Diaspora

The prolific Rhys Fulber releases a new EP just one year after his second album. Very active with Front Line Assembly and also as a producer, he delivers four powerful tracks with impeccable production here.

The voice and the presence of Sara Taylor (Youth Code) combine perfectly with Fulber’s deep rhythms on “Slip It In”, the opening track. The execution of her various vocal inflections is particularly appreciated. From a feigned sweetness, Taylor shifts to vindictive, then downright roaring. A piece with a relentless vocal and musical mechanics. With “Signal Flare”, we stay in the same martial waters: disturbing murmurs, hypnotic rhythms and rave-style build-ups. The oppressive rhythms reach their peak on “Holy Trinitite”. In the distance, one hears an incantatory chant, quickly buried by the beat redoubling in fervour and the rumbling of storms. The pressure rises a notch in the middle, with threatening brass instruments and dramatic strings. A great success. The pressure is (almost) released on “Digital Tension”, the last piece of this more than substantial effort.