[CYNICAL_MASS]

“”Poisonland” is the first album of the San Francisco bad guys from California’s Toxic Island. Band members are: M.A.Y., Severhead, and Gearslave. I like their CD a lot. On the full length album, [CYNICAL_MASS] shows a more mature sound. They obviously had a lot of good material, because the album is a full 12 tracks. The first intro song, “Fallen Insect” starts off weird then sets the mood for the rest of the album: Slow, heavy, and really evil. Other great songs are: Fucking Failure, Soul Stealer, Section 9, Antichrist, Chainsaw Rape, and Lust & Passion, these tracks are heavy and dance floor killers. The structure of the compositions gives the album a really sinister feeling. The downside is that a lot of the songs have the same tempo, which gives me the feeling that I‘m listening to the same song again. There are influences from various electronic styles; aggrotech, hardcore, EBM, synthpop, electro, and hard industrial. “[Cynical_Mass] puts forth disturbingly distorted vocals, simultaneously unleashing powerful and catchy synth lines, with harsh and demented drum beats.” They fill your speakers entirely and I often felt sucked into the stereo. If you are into harsh and terror EBM, more numbers from this album are Oppressor, Die Alone, Ameliorate, Emergence, and Axis. This release by [CYNICAL_MASS] won’t let you down. It’s strong and wicked, just the way I like it… But unfortunately sometimes the album can tire a little.

Rating: 7/10

For more information, please visit: www.myspace.com/cynicalmass