Vim Fuego
To say this recording confused a lot of people on its release is an understatement. After battering a jaded death metal scene with their debut album, Fear Factory then turned the scene on its head with heavy–duty techno remixes.
The songs were not so severely deconstructed the originals were unrecognisable, but they definitely added a freshness to the sound, but sent death metal purists into a rabid anti–techno frenzy. The guitar crunch and bass grunt were retained, which is part of the reason this is so appealing. Besides Godflesh and Ministry, there was very little electronic music out there with any kind of guitar sound whatsoever when this was released.
“Martyr” is probably the standout track here, with its vitriol retained, along with a new driving electronic beat. This sort of thing would have cleared the dance floor in most nightclubs instantly.
Fear Factory have since lightened their sound and incorporated more and more electronic elements. This was an indicator of what might have been had they remained their harder, deathly edge.
The only disappointment was the lack of a remix of “Leechmaster”.
