Review: Cease2xist – 'Zero Future'

CEASE2XIST
'Zero Future'
ARMALYTE INDUSTRIES

Cease2xist's last outing 'WIYGN?' showed a significant leap forward in the band's sound channeling their live energy and honing their songwriting into a sharper and more focused attack marking them as one act to watch. Three years down the line they're back with 'Zero Future', and album that moves into a darker and heavier direction than before. The band's aggrotech core is still there, but there is a considerable boost of confidence. Dayve Yates' vocal performance is the strongest so far. The synths are scathing, bordering or metal in execution, and the beats are bludgeoning yet groovy.

It's a short, sharp attack. The album instead choosing to make a complete statement and as a result loosing the remixes suffixed to the end of the track list. The end product is a fantastically compelling dark, pissed-off middle finger in the face.

Songs such as 'Make The World A Bitter Place', 'Mechanical Medicine', and 'Bosozuku Nights' lead the charge with full-on aggression powered by hard distorted synths and Yate's punk-metal growl. While the likes of 'Augury And Innocence', 'Dirty World', and 'Take Comfort In The Void' take on a more methodical and mechanical approach for some classic dystopian atmospheric industrial. But the album's shining achievement has to be the ominous closer in the form of the title track which borders on cinematic atmospheres while retaining a compelling dance beat.

Production-wise this is the strongest album yet by Cease2xist. One past criticism has been that the vocals often sat too low in the mix which robbed them of their power. But here they are right where they need to be rallying the rest of the instruments for the attack.

'Zero Future' may only weigh in at 34 minutes in length. But in that time it packs a big punch. If Cease2Xist were a band to watch, they are now surely on their way to the top of the UK industrial pile. Despite the dark connotations of this album's title, Cease2Xist definitely has a future, and its looking pretty bright from here.  

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Review: Cease2xist – 'WIYGN?'

CEASE2XIST
'WIYGN?'
JUGGERNAUT MUSIC GROUP

Cease2xist have fast proven themselves as one of the must-watch UK acts since their full-length début album 'You Are Expendable' was unleashed. The band have honed themselves into an exciting live force and their follow-up EP 'WIYGN?' (Where Is Your God Now?) is another step up the ladder for them.

The band's formula of searing synths, driving dance beats, sawing guitars and aggrotech vocals which sees dub, glitch, industrial and even black metal influences distilled into anthemic tracks that find themselves just as at home on the dance floor as in the mosh pit. The band put their best foot forward with the hard and heavy 'WIYGN' with it's fist-in-the-air and shout-a-long chorus, which is followed by the intensely danceable 'Generation WTF' featuring Antipodean electro-maestro Cryogenic Echelon for an apocalyptic rave. 'Incinerator' unleashes the demented breakdowns and sleazy bass for a dark and delectable dance floor offering. 'You've Got Us Now' featuring Dreams Divide changes tact and breaks out the old school house style synths for a hook laden slice of dance-friendly electro-punk. While instrumental 'This Is My Design...' goes deeper into the electro waters with it's overtly club-orientated blend of ebm and dubstep.

There are remixes included from the likes of Renoized, Cryogenic Echelon, Defeat, Biomenchanimal, and Kill The Sleeper. While they're all strong re-workings of the originals the best contributions have to be Biomenchanimal's stuttering and bassey remix of 'Generation WTF', Kill The Sleeper's ultra-hard and relentless take on 'WIYGN?', Ruinizer's frantic drum 'n' bass version of 'This Is My Design...', and the sensational harsh black metal version of 'WIYGN?' courtesy of BlackLava.

Again, as with 'You Are Expendable', the vocals sound just a little too low in the mix in a few places. But this is a small point in what is overwhelmingly another great outing for the band that should bring them further acclaim both at home and abroad. Hopefully there will be another full-length album sooner rather than later to capitalise on this.

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Cease2xist return with 'WIYGN?'

Industrial upstarts Cease2xist have announced the release of their follow-up to 2012's 'You Are Expendable'. Their new EP 'WIYGN?', will be released on 18^th April 2014 through Juggernaut Music as both a digital download and limited edition CD release.

The EP features guest vocal contributions from Cryogenic Echelon and Dreams Divide as well as remixes from Ruinizer, Biomechanimal and Defeat. Also included is a bonus in the form of 'Living By The Bullet – Reloaded' featuring reworked and remastered tracks from the band's 2010 début EP.

