming, Synths
Website
www.myspace.com/defencemechanism / http://www.defencemechanism.ca/
Cover Picture
Rating
Music: 8
Sound: 8
Extras: -
Total: 8 / 10
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