Cubanate was ahead of their time in the ’90’s. They might still be which is why there’s no time like the present to celebrate these techno industrial titans with an all new collected works.
Brutalism is the only appropriate name for this fourteen track collection of all your favorite Cubanate tracks commemorating twenty five years of Marc Heal and Phil Barry collaborative musical mayhem. For anyone who’s never heard of Cubanate or curious fans who’ve caught some of Marc Heal’s recent work with Raymond Watts and solo (Our review of his latest is right here), need to own this. It’s a template, a blueprint, the ultimate primer on successfully merging rock, metal, industrial, and techno into a perfect balance.
The evolution from “Autonomy” to “Lord of the Flies” alone is worth the cost of a digital download. Hell, the evolution from those early tracks to the biting “Industry” and the still rabble rousing “Hatesong” is worth the price of admission! “Barbarossa” still sounds just as visceral, vibrant, and relevant. “Body Burn” is just as intense and exciting. And “Oxyacetylene”, probably the most famous Cubanate track, is still a banger.
Elsewhere, absolute ragers like the throbbing “Skeletal” and the tribal thump of “Why Are You Here” still exude excellence over Cubanate’s peers and the artists that followed. As added incentive, the original albums are long out-of-print anyway (I can attest to this as I recently sought out a hard copy of Cyberia), the tracks here are remastered, AND fans also get liner notes by Heal himself. “Joy” indeed, amirite?
Brutalism is out via Armalyte Industries on May 5th. Pre-orders are already available here and come with an exclusive free download of “Angeltrance” along with ticket options for their upcoming London shows (Their first there since 1999) at the end of April.