A compilation of contrasts set in the rust clad cast of Great Circles. If you wanted to crack this Philadelphia label, sample its metallic taste and hear what their sound is all about; get listening.
Anyone following what I write…God love ya! Nah, seriously; anyone following my poorly punctuated rants (and thanks for doing so!) will know that I’ve been listening to a lot more industrial-centered sounds. Labels like Tar Hallow, In Paradisum, Love Blast, Blackwater, MRT. And the list goes on. I’ve noticed something with said list, it’s quite Europe centered; then again so am I.
True, some US imprints are exploring the grimier side of things, L.I.E.S. being one; then again L.I.E.S. is looking at near everything. Hieroglyphic Being is another from across the pond pounding his machines and demanding more. But smaller labels? Smaller artists? They are out there and Great Circles is a collective drawing them in.
Few names will jump off the tracklist. Philadelphia alumni like Chaperone, Westov Temple and Dan Trevitt all feature, and their contributions are a cross section of the entire outing. Warm ambience, bulging industrial and pain streaked sludge. And it’s veterans that form the back bone of the album. _moonraker offers the slow and sultry “Idyllim Slip” while M/R treads a murky house path, one filled with looming menace. And that’s what Mid Atlantic Death has, a overarching threat, a current of palpable violence. Even track titles adopt aggression, Jamie Morris’ thumping “Killing the Circuits of the Past” and Radere’s creepy “Bleeder” being emblematic of this. Newcomers to Great Circles make a cracking contribution to the LP. Tony G (who discogs tells me was a hip hop producer?) carves out a brilliantly eerie IDM dipped banger. RJ Valeo hammers out the acid edged “Drift Two”, a track contrasted by the glitchy dub moments of Wolf Dem’s “CENOTE.”
And this sums up Mid Atlantic Death, a compilation of contrasts set in the rust clad cast of Great Circles. If you wanted to crack this Philadelphia label, sample its metallic taste and hear what their sound is all about; get listening.
Mid Atlantic Death is available on Great Circles.
