Ah, yes, Aesthetic Perfection. Some consider this project and the man behind it Daniel Graves to be the bane of the industrial scene whose opinion just doesn’t matter and that the controversy surrounding the name is enough to banish him from the scene. Unfortunately for most who even follow industrial music cancel culture is usually the thing that makes artists explode – so is controversy. And Graves simply rolls in it like a kitten who just received a shit ton of catnap and is having their first proper party in their life and does not know how to conduct themselves properly amidst the atmosphere. Regardless we at Brutal Resonance have always had a fondness for his blunt nature as we also, too, as well have a similar habit being in the format of telling it how it is and not caring what the scene at large has to say about it. So grab your torch and pitchforks and burn us down for anything we have to say about Aesthetic Perfection’s latest release cause I dig it.
And this is saying something as AP’s authentic and original discography is something that I could never really bite into as if it were a shit sandwich that I passed up on multiple occasions. I feel as if it’s a sound lost to a specific point in time where everyone thought that aggrotech was the peak of industrial music only to later find themselves staring at their past selves and cringing at what they saw. Regardless AP’s latest EP Bad Vibes is something that I entirely enjoy and the best way I can talk about it by comparing it to something that would fit well on a tour with the likes of Powerman 5000 or Rob Zombie.
My favorite track by far is Into the Void which is something that’s been on my rotational gym playlist and gives me a decent pump whenever it comes on my earbuds causing me to be more confident than ever to the point I’m sure I’ll pull a disc when attempting something ridiculously stupid. Industrial rock beats combined with hardened bass talking about demonic possession that would light up any dancefloor single handedly.
The starting track Bad Vibes does contain a bit of Graves’ infamous singing which has been a topic amongst AP fans since I remember hearing about them. Is it good or do people really not like them? For me I’m not a fan of the genuine attempts at singing BUT I really dig what he can do when his vocals go deep. Its as if the vocalist from Ludovico Technique actually knew what he was doing instead of just being an overdramatic goth for no reason and attempted to get everyone to simp for him and his fake live band. The shouting also fits right into the depths of the song and the instrumentation whether synthesized or not is absolutely riveting again sticking with that industrial rock attitude that so many fail to capture.
Self-Inflicted is the worst song on the album and that’s only because AP does the most amount of singing on this song in comparison to the rest but so does he shout a lot. I wouldn’t say this is a major complaint as his singing voice is absolutely passable in comparison to a ton of the trash I have to sift through on a daily basis and is certainly better than most of the mumble goth and darkwave I repeatedly get delivered to my inbox. But the song is in line with what’s on the EP.
I do certainly hope that AP continues this run of music as its probably the best I’ve heard him thus far. I don’t have much more to say than that so when you get a chance give this a chance and let your next gym session or chore duty or work effort have some spice and pizazz as this will certainly deliver.
