Jeopardy Maze

Attrition | Format: Audio CD

Product Details

• Audio CD (February 9, 1999)
• Original Release Date: February 9, 1999
• Number of Discs: 1
• Label: Projekt Records
• ASIN: B00000I14O
• In-Print Editions: Audio CD  |  MP3 Download
• Average Customer Review: 4.5 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #472,676 in Music (See Top 100 in Music)

Editorial Reviews

Amazon.com

Fans looking for the newest chapter in Attrition's hybrid of neoclassical goth and muscular, clean industrial dance may be somewhat frustrated by The Jeopardy Maze, the band's 1999 offering and its 11th full-length overall. For one thing, the industrial dance has been softened into a lighter, electronica feel. Julia Waller's operatic glossolalia, formerly the acute accent on Martin Bowes's gruff vocals, feels anchorless. Franck Dematteis's stirring viola, used to mournful yet melodic effect on discs like 3 Arms and a Dead Cert and Étude, is here often atonal. Touches of the old sound peek out (particularly on the sleek "Waste Not, Want...More" and the smoldering "The Illuminator," the disc's highlight), but Bowes is clearly more interested in experimentation here, stretching out the textural landscape of his trademark sound (much the way he did on This Death House and Ephemera). Ambient string-and-keyboard compositions spiked with spoken-word samples take up quite a bit of space, resulting in a creepy, soundtrackish work with fewer "songs" than we're used to. Ultimately perhaps not the most memorable of Attrition discs, but an interesting listen nonetheless. --Steve Landau

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars The culmination of everything the band has built up before!., April 16, 1999

By A Customer

This review is from: Jeopardy Maze (Audio CD)

ATTRITION The Jeopardy Maze (Projekt) It has been fifteen years since the release of Attrition's first album. Instead of sounding like a tired band at the end of their career, The Jeopardy Maze is the culmination of everything the band has built up before, sparked with a fresh vitality and a sense of calm confidence. If anything, I would go so far as to say this is probably the strongest release we have seen yet from this British outfit. Martin Bowes is the main force behind Attrition, as he writes everything, programs it, mixes it and sings on it. Aiding him is Julia Waller, who adds her beautiful voice to most of the tracks, and Frack Dematteis, who does an equally superb job blending his viola into the mix. The interplay between Martin's deep, ashen vocals and Julia's operatic approach is the main appeal of Attrition, as they work together to drive home memorable tracks like "Waste Not, Want..." and "The Illuminator."

Musically, The Jeopardy Maze is all over the place. From dark ambient instrumentals, filled with menace and beauty, to more up-tempo (but still eerie) dance songs, Attrition handle all the styles with precision and sequences them in a logical and eminently listenable fashion. The diverse elements are even brought together in one song, "I Am a Thief," with equal aplomb. The band somehow manages to incorporate elements from gothic, industrial, ambient, and techno music without coming close to being pigeonholed in any particular style.

This isn't the kind of album you're going to properly enjoy cruising down I-90 or cleaning out your refrigerator. You need to be able to sit down in a darkened room and really listen to it, feel it. If you haven't heard Attrition yet, but are a fan of bands like Die Form or some of the Projekt bands, The Jeopardy Maze is a definite must. [Daniel Hinds]

4.0 out of 5 stars The material jumps around a lot, this is a decent album, but not Attrition's best, April 23, 2009

By 

Michael A. Duvernois (Minneapolis, MN United States) - See all my reviews
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Amazon Verified Purchase

This review is from: Jeopardy Maze (Audio CD)

Attrition is a bit hard to categorize. Okay, pretty much all of its fan-base consider themselves to enjoy goth music, so there's that, but there's dance music in the mix too, and a classical music sensibility. On some albums, soundtrack and theatrical music also come into play.

Here, the soundtrack aspects slow the album down some. And too many of the songs sound alike. That said, this is good material, a lot of Attrition tracks can be started online here on Amazon.