Published by Davide Pappalardo on September 25, 2018
Unconscious is the techno/EBM project of Italian producer Andrea Riberti, which started as a post-industrial influenced output, then evolved into a mix of techno, EBM, and new beat elements. He has published some EPs on labels like Blackwater (La Caduta Di Lucifero, 2017), Blacksilk (Clerical Perversions, 2018), and a limited cassette album on NEN Records (Chaos Theory, 2017). HKKPTR is the brainchild of a mysterious dark techno artist hailing from Leipzig, Germany, devoted to cold and hitting soundscapes made of minimal textures and kick-drums. He has released two works for Modular Mind, V V V Trilogy (2016), and Sünde (2017).
Now the two artists collaborate in the split/collaboration Countermeasures, a cassette album released on SΛRIN‘s label X-IMG. Here we will find a total of 8 tracks, three for each artist plus two remixes in which they respectively rework an output by the partner in crime. The result is a two-face release, in which the aforementioned souls of the current techno-industrial scene take turn during the listening of the album. We are seduced both by old-school EBM tracks full of engaging bass-lines and synths, and austere and grim techno atmospheres with hard-hitting and obsessive rhythmic patterns.
Unconscious starts things up with Necropolis and its throbbing synth-lines, evoking futuristic atmospheres. The, a steady rhythm guide us amidst sweaty EBM-tinged rides, made of old-school bass-lines and mesmerizing drums. Eerie synths and nice melodies underline the track, showing a cinematic side akin to modern synthwave. In Kaelte HKKPTR changes peace, delivering a frantic techno/EBM piece with caustic kicks and cutting lines, gaining energy as the track progresses. Grim soundscapes and metallic sounds enrich the palette of a militant structure.
Unconscious returns with Micropoint, a shrilling affair evolving into another number in which synthwave elements and EBM structures collide into a captivating imaginary film-score. Ominous samples and layers complete the scene, underlined by steady snares and rhythmic loops. HKKPTR offers with Zorn a majestic techno-industrial number, a clanging affair empowered by metallic tensions and the usual kicks. Dark and eerie synth-sounds enrich the track, giving it an evocative feeling.
The last track by the Italian producer is I am your servant, a love letter to Belgian EBM/new beat made of 4/4 drum machines and throbbing arpeggiators. Mysterious synth-lines and sudden disturbances have their say, and even some distorted vocals are used. Another cinematic episode recalling the sound of other Italian neo-EBM artists like Violet Poison, dark and enthralling at the same time. HKKPTR showcases in Inferno industrial elements, upon which syncopated rhythms are layered. Almost tribal snare sounds and riffing lines move among steel-like beats, hypnotizing the listener, and guiding him toward climaxes made of evocative chords.
About the remixes: HKKPTR reworks Micropoint into a a more rhythm-oriented affair, choosing minimal structures and circular sounds as his weapon of choice, while Unconscious renders Inferno as a synthwave track with the usual throbbing patterns and sci-fi synths, giving us a totally different version of the piece.
Countermeasures is a very interesting collaborative effort, which manages to showcase two different sides of techno-industrial music, without sounding contrived or unfocused. Instead, the two artists complete each other, strengthening the narrative of the work and offering a various soundscape. While Unconscious makes us envision 80’s action/sci-fi movies and futuristic cities, HKKPTR paints a cold and metallic world made of automated factories, fast moving machines, and gray skies. Underground techno-industrial is evolving well beyond simple genre definitions, and this release is a perfect case for this argument.
Label: X-IMG
Rating: 7,5