Gridfailure is the demented alter-ago of Earsplit PR co-founder David Brenner, a one man band whose main existence is to provide some of the most unsettling, nightmare inducing sounds you'll likely to experience in this life or any other. Following the eerie debut Ensuring the Bloodline Ends Here from earlier this year comes the EP Further Layers of Societal Collapse, roughly 30-minutes of additional mind altering soundscapes featuring Brenner utilizing all sorts of instruments and field recordings to create his disturbing sonic stew. Describing what's on display isn't easy, but elements of dark ambient, electronica, Italian horror soundtrack, prog, industrial metal, and hardcore all play a role in these seven tracks. This is by no means 'verse-chorus-verse' folks, as Brenner uses all sorts of ingredients to set the mood and create his style of menace, with hushed vocalizations and robotic noises floating around futuristic synth blips & bleeps, ominous waves of sound, minimalist guitar sludge, and echoes of percussion. Remember the classic sci-fi/horror film Alien? Well, much of Further Layers of Societal Collapse could have been the perfect soundtrack for that film, especially the track "Woodlands Of Self-Impalement", which has a claustrophobic, cold & menacing quality that would have made for a creepy background to the crew searching the Nostradamus for the alien creature. Horror-tronica? You betcha!
While not something you'll want to put on as background music to your next family reunion, Further Layers of Societal Collapse is still a fascinating listen despite its total disregard for anything that could remotely be classified as 'accessible'. Don't bother trying to get into the head of Brenner (you get the feeling he himself isn't really sure where this is all going), but simply take Gridfailure for what it is, and that is deeply disturbing, mind-altering food for the psychotic, and what a delicious meal it is. And, apparently dessert is coming up soon in the form of a another full-length before the end of the year, so save room.
Track Listing
1) A Severing Of Ties
2) Digital Crush
3) Android Infusion
4) Get Fucked Dance
5) Broken Systems
6) Indian Point Disaster Direct Proximity Warning
7) Woodlands Of Self-Impalement
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