Alec Empire - Miss Black America

A1, A3, and B3 are typical tracks with Alec's vocodered voice yelling over basslines and throbbing drumbeats. B2 is an instrumental track, cold and chilly. Track B4 is a fusion of unruly beats, hi-hats, special efx, and twisted basslines, a maniacal reflection of the unknown.

The really interesting tracks, IMO, are as follows:

A2 starts with pulsating beats. A man says, "We're going to a show; we're gonna start a riot." After a few repeats, a frenzied breakout of drumbeats explodes through the sound system, painting a truly surreal and violent riotous scene. Strangely, you want to be part of it.

A4 is a track with fucked-up, dragged, shuffling beats, with a voiceover speaking in a droll. It's like an unexpected death: You can almost hear it say "It should be You not Me," most regretfully. Black humour at its best.

Listening to A5 after a while will have your head whirrling with weird alien ufo sounds and strange, conspiratory whispers. A potent concoction served up by the master of hardcore, this track preys on your imagination. One can only guess WHAT landed in the protagonist's head. It sure as hell is hynotizing, for better or worse!

B1 is a natural follow-up to A5's abduction scene. This time, the hardcore Empire has manufactured an evil robot that casts its voodoo spell on the listener over and over again. It builds itself up into such a frenzy you'd be deaf to not be taken over by the sheer emotive force of the track.

On the DHR009 CD, there's an extra track called "Blood And Snow". I dub it as the track of sonic exploration. It really illustrates that experimentalism can be tragically beautiful too.

On the whole, this album is a tour de force from what we have come to expect from Alec Empire. However, there are still other DHR recordings that could rival, or even exceed, the genius of this album.