Marc Heal and Phil Barry have not missed a beat. In their first collaborative release as Cubabnate in about twenty years, the duo propel Cubanate into the 21st Century in the most fitting way as elder statesmen of a genre showing the kids how it’s done.
The best thing about Kolossus is that, at its’ core, the DNA is wholly Cubanate but if you need a comparison to earlier works or similar artists then you’re shit out of luck because when it comes to these Electro legends there is no comparison.
But I digress.
The title track is a sprawling monolith of electronic excellence with Heal’s insightful and poignant lyrics as biting as they ever were. “Split Second” is bouncy with programmed beats matching Heal’s vocal cadence while “Missing Persons” is just this huge Industrial Metal masterpiece.
“Vortex” is shreddy Heavy Metal goodness set in an imperfect future and I implore you to listen to this one at high volumes while wearing your very best headphones to hear the best representation of the still unstoppable force that is Heal and Barry. When Heal is spitting out his lyrics with that signature snarl at a ludicrous pace, you’ll get chills. When Barry’s guitars sync with the synths at the start you’ll get chills. The whole song will cause chills. The whole EP will cause chills. Just the announcement of the prospect of new Cubanate music should’ve caused chills. In other words, get excited.
It’s one of those tracks where you’ll find yourself checking the interwebs to make sure this is indeed “new” Cubanate because, while it sounds so fresh, it easily would fit alongside any of their innumerable mainstays.
“Pattern Recognition” continues with the shredding but eases up on the BPM’s with Heal spouting “Isolate the sequence/Recognize the pattern” before the remix portion of Kolossus begins. And what talent they have in that department!
You have Front Line Assembly/Delerium/All around uber producer Rhys Fulber tackling a remix of “Kolossus” turning it into tribal throttling put through an Electro blender at hyperspeed while relative newcomers Drownd also take on the title track (Check out their latest here), transforming the beast into a Metal monster by bringing Barry’s heavy riffage to the forefront.
Kolossus is out through Armalyte Industries on June 7th. You can order yours now by clicking here and for the latest on Cubanate, including details of their upcoming show with <PIG> at Electrowerkz in London, head here.