PRONG - review added 19th May 2009
Album Review: Power Of The Damn MiXXXer (2009)
For fans of: industrial metal... and a touch of dance-style re-mixing
For me, Prong are a band who have spent most of their careers off my radar. I have heard the odd mention of them here and there in the music press, and have even managed to hear and enjoy one previous song 'Other Worldly Device' on an ancient Kerrang compilation, but otherwise they are group I know by name only.
The band, who by all accounts have been pretty influential in certain circles, are and always have been built around the guitar and vocal talents of Tommy Victor. On this particular release several DJ's and producers come along for the ride too.
Power Of The Damn MiXXXer is not strictly a new release. It is actually a re-issue of their 2007 album Power Of The Damager, totally remixed (hence the title) and re-ordered. I haven't heard the original release, so I'm treating this as I would any other new album.
Opening track 'Worst Of It' has a brilliantly evocative vibe that would be perfect for the trendy advertising campaign of a hip new car or similar. It sets expectations sky high. Sadly the next few songs gradually drag your hopes down until a monstrous surface to air missile shoots your initial enthusiasm down in flames and brimstone.
The remaining tracks carry on in a disjointed cack handed fashion with very little to draw the listener in or stop you from covering your ears. There's lots of crackling snare drums and tinny high hat beats with an electronic curtain drawn in front of them. The rhythms are techno-freakish and the guitar rhythms so fake sounding you want to take a shotgun to your speakers and pull the trigger. I'd love to say that matters improve by the end but they really don't.
Power Of The Damn MiXXXer starts off well and ends terribly. If the whole album had sounded like the first three or four songs it wouldn't have been at all bad. Sadly it doesn't. It certainly isn't the worst thing I've ever heard and, I'm sure, plenty of people with more of an industrial/dance bent will find much to savour. But one excellent song and a load of nonsense does not a good album make.
Check out... The original album and see if it's any better... then let me know!
Track List:
01. Worst Of It (Worst Of The Worst Mix)
02. Can't Stop The Bleeding (SMack! Mix)
03. The Banishment (Wolfzilla & The Angry Moon Mix)
04. Power Of The Damager (Fabrication Mix)
05. 3rd Option (Naked In The Cadillac Mix)
06. Pure Ether (Big Riddim Mix)
07. Message Inside Of Me (Chicxulub Impactor Mix)
08. No Justice (Crackmix)
09. Looking For Them (Contagious Mix)
10. Spirit Guide (Reality's Edge Mix)
11. Changing Ending Troubling Times (Abandoned Structures Mix)
12. The Banishment (Bitter Harvest Mix)
13. Bad Fall (Smile On Your Face Mix)
Label: 13th Planet Music
Artist's websites: Prong , MySpace
