Most of us assumed it was sucked into a black hole at the turn of the '90s, yet still divining fresh inspiration from the stagnant pond of Industrial Culture comes another collection from Leicester's Indianhead, with the rather snappy title "Trap Them And Kill Them". Although I know that I managed to hip them to Vex'd, this new 14 track CD mines a similar vein to their previous collection, which I mentioned in April last year, full of distressed/distorted textures, caustic beats and ominous ambiance. The angry, mangled vocals remain also, which I still think are the band's Achilles heel - a sonic date-stamp branded onto the music that will always be past its sell-by date, which is a shame because there's still plenty of interest on offer in other ways. The 3-part "Cromatica" suite is a fascinating study in sustained intensity, full of depth-charge reverberated kick drums and a rising tide of digital skree, whilst opening track "WWIV" is an impressive symphony of feedback drones and haunting cello. "Disco Sucks" develops into a stomping 4/4 lockdown - imagine if Tech-House was influenced by Front 242 - whilst "Complicity" is one of the more impressive vocal tracks, building a truly ferocious onslaught worthy of Swans at their peak. But elsewhere, a track like "The Feeling Still" is less successful. Although I applaud the Blair-baiting anti-war theme, it sounds terribly dated, like early '90s UK hip hop, not helped by their continued use of drum loops from Keith Le Blanc's old "Kickin' Lunatic Beats" sample CD. The strongest track rhythmically is "Wrench Withdrawn", a chilly arrangement of programmed beats and cloying synth-sludge. Drop out the vocals, bump-up the bpms and there's something I could mix with.Feeling adventurous? Check out the band's website, where you can also order a copy of this very limited CD. Alternatively, check out the website of their associates Serial, where you can listen to various MP3s, buy the CD along with some other material, including "Letzter Atem", by Insular. This is more in the realm of melodic electronica and features some lovely pastoral interludes ...the perfect come-down after an hour's worth of Indianhead!
