A-ha! An album which screams *INDUSTRIAL!* all the way from the band name to the album cover and back again. Musically Canister owe a lot to the industrial giants - early NIN, Front 242, etc - while vocally they set their camp closer to the Skinny Puppy end of the industrial landscape. In fact the vocals provide such a harsh offset to the boppy industrial backing that it took a couple of listenings to get used to the combination. But with excellent tracks like the bouncy 'Believe' (which brings back memories of Front 242 in their late eighties heyday) it was worth the effort.
The harsh vocals are most effective when almost spoken, as on 'Rapture' - which takes the form of a demonic sermon ("I am the reason and the rhyme, Who can save you?"). The closing track 'Ice' could almost be a Tear Garden track, the guitars and bass track almost redundant behind the piano and voice.
While this isn't quite as instantly accessible as the likes of Leæther Strip, there are nice reworkings of a variety of industrial "standards" present - for example on 'Truth', which manages to have all of the following: goth bassline, harsh vocals, rock drum pattern, semi-acoustic guitars, and bells(!); and it still manages to pull it off!
All in all, a bit of a grower - and it has an excellent cover which looks exactly like my sexiest LoveBomb stretchy top. (PB)
[1998]
