With SEVEN of my favourite artists on one album and more besides, this album has been genuinely anticipated like mad by myself and many others. I know George mentioned a while ago he was a little nervous as to what I might say about this album having given his debut album the only ever 'perfect' that I've given in a review. What a lot of pressure to be under when sending me this second one to write about! He needn't have worried, this album was definitely worth the wait and has even made me appreciate a couple new styles that I didn't before!
Teknovore proudly presents their highly anticipated second full-length album ‘Caerdroia’
A caerdroia is a type of labyrinth based on the Cretan seven-fold design. Unlike mazes, with their branching paths, labyrinths have a single continuous path which leads to the center and serves symbolically as a sacred path, a place of contemplation; of the struggle towards salvation or enlightenment.
With Caerdroia Teknovore consolidate their genre-fusing personal sound, which has seen them rapidly rise through the ranks of the Industrial music scene. Powerful, dark, aggressive, and boasting a host of electrifying collaborations with Draven, Biomechanical, Grabyourface, Technolorgy, Eva X, Seraphim System, Matt Hart, Keeva Leo and Any Second - this is forward-thinking, cutting edge electronic music for the dancefloor and beyond.
“Reduce the maze to embers and walk straight through the ashes.”
STOP A MOMENT!
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Review
Please note that the physical CD also contains the AWESOME tracks - 'Oubliette' and 'Anamnesis'
To save me a little bit of time here please go check out the double single review I did which contains 'Citadel, 'Oubliette', Grip Of Pain' and 'Anamnesis' from the album. (Click HERE or on the picture below)
'Lament' from the brilliant Draven (Someone else I have done a rave album review about recently) opens up the album with slow, deliberate tension; The kind of electronic guitar that injects itself in puts me in mind of a team gearing up for battle, getting strapped, and putting themselves in the right headspace for an intense fight. At 1:32 this is mellowed out by a siren like female vocal. A small but beautiful reminder of the great history and mythology of Greece, where Teknovore hails from. Ending with an unnerving vocal loop, this is probably the opposite genre of track I would expect from Draven and Teknovore but it's still serene yet bad ass as FK! 'Synthesize' brings home that Teknovore is once again back with his industrial trance mixing mastery. At 2:30 there is one hell of a bass drop, the likes of which remind me of a rollercoaster finally taking flight after the excitable rise. Beats galore and synths that make you just crave more, Teknovore has a brilliance with music that is undeniable.
Those of you who know my site well, will know there are artists out there that when I discover them.. I will not stop writing and raving about them in order to bring them success. Teknovore is one, Biomechanimal a second, Seraphim System another, and especially - grabyourface. So you can imagine how happy I was that grabyourface, Biomechanimal, Seraphim System, AND Matt Hart all joined Teknovore on stage at Resistanz 2024 together to sing songs from this album. I'm happier even still that some of these bands have told me the hand my writing had in bringing them together for that.
(By the way, all of Teknovore's songs take on a whole new life when played on a live sound system and tweaked accordingly. If you ever get a chance to see George play, DO IT!)
My point? 'Woodchipper' featuring grabyourface was sung on stage both by gyf and Matt Hart. (As the song it a bit too fast for one person to sing live) Fun fact.. 'Woodchipper' is about throwing paedophiles in to woodchippers! Brilliant! This track is a non stop rave of pure energetic ecstasy. Fast BPM, attitude, mix mastered perfection, and high euphoric trance, what else could you want from a track? 'Means To An End' starts with a female electronic and instantly iconic voice saying..
Humans interfacing with computers? For.. entertainment?.. The very notion disgusts me..
Without meaning to take anything away from Technolorgy's great performance on this.. It's sung like old school Combichrist at their peak of popularity. Which is to say, it's great! And of course, the beats George has laid down for the tune are high paced and exceptional.
'Gorgon's Eye' is a very interesting track also starting with a great but unsettling spoken lyric..
Boys just want to have a little fun Till you see the snakes then you run, run, run.. He run, run, run..
Eva X's type of spoken singing is a genre I've struggled to get in to in the past, having tried to appreciate artists such as herself, KANGA, Ayria, and others recently. Yet this track has really grown on me fast and helped me to appreciate the nuances and talent that are very clearly evident throughout when you allow it to wash over you.
A nice - slower, yet more poignant track that makes me reflect on the genre style in a whole new light.
My boy Seraphim System (Another insanely good genius of music) screams out 'Pressure' with a flow that is easy to listen to and therefore enjoy as a fantastic accompaniment to the beats and synths that power the house down with the track.
This may very well be the most 'industrial dance' worthy track on the album. It has aggression, it has energy, it has an orchestra of electronics, it is pure golden fury.
Matt Hart is everywhere, you cannot escape him, but why would you want to? The man is wonderful, a great singer, talented, and always fun to watch. In 'Sensory Malfunction' there is a mix of the best parts of both artists in to an impressive amalgamation of style and form. Another banger, and another one that sounds like a warning from the future..
You know who's voice I often adore? Keeva's! Known primarily for her siren like vocals with Sirus. What a treat to have them join Teknovore for 'Morbus Gravis' (There's also a great Draven remix of this out there)
In chorus and verse this is fire, a midtempo powerhouse of stomp after stomp. It has a strange sense of distortion throughout that makes it almost otherworldly and hard to comprehend, like a life changing mind trip that at first seems confusing, but becomes clearer and more fun with every moment that passes.
Conclusion
As with an ancient Greek Chorus of players each adding their own talent, skills, and voices to the overall performance whether on or off stage, Caerdroia is a powerhouse of mutual aid and talent. Yet as the name implies it is indeed a labyrinthine journey of truly pushing the genres and skills of Teknovore as an individual to solidify his place as an unmistakable powerhouse in the scene that none may now ignore! Like the labours of Hercules, and the difficulties involved in pulling so many artists together for one album, Teknovore seemingly completes them with ease..
One incredible album can be a fluke, but two?
Teknovore deserves HUGE festival slots and a damn bright future with the music he creates and with the connections he uses for the benefit of everyone involved, not just himself.
Caerdroia is an important album of not just genre smashing and defining success but of the value of self discovery, cooperation, and what it is to make yourself stand out in a world already drowning in information. Caerdroia is the tron like self meditation journey that we each must face in our cyber industrial world.
Thank you!
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