FABRYKA MUSIC MAGAZINE - Message To The Machine [reviews]

Katarzyna NINa Górnisiewicz | Review submission:

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Message To The Machine - Endlessly Copying Ourselves EP |self-released, 2012|

01. Psycho Bitch Commentary, 02. The Engineer, 03. The Long Face of Tarquin Pain, 04. Endlessly Copying Ourselves, 05. Your Words Make Me Sick, 06. The XY Man, 07. The Red Antelope

Message To The Machine is the brainchild of James Orez who established the band in England in 2009. So far it has been his solo project since he does all of the songwriting, programming, mixing and performance as well as the mastering and overall production. James is an artistically talented person who began writing poems and short stories when he was a teenager. The above experiences allowed him to utilize a variety of skills during the course of writing song lyrics when he finally organized and set up a band. Participating in a music technology course furthered his understanding of the mathematics best used to orchestrate electronic music and also trained him to recognize exceptional solutions for live studio recording techniques. Since releasing an 8 track album entitled Desensitised in 2010, he continued recording new music and eventually produced a brand new EP named Endlessly Copying Ourselves two years later.

The idea behind this release touches upon the topic of a modern human civilization, which seemingly cannot transcend itself with new ideas. This is based upon the concept that many common things we use daily, including art and music, have been long since invented and technologically improved upon to their maximum potential. Thus, human kind has begun repeating itself by re-manufacturing and copying everything like a machine programmed in a factory.

The above mentioned leitmotifs were written into the songs "Psycho Bitch Commentary" as well as "The Engineer". Both songs are noisy with distorted vocals that are interlaced with various samples and powered by mechanical rhythms. You can also hear the feel of what I would consider to be slightly 80's stylized cold wave music on this EP too. This was specifically evident in the song "Endlessly Copying Ourselves", where you can identify the melodies regardless of the integrated industrialized atmospheres. On the other hand, the title of the song "The XY Man" can be interpreted as if to emulate an anonymous John Doe as well as any random person with an unknown identity who is one of many in society, just like a cog in the machine.
The basis of this composition is rooted in a much slower tempo when held in comparison to previous songs.

This EP brings with it an experimental style of industrial music that is expressed through rather short, yet repetitive compositional aspects based on James' personal preference of samples and synthesizers. The moods of the songs are cold and dark, which may illustrate the way a machine or a cyborg could 'feel' if it were brought to life with the ability to do so. This set of songs would be a great choice for the soundtrack of a black and white animated movie that is about the life and times of a truly burnt out character.

Message To The Machine sounds like Joy Division decided to make industrial music. It's not anything that could be classified as 'easy listening' music either, but sonically it gives the listener a basic insight into the entire industrial music idea. This album appears emotional, yet dehumanized and quite depressive, although psychologically routine tasks may lead anyone into a depressed state of mind as well. If you live such a mechanized and multitasking lifestyle, it may be a good idea to listen to this EP and get the right perspective.

(Katarzyna 'NINa' Górnisiewicz, Fabryka Magazine, May 25, 2012)