Customer Reviews

East Side Militia

5 star:		(11)
4 star:		(6)
3 star:		(2)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

after having heard the album (while writing it, recording it and performing it) many more times than i can remember, i find that i still like what we were trying to do with "porn star" and "pyromance" as well as a few others. we didn't achieve everything we wanted to with ESM but when it worked the songs were fairly coherent. i think they stand up over the passage of years and against the influx of other bands of that genre. we had fun while we were doing it and in the end that's what counts..atleast for me. i appreciate the continued interest and support for what we were trying to do.. and for those of you who don't like it, obviously you weren't meant to get it, so buzz off! jared's new album is a real challenge, more mutation from the mutant-boy! hopefully old CHEMLAB fans will be open-minded enough to get it! it's all covers, entitled " Off The Grid" on Atkins' invisible label..in the fall. dylan is currently working on an album of his collected soundtrack works.no release date as yet.. servo is working on new material ( tentatively called "Trashing The DeathStar" !!) and hopefully will be in jared's new touring outfit, out in the summer.he also continues to tour with 16 Volt and KMFDMDFMK. blow a fuse until your mind opens wider.. " love on ya! " THX1138

Wow, I've just been reminded that I like music. I was a bit nonplussed by Burnout when I bought it, although I enjoy the spirit of it, but this is something else: it's so much more vital, more varied, louder, and catchy as hell. Jared is currently one of the only mid 90s industrial celebrities who hasn't either started churning out insipid rubbish for cash or completely lost the plot. He's an extraordinary charachter, and I think the best thing about this record is the way his personality colours it: I love the picture the guy paints of his life and its larger than life characters living in their world of dark cyberpunk decadance and sleaze. What's more, you suspect maybe that's exactly what it's like. This guy has the power, the charisma and the imagination to author his own life like a novel - it's inspirational, and reminds you that yes, there is still cool stuff in the world. Stand out tracks for me are Exiled on Mainline, Pyromance for its Ghost in the Shell/William Gibson vibe and the wonderfully over the top vocals on Latex: kind of like a bionically enhanced AC/DC on crack with cyborgs and engine oil instead of Satan and the road to hell. Which is nice.

Man, it feels really good to read all these positive statements about this record! Here in Germany there are about...let's say... 4 people who know the band. Even in the "scene" most of the time it's Chemwho? And it's a shame! I own this CD for 7 Years now and i still love it as if it was the first day. I think, it's just beautyful and would never consider it as "Industrial"! It has Industrial in it but it's more. Pop,Electronic,Rock,Trance,Soundtrack and -thank god- NO techno! A fairly wide spectrum of intelligent, well-produced/performed music! The lyrics/vocals are very smart and powerful (Jared's "latex"-performance is one of the best I've ever heard!) The songwriting is excellent. Uhh...what can i say. get it! just get it! And all together:"God lives in...his holy temple..."

Right off the bat I will admit I'm not a die-hard inudstrial fan. A lot of industrial I find to be too redundant, what with all of the post-apocalyptic sounds and mental patient style lyrics. With that said, this album goes beyond the usual speed and low-tone screaming associated with the genre. The album starts of with "Exile on the Mainland", showcasing some pretty awesome guitar riffs and a driving bass beat. "Vera Blue" is one of a couple of slower tempo songs and has a sultry, "ghost of Billy Idol" sound to it. Other notable songs are "Lo-Grade Fever" which gets off the ground after a minute-and-a-half of some very interesting noise and scratching. Very unexpected. "Electric Molecular" is much more synth-y, reminiscent of an old video game. "Pink" is the low point; it's a little to, uh, gothy for me. The remixed version of "Exiled" at the end is great; it's a wonder it's not used in more scifi movies or the like. It's the kind of song that makes you want to get up and move (or drive fast). I would recommend this album to the casual industrial listener as well as the dedicated fan because it blends so many different styles into one neat package.

