Chances are, if you have listened to any industrial or metal album from the last three decades or so, you have heard at least one song that has been touched by Rhys Fulber. Known for his solo work under his given name and as Conjure One, as well as with Front Line Assembly and Fear Factory, the Canadian producer has left his mark on the music industry in ways some may not even be aware of. Not to be outdone, his most recent solo EP Diaspora is a dense treat, clocking at roughly twenty-five minutes of carefully-crafted electro-industrial goodness.
Sara Taylor provides vocals for the mid-tempo opener “Slip It In,” full of bass and bombast. It’s a dark, drab track with an odd sort of energy about it, especially when Taylor trades in her talk-singing for screams around the two and a half minute mark. “Signal Flare” picks up the pace with a straightforward minimalism and urgent tempo. The last minute and a half focuses mostly on the percussive elements of the song, with the hook riff dropping out.
“Holy Trinitite” is rattling, with a deafening kick and progressive build. It starts off a percussive monster with minimal synth, before transforming into an imposing, evil-sounding menace. After the halfway point of this seven and a half minute hellfire, the synths become piercing, jabbing notes that punctuate the cinematic despair built up to this point in time. The closing “Digital Tension” ends on a strong coldwave note and battering percussive parts.
Fulber adds to any composition he’s a part of, whether as a producer, keyboardist, or remixer, but the results of being left to his own devices cannot be denied. Diaspora is a jolt of industrial energy from a master of the craft, and should be sought out by any fan of the genre.
Diaspora is available now via aufnahme + wiedergabe. Click here to purchase the EP through the label’s Bandcamp page.
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