(scared sh-tless, cowering in corner of room)
Shotgun Method | NY... No, not *that* NY | 12/11/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Finally, my first review of a proper industrial album (my review for Ministry's Houses Of The Mole doesn't count since Ministry is in more of an "industrial metal" vein... besides, it wasn't much of a review anyway). And I couldn't have picked a better album to start with--though I gather that would-be rivetheads should probably cut their teeth on something easier. No matter.
Skinny Puppy's Too Dark Park is, in a word, SCARY. Nivek Ogre and cEVIN kEY are true composers of the dark and sinister. Listening to this album is like being in the throes of some drug-induced nightmare. Corrosive beats that sound like the drum machines are having seizures; noisy synths; disturbing, layered collages of samples (including the obligatory sirens); complex polyrhythmic assaults seemingly absent any trace of melody; and on top of this backdrop are Ogre's electronically distorted, hellish vocals. Forget Slayer and their pseudo-Satanic ilk, or the contrived teenage angst of Nine Inch Nails; this is what EVIL sounds like.
I've never understood why this album is labeled "industrial dance music." This sounds nothing at all like Revolting Cocks, Thrill Kill Kult, or KMFDM. No friendly dance beats here, just sheer sonic jihad from beginning to end. The lyrics fit the onslaught as well--insanity, pollution, exploitation, violence, mental illness, drug abuse. All the horrors of the modern world are on display.
Opener Convulsion sets the tone; Shore Lined Poison and Nature's Revenge have moments that would almost be considered "subdued" if they weren't so creepy and insane; Tormentor has its catchy beats eviscerated by waves of abrasive electronics; Rash Reflection has a suprisingly memorable chorus ("kiss the master's feet"); and Spasmolytic is pure f--king chaos, and I mean that in the best possible way.
Absolutely excellent, and highly recommended stuff if you think that you're up for it."
Crazy as hell
shog | shogville | 12/01/2004
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Yeah, its a great album. 'unique' 'deep' and 'original' don't even begin to describe it. Yeah, its a fan favorite. I agree with all praise.
It's also bloody insane. This was the first puppy cd i bought. Why? It looked pretty. Then i spun it, christ was i shocked. Too Dark Park is the most insane album i have ever heard. Convulsion is the most insane song. I hated this album for two weeks, it was so far from anything i had ever heard before.
At this time, my mum was convalescing with some rare deadly disease. I lived with her for a month, slept in a closet in a high rise appt, away from everything i knew and hoping mom wouldnt die.
One song stood out, Spasmolytic. That song was how i felt. In time I got it. There are points in life that are horrible and inexplicable. For those times, this is the album.
This is not a starter album. This is the fringe."
Too Dark Park ~ Skinny Puppy
Bjorn Viberg | European Union | 04/25/2005
(5 out of 5 stars)
"Too Dark Park is Skinny Puppy's most avantgard release and it came as a respond to industrial music becoming popular and adaptinga more "easy listening" approach and was in total contrast to their more standard rock release Rabies. This is a massive attack of layered sounds, distorted guitar riffs and vocals that have been masively altered with vocoders and other electronic treatments. This is a far cry for their basic first releases (bites & remission) and it shows them dabbling with equipement that they could dream of in the early days. The book-let is quite nice and it has a very strange art that could be said to look like medieval pictures of hell with evil beasts and and the worm on the back looks like a fiend from hell. This is a very different album and the most challenging Skinny Puppy release up to this point."