Track List:

1. WIYGN?

2. Generation WTF - Feat. Cryogenic Echelon

3. Incinerator

4. You've Got Us Now - Feat. Dreams Divide

5. I Wanna Be Your Dog

6. This Is My Design...

7. WIYGN? (Echoes Of The Mind Remix by RENOIZED)

8. Incinerator (Instigator Remix by CRYOGENIC ECHELON)

9. WIYGN? (Whiskey Priest Remix by DEFEAT)

10. Generation WTF (1984 Remix By BIOMECHANIMAL)

11. ????

12. This Is My Design... (Church of Swaggrotech Remix by RUINIZER)

13. WIYGN? (Cease2xist vs BlackLava Remix)

14. Xistence (Reload Mix)

15. Living By The Bullet (Reload Mix)

16. Control, Rebirth, Delete (Reload Mix)

17. The Unbearable Thought Of Defeat (Reload Mix)

'WIYGN?' is available to pre-order now via the Juggernaut Music Group bandcamp page. For more information on the band, please visit their official website.

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Live: Best Of British – Slimelight, London

BEST OF BRITISH (XP8, Cease2xist, The .Invalid, Digital Deformation) 

Slimelight, London 

28^th September 2013 

Static Distortion Records have slowly been amassing an impressive array of artists on their diverse roster, and what better way to show off the potential of home grown talent than to put on a show at one of the worlds most famous gothic/industrial clubs. After the sad loss of Sheffield's titans Uberbyte, tonight’s new headliners XP8 stepped up, and with the band now based in London, it's safe to say we'll quite happily support them as one of our own.

It's a strange night at Slimelight with a wedding reception closing off a big chunk of the club, the festivities are relegated to the downstairs room. But even thought it is small, it's comfortable and intimate giving the night more of a party-like atmosphere.

The kick off was a little early with opening act Digital Deformation hitting the stage at 7:20pm. Unfortunately this meant your reviewer happened to miss their performance, but trusted colleagues within the audience who did make the opening doors assured that they put on a strong performance.

Luckily though, by the time yours truly had arrived, industrial one-man-band The .Invalid had hit the stage. The lone figure of Seamus Bradd maniacally filled the stage. Unrestrained he repeatedly leapt into the audience and threw himself around like a Scots Iggy Pop as the hard dance beats and grinding synthesizers of his début album, 'The Aesthetics Of Failure', throbbed through the speakers. Despite some shakiness to his voice in places, Bradd carried off his performance on the back of a serious adrenaline rush. While all those present ate it up as he reeled off tracks like 'Cry Wolf' and 'Breaksequence' which inspired some mass sing-a-long moments.

The .Invalid were exhausting to watch, so who knows how then within seconds of his solo set finishing did Bradd have the energy left to launch straight into Cease2xist's equally frantic set. The band continued to build the energy in the room with their searingly hot take on aggrotech. Vicious guitars complimented the hard beats, harsh synths and distorted vocals throughout huge songs like 'Teenage America', 'Living By The Bullet' and 'Occupy Everything' eliciting big reactions from the crowd. The band easily put on a headline-quality performance. It is pretty safe to say, that with albums like 'You Are Expendable' under their belt and high quality live performances such as this in their wake, there is little doubt that Cease2xist are going to be major players in the UK and abroad.

The night's headliners XP8 started off with a little microphone trouble, but ever the consummate professionals they weren't phased in the least. The duo of Marko and Marco have so far this year released one of their strongest albums yet in 'Adrenochrome' and are arguably stronger as a band than ever before, which is evident in their performance. The duo unleash a strong dance-orientated set that gets the audiences feet moving and bodies grooving. New songs sit comfortably the band's vast array of proven live crowd pleaser’s with particularly strong renditions of 'Information' from the latest album, as well as an excellent version of 'Burning Down' taking pride of place in the band's set. The pre-encore gap is cut short due to an impromptu show of appreciation from the crowd as they give birthday boy Marko a round of 'Happy Birthday'. It leaves little doubt that London is very willing to adopt the Italians as their own as they bring the night to a close.

The evening proved to be a strong show of support for not only the up-and-coming talent being championed by the Static Distortion record label. But also the people out there who enjoy electro/industrial music. More shows like this would only serve to strengthen the UK's identity and galvanise support for our bands.

All photography © Imago Mortis Photography - Remember to check out our gallery to see more pictures from the night.

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