This was one of my post-Skinny Puppy "first" exposure to more ambient-abstract-experimental music (this could have been around the time I was also exposed to Of Tanz Victims). A friend of mine had bought this record principally for it being a Netwerk release, and we were very much Netwerk supporters back in the day, and our hunger for more material seemed unsatisfiable. I admit that I was generally completely unaware of most if not all of the "collaborators" on this release, save for Chris and Cosey, and that was by name principally and maybe one or two compilation tracks (I wasn't even aware they were members of Throbbing Gristle nor aware of Throbbing Gristle at all!). Over the years many people have claimed that the efforts of all people involved in this release were sub-par, a mere "shadow" of what they all were capable of either individually or collectively. However to my untrained ears, these pièces sounded bright, clean, and helped to open up my point of view and appreciation for this "different" type of music.
The opening track "Feeder" featuring Coil as collaborators was my first introduction to Coil, a band I would soon learn to appreciate and love quite a bit for a few years. Starting off with a little piano riff which slowly morphs into what could easily pass as a film soundtrack for a while until it again transforms into a rhythmic piece complete with muddled spoken words, reverb, effects, and some other louder elements, until it simmers back down to it's earlier soundtrack-phase and piano riff. To this day I do believe this remains my favorite track from this album, and served as my first teaser introduction to Coil.
Track two "Trapezoid" which features John Duncan and Joe Potts is where the album stats getting it's more ambient/abstract sound. Completely unfamiliar with Duncan or Potts, I could not judge this piece on any merrit except for what it stood for: it's self. Later on I would familiarize myself a little more with some of the works by John Duncan, but that's a different story.
Anomaly number one is the third piece "FutureShock" which features
Monte Cazzaza, another unknown name for me at the time who brings us the closest to a beat-oriented single off of the album. Mixing what I would then call C+C (Chris & Cosey) synthetic brass chords and a driving disco-industrial beat, "Futureshock" was a sort-of high point for me at the time, but as I started appreciating the abstract and experimental a bit more later on, the piece started to feel more like a filler of the era, a representation of the times. Maybe this was one of those contractual obligations from the record company who insisted on having at least one semi-radio-friendly track from the LP?
Side two starts off with what I consider the second anomaly from the album, the track called "Unmasked" featuring Robert Wyatt, and Cosey Fanni Tutti on lead vocals. It is essentially more or less another C+C track with synthetic voice-like keyboards, meant to take this track more into the low-fi, slow lounge pseudo-cabaret-like flavor it is going for. Even when I tried to re-listen to it years later, I still could not appreciate it to what the artists involved probably wanted it to be...
Second off side B is "Over Abyss", a collaboration with none other that Lustmord (Brian Williams). I grew to appreciate some of Lustmord's work, starting from "The Monstrous Soul" up until "Metavoid", where I thought he was going too much into that Caul category of cinematic-like string music, almost goth-ish in general tone. For anyone vaguely familiar with Lustmord's work, this has his deffinitie touches all over it!
Next up the track "Guest + Host = Ghost" featuring the semi-legendary Boyd Rice, remembered for along of his odd experimental lock grooves vinyl releases, and for his project NON. I remember being introduced to the world of NON and Rice one afternoon over at Pierre Martel(RIP)'s house on the South short in early-mid 90s when he made me discover an incredible amount of trully underground and obscure stuff. Anyway, back then I was unfamiliar with Rice, but this is amongst some of his lesser-abrassive material which fits perfectly within the parameters of this release!
We end our entire ordeal of Madness with a track entitled "Core", featuring everyone on this album, and thus is it credited to the name of CTI. This is what you would expect when you mix all these ingrédients into the melting pot (except the rhythm-based structures of "Futureshock" and "Unmasked") and does have a quality of being both somewhat well constructed as well as a blueprint for a possibly longer offering, but it feels just right as is.
