Published by Davide Pappalardo on October 15, 2018
Cyanotic is the cyber/industrial metal project of Sean Payne, born in 2002 as a violent outfit fusing looped riffs, glitch, syncopated beats, drum ‘n’ bass and electro-industrial. During the years it saw the arrival of new band mates like Drew Rosander, Brian Blake, Chris Hryniewiecki, Jairus Khan, Jason Prost, Kevin Barron, Phil Disiena, offering an evolving sound with sci-fi and contemporary themes. A discography made of engaging albums and EPs, tweaking a common thread: we have broken beats and sharp attacks (Transhuman, Glitch Mode Recordings, 2005), electro-rock moments (Prehab 25mg-ep, Bitriot Records, 2008) and complex syncopation (Worst.Case.Scenario Vol.01, Glitch Mode Recordings, 2014).
In 2017 the project self-released the album Tech Noir, an 8-track work employing slower motifs and electronic soundscapes with a futuristic feeling, using synth-driven atmospheres and taking a note or two from 90’s American Coldwave and the WaxTrax! Sound. Now, it has been re-released by the English label Armalyte Industries in a remastered and revisited version called T2, adding 7 new remixes/reworks dwelling in Dubstep, electro-industrial, EBM, ambient. A new occasion to discover a great album paying homage to its roots, but at the same time following Cyanotic’s own muse.
Mainlining tension welcomes us with its industrial machinery, soon conquered by steady drums and fat bass-lines, developing a crushing mantra with distorted vocals and electro grooves. Eerie synths enrich the track, giving us sudden rides and slower and more evocative moments. Deadweight employs sharp guitar loops and sawing lines, displaying an infectious refrain with shrilling electronics, while Hyperaware offers a faster affair with 4/4 drum machines and sci-fi moments, recalling bands like Chemlab in its cyber-metal attack.
Clear a path is one of the highest moments of the album, an engaging with charming melodies and strong rhythms, entwined with stark guitars and clearer vocal deliveries. An electro-industrial inspired number, keeping the usual broken structures dear to the band. Neo-Tokyo skylines offers a crawling moment with soulful and melancholic synths, a cyberpunk instrumental with slow IDM patterns and evocative ambiences. Salvages the excess ends the work with its violent and syncopated ride with drum ‘n’ bass attacks and unrelenting beats, among which inhuman vocals deliver their digital roars.
Delusions of morality transforms Survival instincts into a sleazier song, full of 80’s funky bass-grooves, but the usual riff attacks are not forgotten, recalling the recent project of Payne and Chris Harris called Conformco, and The people of the future offers a Dubstep number with syncopated rhythms and sub-bass frequencies. Clear a path returns as the Economically viable version, a groovier and more rock-oriented revision of the track, keeping all the main elements of the original.
T2 shows another facet of Cyanotic, offering a less brutal version of their electronic-tinged kind of industrial metal, focusing more on atmospheres and structures. That’s not to say we have a diluted work, the roots of industrial metal are always present in the sound, as well as the taste for modern electronic music and syncopated patterns. Any fan of the genre should give a listen to this output, and discover the whole of their awesome discography, which deserves way more recognition.
Label: Armalyte Industries/Glitch Mode Recordings
Rating: 8