Black Magnet - Hallucination Scene

Black Magnet's "Hallucination Scene" was a no-brain buy for me when it was first announced for pre-order. What is perhaps hysterical about my discover about Black Magnet was that I first discovered them through their personal Bandcamp. I thought to myself on their four track, self-titled EP, "Damn. This dude has some talent." Only I did not understand how underestimating my statement would soon become when "Hallucination Scene" was announced. 'Divination Equipment', one of the first singles to stream before the album launched, absolutely destroyed anything Black Magnet had out on their self-titled release. The album, when it came out, was thus deemed a brutal, punchy, and synthetically infectious debut full length from a relatively unknown project. I am sure that will change in time.

The previously mentioned 'Divination Equipment' starts off the album and is a two-minute, ear destroying blast of sludgy industrial metal riffs and noise. 'Anubis' keeps the rhythm fast and frenetic. Black Magnet shows his chops at throwing off the listener with an extraordinary, brutal electronic breakdown that begins at the two-and-a-half minute mark. 'Punishment Map' is another quick and obliterating song that lasts for only one-and-a-half minutes, but it's the type of song I can replay three times in a row. It's also excellent for hitting your max-weight on a single rep at the gym. Stay swole, gym rats.



'Neuroprophet' lets the reverberating guitars sink deep into every ounce of your being with a lighter pace than previous songs. Hints of an oncoming doom hint early but come to fruition around the two-minute mark when percussive elements and awesome, raw electronic guitar plague the rest of the song. 'Trustfucker' gets more in line with dance oriented industrial metal weighing heavily on synthetic bliss. The last bit of the song becomes extremely crunchy with repetitious lyrics. Cleaner vocals take center stage on 'Crush Me' while the continued instrumental siege on all aural senses continues.  

'Hegemon' might start off quiet and eerie but that's just a cinematic build up until around the one-minute mark synthesized prongs are let off. This is shortly before our beloved industrial guitars come back to life and bring us back into the doomed world of Black Magnet. Part of me though that this would have been a perfect song to start the album off with. Then again, perhaps the explosive fervor of 'Divination Equipment' helped to wane off anyone who dared not enter into the world of industrial metal. The final song on the album, 'Walking in the Dark', is a noisy and experimental concentration from Black Magnet. I found the steady, higher pitched notes to be a bit headache inducing even after coming back to it multiple times, but the production and mastery throughout the song was still noted.

Many folks have been comparing Black Magnet's sound to eighties and nineties heavyweights such as Godflesh and Ministry, but the dude stands out in his own right. He may take influences from legends, but he's carving his own name into the scene with super-addictive blast beats and dirty, dirty industrial. The album is currently available in digital, 12" vinyl, and CD formats. It would be a shame if you didn't want to claim this album as your own. 
Oct 06 2020