On the CD re-issue I bought years later I noticed very subtle low-volume sounds and arrangements during the end and beginnings of some of the pièces, something which was mostly lost in the vinyl record (probably due to poor sound reproduction). It helps to explain why at times it felt as though there was a minute-long break in between songs from the LP. Anyway, again not an end-all-be-all album for everyone, but the excellent production quality and "general" focus of each piece serves as a good disc to have in your collection. Now if you consider this a "compilation" album or a stand-alone release is up to you.
The opening track "Feeder" featuring Coil as collaborators was my first introduction to Coil, a band I would soon learn to appreciate and love quite a bit for a few years. Starting off with a little piano riff which slowly morphs into what could easily pass as a film soundtrack for a while until it again transforms into a rhythmic piece complete with muddled spoken words, reverb, effects, and some other louder elements, until it simmers back down to it's earlier soundtrack-phase and piano riff. To this day I do believe this remains my favorite track from this album, and served as my first teaser introduction to Coil.
Track two "Trapezoid" which features John Duncan and Joe Potts is where the album stats getting it's more ambient/abstract sound. Completely unfamiliar with Duncan or Potts, I could not judge this piece on any merrit except for what it stood for: it's self. Later on I would familiarize myself a little more with some of the works by John Duncan, but that's a different story.
Anomaly number one is the third piece "FutureShock" which features
Monte Cazzaza, another unknown name for me at the time who brings us the closest to a beat-oriented single off of the album. Mixing what I would then call C+C (Chris & Cosey) synthetic brass chords and a driving disco-industrial beat, "Futureshock" was a sort-of high point for me at the time, but as I started appreciating the abstract and experimental a bit more later on, the piece started to feel more like a filler of the era, a representation of the times. Maybe this was one of those contractual obligations from the record company who insisted on having at least one semi-radio-friendly track from the LP?
Side two starts off with what I consider the second anomaly from the album, the track called "Unmasked" featuring Robert Wyatt, and Cosey Fanni Tutti on lead vocals. It is essentially more or less another C+C track with synthetic voice-like keyboards, meant to take this track more into the low-fi, slow lounge pseudo-cabaret-like flavor it is going for. Even when I tried to re-listen to it years later, I still could not appreciate it to what the artists involved probably wanted it to be...
Second off side B is "Over Abyss", a collaboration with none other that Lustmord (Brian Williams). I grew to appreciate some of Lustmord's work, starting from "The Monstrous Soul" up until "Metavoid", where I thought he was going too much into that Caul category of cinematic-like string music, almost goth-ish in general tone. For anyone vaguely familiar with Lustmord's work, this has his deffinitie touches all over it!
Next up the track "Guest + Host = Ghost" featuring the semi-legendary Boyd Rice, remembered for along of his odd experimental lock grooves vinyl releases, and for his project NON. I remember being introduced to the world of NON and Rice one afternoon over at Pierre Martel(RIP)'s house on the South short in early-mid 90s when he made me discover an incredible amount of trully underground and obscure stuff. Anyway, back then I was unfamiliar with Rice, but this is amongst some of his lesser-abrassive material which fits perfectly within the parameters of this release!
We end our entire ordeal of Madness with a track entitled "Core", featuring everyone on this album, and thus is it credited to the name of CTI. This is what you would expect when you mix all these ingrédients into the melting pot (except the rhythm-based structures of "Futureshock" and "Unmasked") and does have a quality of being both somewhat well constructed as well as a blueprint for a possibly longer offering, but it feels just right as is.
On the CD re-issue I bought years later I noticed very subtle low-volume sounds and arrangements during the end and beginnings of some of the pièces, something which was mostly lost in the vinyl record (probably due to poor sound reproduction). It helps to explain why at times it felt as though there was a minute-long break in between songs from the LP. Anyway, again not an end-all-be-all album for everyone, but the excellent production quality and "general" focus of each piece serves as a good disc to have in your collection. Now if you consider this a "compilation" album or a stand-alone release is up to you.
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