PlanetMosh Keeping it Metal
Ex-members of Ghost continue their dark electronic spree with third full length “Body Machine”
It’s well known now that several of the “Nameless Ghouls” fell out with dear Papa Emeritus. Lawsuits and all that kind of nasty fall out from such a split. But these ghouls decided to do their own thing and formed Priest back in 2017. Releasing a steady stream of singles, and two full length albums “New Flesh” in 2017, and “Cyberhead” in 2020, they now grace us with their third album “Body Machine”
Now, to give them credit, this anonymous group (of course) decided to do something quite different to their former band, and followed the likes of Peturbator, Gost, and Carpenter Brut into the dark end of synthwave that has been making its headway into the heavier end of the music spectrum.
For someone who has always been into the electronic side of music, this is actually my first taste of Priest, and certainly a departure from the usual extreme metal that I review.
It’s VERY electronic…
From the get-go, there is no doubt that this album is channelling more into EBM than synthwave. Lead track “A Signal in The Noise” had me thinking of Leaether Strip, or Kanga in its style and vocals. Want guitars? You will not be finding them on here. The same applies to “Ghost Writer” with its steady electro bass line.
“Hell Awaits” is unfortunately not a cover of the classic Slayer song. This is one of those alternative/gothic club dancefloor tracks. One that whether you want to or not, you find your body moving to it.
Unfortunately from this point the next 3 tracks follow much the same pattern as the first two. The same sounding bass tones, and no real variation in pace either.
Bring in the “Techno Girl”
“Techno Girl” is the latest single that Priest have released from this album. Now we get a much more upbeat synth sound and a bit of a faster track to boot. It’s another danceable number – sounding like it is straight out of 1987. You can check out the video for it here:
The final three tracks are a slightly mixed bag. One very retro in “Crystalline lake” and the other two hitting a more “Eurodance” vibe.
So unusually for Planetmosh, here we have an album that is only connected to us by the Priest members (severed) ties with Ghost. No guitars, no riffs, no harsh vocals, no blast beats or double kicks. But if you like this kind of thing, its nice to know it exists.
My final verdict…
To be honest, I’m going to say I was expecting something with a lot more “oomph” to it. Overall there is nothing wrong with the album, but it’s a bit like Trooper beer – it’s palatable, but nothing special. Too much of it follows the same repetitive beat and basslines, and even the more standout tracks are only slightly above the rest. I think it’s a great album to have going as background music whilst working on something else, but I would not rush out to buy it.
Track Listing
01 – A Signal in The Noise
02 – Ghost Writer
03 – Hell Awaits
04 – Phantom Pain
05 – Blacklisted
06 – Perfect Body Machine
07 – Techno Girl
08 – Crystalline Lake
09 – Nightcrawler
10 – Keep On Burning
Links
- £20.18
