CD, Thisco, 2005
www.thisco.net
Upon initially hearing “The Air Cutter” by Sci Fi Industries, I quickly realized I had something on my hands the likes of which I’d never quite heard before. With each successive examination of the album, I was able to digest more thoroughly its captivating hybridization of sounds and genres. Mixing drum’n’bass, breakcore, downtempo and truly classic dark electronic flavor, complete with grooving tribal rhythms, Sci Fi Industries uncannily lives up to its name, delivering carefully crafted, futuristic electro of impressive caliber.
My inclination to consider “The Air Cutter” as paying homage to certain styles of mid-90’s industrial and dark electronic – particularly projects in the vein of Intermix or Noise Unit – may very well explain much of its personal appeal. Though vocals are absent and voice samples are sparse (but well implemented), the resonating harmonies, solid builds and melodies, and crisp rhythms lend an aura of reminiscence to these tracks, even as they diverge from that common path into updated blends of new electro/dance music territory. Songs such as “Ordinator,” with its clockwork progression and spacey, ethereal synthesizers, or “Muscle of Steel,” and its strong piano lines abutting edgy melancholy, typically embody this futuristically-tempered nostalgia. Other tracks, such as “Mind Reveals Weakness” and “Man Behind,” are more upbeat and kinetic, balancing out the album with splashy metallic drums and tight, well-refined breakbeat attitudes ready-made for the dance floor.
As a final note, an additional highlight of “The Air Cutter” happens to be the superb pacing of the tracks. From start to finish, whether the songs are relaxed and deliberate or hyperactively percussive, my ears found there is never a dull or misplaced moment on the disc. Layers of sound jump, swerve and slide, complementing the rhythms and varied harmonies that drop in and cycle out, and with minimal effort each track effectively affirms its essential part in the greater whole that is “The Air Cutter” from Sci Fi Industries.
[9/10]
— Dutton Hauhart