Search - Front Line Assembly :: Caustic Grip

FLA's BEST full length album EVER !!! So what if it's old !

SOUNDWAVE | Decepticon Headquarters | 01/12/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This has been my favourite FLA album ever since I first heard it. It is cold, harsh, intense, noisy, and has perfect electro-cyberpunk beats that always incorporate a dark twist. Earlier FLA is more experimental but has less structure, and their later stuff is too polished and boring at times (I'm mainly refering to the album 'Implode' when I say polished/boring, it is a very poor release in comparison to any of their previous releases, much worse than 'FLAVOUR OF THE WEAK').

But 'CAUSTIC GRIP' is a must have if you dig electro/industrial/80's/beats/dark twisted vocals and sci-fi/horror/political topics. This is not for the weak or narrow-minded.

'CAUSTIC GRIP' is more like something Skinny Puppy would have released than FLA. There is no other FLA release as dark and twisted as this, or as easy to listen to.

Another reviewer said he had trouble listening to this album because it lacks fluidity, but I find that this is the sound that FLA should have concentrated more on, because they do it so perfectly, but I guess they wanted to experiment more. Best FLA releases are; 1.CAUSTIC GRIP 2.VIRUS(EP) 3.GASHED SENSES AND CROSSFIRE 4.TOTAL TERROR II 5.TACTICAL NEURAL IMPLANT. But CAUSTIC GRIP is the climax of those 4 releases. It is raw yet has developed tasty bass lines to go with their precise beats. I can't get enough of this album, wish they had done more of this type of raw/powerful style they had developed. This may not appeal to everone, but you don't know until you listen to it. The horrific elements are also something worth mentioning more than once, since they are what make this release stand out from their later material. Bill Leeb should have searched deeper into the world of nightmares and horror(actually he has a few songs that have that beautiful horror like the song 'Heatwave' on THE BLADE (EP) and most of the HARD WIRED album, but it's not as effective on HARD WIRED) despite the fact that Skinny Puppy were doing the same at that time. It is clear that this album is so strong, why FLA didn't take this horror further is beyond me.



IF YOU ONLY BUY ONE FLA CD, MAKE SURE IT'S THIS ONE. IT WILL CHANGE THE WAY YOU PERCIEVE MUSIC FOREVER."

A genius offering on the alter of noise

Xander Xavier Xymox | Frederick Co :( | 06/14/2006

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Several years ago a friend made me a compilation of industrial songs. I was a devout metal head at the time with the exception of some mainstream industrial bands like KMFDM, Rammstein, NIN, and back when I was a kid Marilyn Manson. I didn't want to admit it to myself that I found any kind of "techno" cool. Some of the stuff he sent me was actually good, so I decided to look into checking out some industrial music. While wandering through customer reviews online I decided to go to my cd shop and have "Caustic Grip" ordered. Right away I was blown away by how awesome this Cd is. It was noisy enough not to be straight techno, but it also had enough hooks, and melody to keep me interested. So now after several years of being a fan I still come back to listening to caustic grip more often than most other FLA/Leeb & Fulber/Leeb & Peterson Cd's and projects. The songs on Caustic Grip are not as diverse as some of FLA's later releases. Cd's like Hardwired and Tactical Neural Implant have songs with more distinguishing characteristics. On the other hand the songs here are more about complex layer's of textures. Despite that there are still plenty of catchy beats, and melodies to keep even a sufferer of Attention Deficit Disorder listening.



Resist 10 What can I say about this song that hasn't already been said. When I bought this Cd I put it into my car stereo, and I was immediately hooked. This is a instant classic. Between the brilliant infectious opening beat, the various noise, and the subtle melodies this is a feast for the senses. I get the irresistible urge to hurl a Molotov cocktail every time I hear this.



Victim 8.5 "scrape the skin off your bone's". Not as good as resist, but still very good. Sample heavy with much clattering and tattering beats. Plus some good synth melodies.



Overkill 7.5 Nothing wrong with this. It just isn't on the level of some of the other songs. My favorite piece of this song is the sound at 2:55. I wish they would have done more with that.



Forge 8.5 Good chorus and vocals add to the killer music. I can go either way with this song. Sometimes I skip it, and other times I put it on repeat mode.



Provision 10 This one is equal to resist. Maybe even better. Resist has more sentimental value for me. Great lyrics, catchy chorus, perfect beats, and riveting drum machines. This song has no weakness.



Force Fed 9 I really don't know how to describe this one. Excellent drum beats, and plenty of grinding, swooshing mechanical sounds. Almost a perfect 10.



Iceolate 9 More of the same good $h!t. There is one particular noise at 1:22-1:54 that just gets stuck in my head every time. Classic industrial.



Threshold 10 Easily the most accessible song here. Some other reviewer put it this way. That this is kind of a ballad but FLA style. To me this has a Front 242 flavor. Bill Leebs vocals are more like singing compared to his usual distorted vocals. Very beautiful melody in this song. Even a FLA fan who likes the newer stuff would still like this.



Mental Distortion 10 This one is my 3rd favorite one on here. Resist, and Provision are first and second. Great noise and a even better melody. The last few months I have been totally obsessed with this song.



The Chair 7.5 This is a heavily sampled outro. Good but not he best.



I really wish FLA would have explored this sound a bit more for at least a few Cd's. If you are a industrial fan you must have this. On the other hand if you like Leeb's more techno ish music I suggest getting Tactical Neural Implant, or Implode first.

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