Search - Red Harvest :: Internal Punishment Programs

Douglas Hernandez | 09/04/2005

(5 out of 5 stars)

"If there's a band that defies the laws of conformity, it's Red Harvest. Always a step ahead of the competition and taking advantage of all the technology available at their disposal, they create records that are not only a challenging experience, but they're also disorienting and primordially inducing. This is basically industrial black metal that's out of the ordinary. It takes you to places in the future that haven't been built yet, giving us an obscure view of what awaits mankind. It also activates mechanisms within out brain to help us absorb the majesty of their sounds. In my opinion, one needs to have an open mind to fully appreciate this masterwork. Almost instantenaously, one will notice that this is their angriest record to date. It shows in every aspect of the music, from the actual playing, to the furious vocals and lyrical content. It's fast when it needs to be, and it's mid-paced when it goes after futuristic atmospheres. No matter what direction they decide to go, the aura is there, helping us envision the dark side of human behaviour. It's a record that requires several listens and I guarantee you will find something new after each listen. Midblowing, and spectacular."

Unrelenting. Punished by Internal Punishment Programs.

Pseudobyte | Minnesota United States | 08/09/2008

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Red Harvest never fails to bring the heavy industrial crunch I crave and Internal Punishment Programs is no exception. Each track on this album, minus one noise-centric instrumental, is a sonic hammer blow to the head. I think what impresses me most about this band is their consistency and their commitment to bringing the metal edge to industrial atmospherics; the end result being a very cohesive album that doesn't meander into meaingless, self-indulgent asides and demands the listener's full attention. I would argue that Red Harvest crafts some wonderful motivational music but, then again, I'm a metalhead who can't dance worth crap. Bang! Your! Head!



The standouts on this album, to me, are the guitars and drums. The drums, ugh. Punishing. The great thing here is that Red Harvest isn't confined by what could be considered a formula (like more traditional metal bands) and Wroldsen, their drummer, gets to jump all over the place and really shine rather than simply functioning as placeholder or relenting to the more flashy instruments or solos. The beats are so fast; breakneck. You can definitely hear the double-kicks in their inhuman quality on this album. On the slower tracks there's lots of crashing symbols and popping toms and snares and it really gives Red Harvest a nonconformist, almost improvisational, sound but it's all very tightly knit and not even vaguely sloppy. The guitars are so shredtastic, it's insane. I can't help but think of chainsaws or machineguns when I listen to these guys but don't look for solos or highnotes; it's all crunch. The guitars are an unrelenting rhythmic assault and with the accompaniment of Ofu Kahn's throaty, growly vocals, this album easily qualifies as a mosh pit pleaser.



My favorite tracks have to be Anatomy Of The Unknown (track 2, the first full length cut), Fall Of Fate, Mekanizm, Symbol Of Decay and Wormz. These tracks feature the guitars more heavily than the others (or more to my liking at any rate). Symbol Of Decay, specifically, I think of as the signature track on the album. The beginning of the song opens with synths and mechanical samples, evoking AT-ATs stomping the earth, before swerving into some mid paced guitars and drums that succeed in conjuring a dramatic quality with the pace of their strumming, low tuning and drum and crash hits. The vocals are featured more prominently on this track as well. All of the tracks have that death metal dramatic flavor; crunchy and epic, leaving the taste of mercury in your mouth and your neck sore. It's hard for me to describe since I'm not a musician but it has to do with the rhythm, the riffs, and the tuning used; the timbre of the guitars. It's brutal, is one way of saying it; the classic metal sound.



I highly recommend this album to industrial fans, fans of Godflesh, early Fear Factory, and anyone who appreciates death metal without the "melodic" prefix.



If you NEED a preview of this album, you can check out Red Harvest's official Myspace page and take a listen to Mekanizm (track 5) to get a taste.



As a bonus, the disc features a Quicktime music video for Anatomy Of The Unknown (track 2) which is definitely worth viewing (especially if you live in the US, like me) for a taste of Red Harvest's live performance.



PS- Track one is an intro track, 22 seconds long, untitled and not listed on the back of the album so if you're intending on ripping this album, just move the song titles down one slot so the title track is the last."