SPILL ALBUM REVIEW: PUSCIFER - EXISTENTIAL RECKONING: REWIRED

Puscifer
Existential Reckoning: Rewired
Puscifer Entertainment/BMG

The experimental rock group Puscifer recruited some of their most creative friends to create Existential Reckoning: Rewired, a companion remix collection of their studio album Existential Reckoning that was released in 2020. It carried the storyline of “Secret Agents” Mat Mitchell (guitar, bass, keyboards), Carina Round (vocals, keyboards), and “Agent in Training” Maynard James Keenan (vocals) investigating a possible alien abduction of the character known to Puscifer fans as Billy D in deserts of the Southwestern United States.

The list of those to reinterpret the tracks is very impressive. The Academy Award winning team of Trent Reznor and Atticus Ross put a predominant Nine Inch Nails (NIN) spin on “Apocalyptical”. Unfortunately, it felt a little long-winded since the track runs a little over 11 minutes. However, Reznor and Ross don’t half ass anything, and it’s no exception here.

Each contributor infuses elements of their own genre, from electronic mixes on “Theorem”, re-imagined by Sarah Jones & Jordan Fish, and Tool’s Justin Chancellor and The Crystal Method’s Scott Kirkland who collaborated for “UPGrade.”

You’ll hear acoustic guitar elements in “Personal Prometheus” and guitar, rock-infused elements in “Bedlamite” which may be considered one of the most solemn, emotional tracks of the original album. However, the remix lost some of that lyrical weight among the upbeat guitar riffs. Puscifer members Mat Mitchell and Carina Round each take turns on tracks of their own as they’ve done in previous remix albums. Round’s version of “A Singularity” stands out in it’s whimsical, almost music box like tone with an emphasis on the vocals.

What’s appealing about this album is how the vocals aren’t stripped away, or just carelessly looped, then thrown over dance club instrumentals as some remix albums are perceived as. Keenan and Round’s vocal cadence compliment each other really well and the vocals, although warped in some cases, are not lost amongst the instrumentals.

If you enjoy the abstract approach that Puscifer musically represents, you’ll be more than happy adding this album to your collection. It’s a great mix of genres and talent that Puscifer should be proud of, and an album that should appease the alien life forms.