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Attrition
The Hand That Feeds 
~reviewed by the Rev. Alexavier Strangerz 23.3 
             
The cover is classic Attrition, an image of a Naked woman, but not pornographic.  She is in a strange metal and wood construct and her eyes are covered both with coins, and black X's. Her hands revealing palms that have an a dot of ash.  This is not a odd as the mummified baby dolls on either side, or the wooded symbol of Eris (three moons from wax to full to waning again. ) 
            
Attrition,  The Hand That Feeds,  The Re-mixes.  Outlined against the image in a ghostly white.  The intro. is an immediate gate.  Opening with rich synths meshed over orchestrated strings.  It flow quick into Cold Genius, a classic even before the re-mix.  I am not sure who Mick Dabrowski is, but he does a good mix.  Another obscure re-mixer churns some classic Hip-Hop noises around an abstracted Waste Not, Want.more. By the time it is over, I feel like Mick could be a part of Kraftwerk!  The 1996 album "3 arms and a dead cert' lend 4 songs to be re-mixed.  

The first is the dark classic Cosmetic Citizen.  Ned Kirby, whoever you are, you somehow made this classic darker. At moments even Skinny Puppy or Xorcist sounding.  Lip Sync has got to be a staple in early club life.  I don't remember when I truly first heard this song. Only when I first attributed it to "Attrition."  Again we have a mix that leads you into the frame with various beats and noises. At first only the familiar sample "Lip Sync" spoken over and over is familiar.  Yet the song progresses around the main frame in a  fashion similar to mechanics winding about in a fine tuned engine.  Echo's delays and a multitude of other effects make this an aural masterpiece.  I am sure this song will sound different on a full range dance floor, than in my headphones.  Even if you never listen to music in phones, I have to recommend this one!  The sudden stop is forgiven quickly, as the first recognizable artist "Chris and Cosey"  bring you lovingly and slightly forcefully into the amazing work  I am (Eternity).  Once again the original vocals seem to get lost in the effects processors.  They hauntingly find there way into the music.  This is one of my favorites.  With some prejudice, as I love the work that is done by Chris and Cosey.  

Another short one with White Men Talk , us DJ's will no doubt find these short songs of great use to give our audience more of Attrition than they bargained, without burning them out.  This short one too,  seems to be much longer than the three minutes, and twenty-three seconds it takes up on the disk?  Some level of Chronomancy by our re-mixers, or even in the original song?  Martin Bowes does a retouch of his own work.  The Mercy Machine , follows classic formula.  Analogue synthetic noises, classic beats, and haunting female vocals, provided by Julie Chambers for this recording.  More guest come on board for Wrex Mock's version of My Friend is Golden.  Patrice Synthea, as the female voice,  and Wrex adding his own guitar presence.  'Welcome Aboard' the sample beckons.  We were already on when the familiar synth line started in.  Another familiar name to me.  Jonathon Sharp.  Presumable from Space/Time continuum brings us this edition of  Acid Tongue.  Did I mention that "3 arms and a dead cert" is a favorite of the re-mixers.  It did have many classics on it.  Including The Second Hand.  This kick back downbeat version may not be better than the original.  Still is that the real point.  It is different, yet has all the screaming and violins.  Just add the groovebox sounding jazz breaks, and you have this re-mix ready to roll!  

The big surpriser on this release has got to be the hauntingly familiar IAE  by avant ambient act "In The Nursery."  A total surprise and a great treat.  This puts "The Eternity EP " as a second favorite with three tracks represented here.  Considering that the EP only has four songs and that is %75 of it's material re-mixed already.  Song 13,  brings us a great X-files sounding piece.  Opening with sample "What happens if you don't believe in God."  The song slowly lets you ponder the question, as it slowly pours an analogue sound-scape into the composition.  This is the first slower track of the whole C.D.  It does not give you full closure though.  It leaves you wanting to revisit the disk, or go to some of the original source to compare.  If this was the intent, it was crafted like the genius I am coming to expect from Martin Bowes, and the collection of collaborators known as "Attrition."  



www.attrition.co.uk   info@attrition.co.uk
song downloads  www.mp3.com/attrition
discussion group http://www.thebelfry.net/attrition/

01/01/01