The Pitch: Artoffact Records brings us the industrial and industrial metal stylings of Canada's Encephalon with their eclectic third record, We Only Love You When You're Dead. FFO: Mindless Faith, 3Teeth, Nine Inch Nails
What I Like: It's difficult to talk about this album without engaging in the dreaded "track-by-track review." But given how varied this collection of songs is, the approach seems warranted. Encapholon kick things off strong with the rousing "Limb From Limb." It's a fairly traditional aggro track in the vein of Mindless Faith and 3Teeth. Nihilistic vocals join with an incredibly infectious synth hook to make for a really killer single. This is followed up by the equally catchy, albeit sillier, "The Calvin Klein of Slime." The somewhat whimsical melodies along with the ridiculous lyrics make for a more lighthearted track that seems to embrace its 90's goofiness. Think early KMFDM, Combichrist, or Marilyn Manson.
And the tone shifts have only just begun. "Never Breed" transitions into a dance beat with heavily effects-treated verses and some actual singing on the chorus. It sounds like an outtake from The Faint's Danse Macabre. Then we've got Nine Inch Nails meets Faith No More on "Naraka." The driving drums and synths are pure The Downward Spiral, but the vocal hook is quite similar to FTN's "The Perfect Crime." Very hypnotic, enjoyable track, this one. I'm also partial to "Lunacy," which is more or less straight-up EDM that you might find on a Blade soundtrack. I could go on, but that seems pretty sufficient. Needless to say, I am impressed with the amount of variety Encephalon delivers while maintaining overall quality and still keeping a certain level of cohesiveness to the album.
Critiques: Ditch the spoken word stuff. The title track is over 5 minutes of corny anti-establishment propaganda I'd expect from a 16 year old from the suburbs...so basically myself in high school. The symphonic music in the background is cool, and this adds yet another layer of aesthetic to the album, but it's a track I learned to skip ever since the first listen. More generally, the second half of the album isn't as strong as the first. Tracks like "In Plague" and "A Debt of Flesh" are enjoyable to listen to, but compared to the earlier material they just aren't as memorable. I'd suggest reordering the tracklisting so that the runtime feels more balanced.
The Verdict: I'm sure that the truly plugged-in industrial afficionados have many more recommendations to make, but as a metal reviewer who recieves so precious few albums in the genre, I would list We Only Love You When You're Dead among the best of the year. Quality-wise, it's on par with the latest from 3Teeth, and Encaphalon's dedication to creating a variety of textures within a single overarching style is admirable. Stream it in full below and pick it up today.
Flight's Fav's: Limb From Limb, The Calvin Klein Of Slime, Naraka
-Review by FlightOfIcarus
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