Front Line Assembly – Reclamation

Please put this and monument out on vinyl. These versions are almost better than the ones on the albums!

This needs a vinyl release. It's one of their best.

Reclamation often gets described by promotional materials as a "greatest hits" compilation. In truth, it is really a variety compilation than a greatest hits album. Also, all the material on here originates from Front Line's time on Third Mind / Road Runner records, which covers the albums that made Front Line one of the most popular EBM/Industrial acts. As far as what is on here, the tracks can be divided up into three distinct categories. The first would be the full / 12" versions of several big songs that are from singles that are now out of print. The second are exclusive / unreleased remixes of singles or remixes for singles that which are out of print. And the last category would be songs that were provided as B-Sides on the Mindphaser and The Blade singles. The interesting thing about these B-Sides is that they are songs that which were recorded prior to the TNI sessions and were meant for an unreleased Front Line Assembly EP called Toxic.

The biggest song on here that should be noted is of course the 12" / full version of Mindphaser, which is widely considered to be FLA's signature song. This alone makes it essential, especially since the album version of Mindphaser on Tactical Neural Implant sounds chopped up due to the abrupt cut-offs. If you hear the 12" version, you can tell that the song was constructed in such a manner that it would be difficult to shorten it, since it has so many different sections.

Another song that deserves mention is the 12" version of Provision, since it has a vastly different opening section compared to the album version. While the album version is by no means bad, the 12" version is quite wonderful alone since it supplies a section where the arpeggiator can be heard without Bill's vocals. After that, surprisingly, the rest is virtually the same as the album version of Provision.

Toxic is surprising since it features a sound that is a more advanced version of the kind found on Caustic Grip, but it also has the essence of Tactical Neural Implant due to its higher variety of electronics. The vocals are some of the harshest that Bill has ever used, and they sound like a precursor to the type that Bill used on Plasticity. It's a shame that this song did not make it onto its originally planned album or was not included on Tactical Neural Implant (unless you count the Japanese release of TNI).

Finally, I will note that Target, another one of the Mindphaser/Blade b-sides, is impressive. It features a sound that fits right in with the cyberpunk/ebm sound of Tactical Neural Implant. For example, it has vocal distortion that is similar to the type Bill used on Final Impact. The song has a quick build up and a decent amount of rhythm to it, along with some very memorable lyrics. It also has a higher quality sound and more varied approach that which FLA did not really start using until TNI and certain songs on Caustic Grip (although less aggressive, of course).

As another reviewer noted, the only real minus of this compilation is that the remix of the Blade that was chosen may not have been the best choice. In fact, there are two remixes from the out of print The Blade single/EP that which cannot be found between this compilation and its sibling, Monument. It is bizarre too because the version of The Blade that was used for the song's music video is one of those two missing remixes. The one that was chosen is fine, but it isn't the most distinctive rendition of the song.

This was the first CD I purchased by the band (happened to be the first one I came across after I heard of them), and even now I think it's a good entry point. First, you get the 12" mixes of Iceolate, Provision and Mindphaser and if these three tracks can't sell you on the band, I don't know what can. Secondly, there's some nice, exclusive(?) mixes of No Limit, Digital Tension Dementia, Virus, Millennium and Surface Patterns. None of these are drastically different, but they're all fine versions of great singles. Thirdly, there's a few b-sides, including the fantastic Target. If have a complaint, the Technohead remix of The Blade should be here instead of the Progress remix.

On the first track Bill Leeb is also producing the track...