Most Helpful Customer Reviews
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2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
Chock full of attitude, but definitely not derivative., February 20, 1999
By A Customer
I have to disagree with the conclusion of another review that this album is somehow derivative and that it sounds like "bad" albums from earlier industrial bands. (I don't think it's nearly as repetitive as the Cabaret Voltaire that I've heard, to be specific.) It sounds early, naturally: it's the first large release Skinny Puppy ever did, so it's certainly not going to sound much like any of their later albums, which were projects of larger scope. I started out listening to the more recent recordings, and it took me a while to appreciate this album; it's a lot more harsh and rough around the edges. It's not as polished as later recordings, and in my opinion, Ogre sounds scarier on this album than on any other. (Maybe low-quality recording equipment and tape hiss? Who cares? It's neato keen.) There are a lot more instrumental tracks than any of the later albums (I'd say it's almost 50/50 vocal/instrumental), which is possibly the album's only weak point. Put "Assimilate," "Deadlines" and "The Choke" on constant repeat, crank up the volume, and make your neighbors wonder what sorts of hell creatures you're attempting to summon.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
4.0 out of 5 stars
love at first listening, March 15, 2001
I remember I bought this cd 5 years ago without having ever listened to Skinny Puppy at all; I liked it at the first listening. It is true that it's perhaps too long and has too many instrumental tracks, but on the other hand, every track seems necessary to create a dark soundtrack atmosphere which made me fall in love with Bites. From the first track, 'Assimilate' you assimilate (allow me the easy joke) the general tone of the work; I think it's not that spontaneous but I think it has a somewhat conceptual sense. The vocal songs are good, but the instrumental ones are also interesting, even though they stmes get too repetitive, that's true. The curious thing is that just after i bought this cd I also bought VIVISectVI, and I disliked it; it never grew on me since somebody advised me to buy Too Dark Park; I loved this, and then I gave a thousandth chance to VIVISectVI, and now I think it is one of the best industrial works ever. (Now I don't agree with my own review on VIVISectVI) Bites is not the best Puppy's work, obviously, but it helped me to know what these people were about, and to put Puppy's cds at the same level with my favourites ever: Front 242; Both bands are good at their styles, which I always see not as similar but complementary.
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1 of 1 people found the following review helpful:
5.0 out of 5 stars
eerie weird and dark, November 5, 1999
bites is a great album, and while they manifested their influences on this album, they also created a truly different and unique sound and identity.. skinny puppy shouldnt really be criticised too much for ressurrecting earlier industrial techniques for they had always acknowledged their influences proudly and did not deny their mentors respect.. and thats what sets them apart from so MANY bands that do rip off other bands claiming a certain sound as their own. every band starts somewhere anyways, as puppy's career progressed, they became more and more, unique and influential in their own right, to other bands which have since now used elements of puppy's music like NIN, marilyn manson,front line assembly, kmfdm, ministry, and many others... and so continues the cycle..if u listen to a lot of different industrial, u begin to realize that there were many bands who could be accused of something like that.. but then, it happens in every genre of music, with so many thousands of bands...in a way , puppy was continuing the direction that early industrial bands had taken before they either changed their sound , or broke up. in this respect, bites and some of their other earlier works resulted in something truly amazing being born, and something different... but still in the vein that other bands had begun to follow... bites reveals puppys distinct heaviness and the superb synth talents of key, whose work produced some truly eerie and chilling effects.. highlights are assimilate, the choke and the amazing social deception as well as last call, dead doll, film, and deadlines... this album has a lot of instrumentals and experimenting, so that could be a turn off. but if u have listened to too dark park, and aint it dead yet , this could be a good one to come to next...
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