Tweaker
Call The Time Eternity
Metropolis
Itโs always interesting to hear solo efforts by musicians that are more strongly associated with larger musical acts. Some examples that come to mind are Alan Wilderโs Recoil project, Nivek Ogreโs OHGR project, and the subject of this review, Chris Vrennaโs Tweaker. In the case of Tweaker, Chris Vrennaโs value to Nine Inch Nails, Marilyn Manson and many other important acts is on full display, even if the music itself doesnโt have the same pop appeal of these larger pseudo-underground acts. Whatโs evident is the talent he possesses for sound design, production, engineering and mood creation. Many of Tweakerโs songs would be right at home as part of a dark soundtrack but at the same time some of the songs, mainly the ones with vocals, have โsingleโ written all over them.
Tweakerโs first album in eight years, Call The Time Eternity, has elements of many different styles of music including Drum โnโ Bass, Glitch, Industrial, Dark Ambient, and Pop, however most tracks use only the essential elements of these styles. This allows room for the pulsing rhythms, dark synth textures and dense short reverbs to create an atmosphere that draws you in and holds you like a straightjacket. The musicianship is nothing short of excellent. The drum performances and programming are very high quality and give each song a common theme; dark, powerful, driving and sonically interesting. This is not surprising given Vrennaโs background as drummer/percussionist.
โNothing At All,โ featuring Jessika Addams, could be a meld of early Recoil and Delerium. The music is dramatic, dark and well crafted and the vocals are expressive and soothing and beg for the listener to sing along. This is a true standout track. โGrounded,โ with kaRIN handling guest vocals, is equally as appealing. Vrenna lends his vocals to a cover of Phil Collinsโ โI Donโt Care Anymore.โ Iโm personally not a fan of Phil Collins but Vrennaโs is an enjoyable listen that makes you forget itโs a cover. Instrumental standouts are the albumโs opening track โPonygrinder,โ โA Bit Longer Than Usual,โ and โAreas Of The Brain.โ All three of these songs have a quiet intensity with expressive rhythm tracks that get inside your head and take over in a very good way.
This album is sure to be on repeat on many listenersโ audio systems. Hopefully Tweaker wonโt wait another eight years for their next release.
Rob Early
Album Review: Tweaker – Call The Time Eternity
Rob Early