If I'm not mistaken... That was Dylan that wrote that review below (Gee. I'm Captian Obvious).. either way.. after helping out on a Chemlab website doing lyric translation (Damn vox distortion =) ) and being a fan for quite sometime now, ESM is by FAR their best most mature work. I can only describe it as romantic. There's just something about this album, especially Vera Blue, that just gets me in the heart. It's a weird feeling really.. like at the end of Bladerunner or Ghost in The Shell.. dark... but still romantic. Dylan, if you are reading this, where did you get "Andricon Girl" from? And a little trivia for ya'll.. That guy on the cover is from a manga, Grey Digital Target. Get it, it's very nice. And the gun fight, listen closely, it's from "Heat".

This is the first Chemlab's disc I have listen to. So it's my favorite from this worship coldwave band.
First, East Side Militia has a great cyberpunk surroundings. Jared Louche's to industrial music what William Gibson's to litterature.
Secondly, the ambience is full of darkness and despair, like this awesome spoken-word track, Pink :
"Time is fiction, so why don't you come lay down with me, in this pitch-bending film loop and let the acid rain beat down our bodies ?"

if you are into industrial music and really dig bands like NIN, KMFDM or 16 Volt, East Side Militia is a must-have. And you're in luck, Invisible Records have re-release it.

Anyone who says that this album sucks obviously isn't a fan of Chemlab. This was the first album of theirs that I bought, and I was not disappointed. When I heard that Burnout At The Hydrogen Bar was even better, I bought that plus Magnetic Field Remixes. I love all of their albums, and I can't figure out why everyone trashes this album. Sure, it's different from Burnout, but it's still an awesome CD! Songs like Exile on Mainline and Pyromance speak for themselves! This album is truly a good follow-up to Burnout. In my opinion, it was the negative attitude of all the "fans" that caused one of the best industrial bands to break up.

i once heard some one say "chemlab, that's ministry just not as heavy and godflesh just not as intense". while there may be comparisons to these two bands, i think such a statement is unjust. while it's true, that chemlab never had the mechanical shredding sound of ministry nor the darkness of godflesh, they have a somewhat organic and cohesive sound. while i prefer "burn out at the hydrogen bar" over "eastside" i still think this cd definitly has it's moments. the opener "exile on the mainline" is a very guitar driven track (i love the guitars on it) with some nice synth effects and a very danceable beat. but i think that the vocals (strangly processed) take the power out of the song. still a good tune. the next song "jesus christ porno star" is more synth oriented with cool lyrics. the next standout track is "pyromance" a mellow song, but with a cool atmosphere and lyrics. my fave of this cd. jared definitly knows how to use his equipment, he shows it effectivly on this song. other standouts are "electric molecular" a more heavy song, somewhat reminiscent of some new young gods songs and "latex". under the line, if you like industrial music you should get this cd, it is not a classic like lets say ministry's "land of rape and honey" or skinny puppy's "too dark park" but still a cool cd

grrrr, these guys have so much potential. its obvious that they know how to use their equipment well, because they've come up with some really interesting sounds. the lyrics are cleverly arranged as well as thought-provoking (such as in Jesus Christ Porno Star). its just that the composition seemed at little lacking in excitement. it results in music somewhat slower than i prefer. electric molecular and the "suck on this" mix of Exiled were nice tracks, but the rest left me bored (i like industrial bands that put emphasis on the electronic aspect of the genre's sound).

good if you like slower industrial, but for those of us speed freaks, we'll have to find our fix elsewhere.

Man, this CD really rocks! Chemlab was my first and truest love in industrial. It is definitly my alltime favorite. Though I don't know what Jared & Dylan were thinking with track 8(Pink), the rest of the album is mind-blowing. I especially lose it when I hear the guitars on Pyro. Something about it is just so..... well, describe it yourself. What you need to do if you are reading this is buy the disc. Now. If you already have it, get the others.

peace