Hardwire - Insurrected

It's been an interesting year for Industrial so far. The EBM scene seems to be waning down and I'm starting to see a more level playing field of different genres of Industrial music. From Industrial Metal to Powernoise to IDM, everyone is coming out with something new. Some have even come out of retirement to put their flag on their standing ground and they are being heard by a new generation that may have otherwise never knew who they were besides going in their parents old vinyl or cassette collection. I am of the belief that artists like Skrillex and Deadmau5 are opening doors for Industrial to break through to the mainstream without the mainstream even knowing that they are listening to Industrial. It worked with Dubstep and when people found out what they were listening to, it was too late for them to even care. I'm not usually even one to care to put labels on music genres. If it sounds good, it sounds good. Regardless whether it's Dubstep, Industrial Metal, EBM, IDM, whatever the flavor of the year is. But in a sense Industrial Metal is making a gradual comeback. This is where Hardwire comes in.

Hardwire is a US Industrial Metal band based in Glendale, Arizona who have released a couple albums in 2004 and 2008. 4 long years later they released the long awaited album 'Insurrected' and the wait was well worth it. When you pop in the CD you are already taken by an symphonic intro that sweeps you into the hardcore, in your face track "Stand And Cower". This automatically tells you what you are in for as it goes into the next track of similar style "Plague". The drums are fast and furious and the guitar work is strong and shreds right through your eardrums into your soul as vocalists Ryan Hutman and Michael Marsh tell you about topics of Anti-Establishment. The German influenced synth pads are very hallmark, yet they don't give you that "same old" type of feeling the same type of synths tend to give in Industrial music nowadays. It's very reminiscent of KMFDM and 90's Ministry with an EBM twist and you definitely hear the influences. In fact, the third track "God Help Us All" features En Esch's guitar work and it compliments the band nicely. If you didn't know who you were listening to, you would have swore it was new KMFDM. The next few tracks such as "No Regret" and "Deceit" are more of a cool down and are very danceable. This brings a great diversity into the album that I did not expect and was very satisfied with. The track "Expired" has nice crunchy guitars and the vocals were robotic which added a very nice touch to the slower yet heart pounding beat. "Burning Down" brings you right back into the fast paced sound and gives you that fist raising, horns high energy that lacks so much in newer music nowadays. The final track "Time Bomb" is a combination of both styles the album brings you into one nearly 4 minute track as a nice sendoff that leaves you wanting more. Hardwire took a lot of time, effort and nurturing with this album and it pays off in a big way. You just don't hear songwriting like this too often anymore. Very well done!

Production-wise it's nearly flawless. There a couple tweaks here and there that barely threw me off. The vocals on "Lust for Pain" seemed kind of drowned out. The guitar in "Expired" seemed a bit too raised, but this may be me being finicky as these little inconsistencies didn't take away from the tracks one bit. The mastering does seem to vary on some tracks as they could have that extra "oomph" like other tracks on the album have. Again you can hear the time and effort put into the sound. Hardwire aims to please and this music snob was highly impressed. This album will be in my mp3 player for a long time.

So all in all, you should spend your hard earned money on 'Insurrected'. It's worth every penny. It takes a lot to impress me. This was my first taste of Hardwire and I wasn't lying when I said that I want more. I just hope it's not another four years to get another helping.

Songwriting: 10
Vocals: 9
Production: 7
Overall: 8/10

Songs to look out for:
Stand and cower
Plague
Burn it down
Time bomb
(This was a tough choice to pick just four) Apr 16 2012