Fellow rivetheads, it is time we accept the guitar and bass into our music...after all, are they not electric instruments too? I say this, because this time, Luxt (Anna Christine and Erie Loch), unlike their last phenomenal album Razing Eden, have chosen to bury the electronics and pump up the buzz saw guitars and bass. And you know what? I love it!! Usually the burial of electronics under geetars spells instant death for all these coldwave/industrial metal bands...but Luxt pulls it off quite nicely. As always, Anna's vox are seamless and gorgeous, with probably some of the most intelligent lyrics I've seen in a while from coldwave acts, and Erie this time has broadened his singing horizons by screaming AND singing, doing both very nicely this time. Luxt's new sound sounds a bit like an ultra aggressive Acumen. My immediate favorite was Vulgar Monkey Love, which is a very danceable and pounding tune with driving, churning guitars and some lighter electronics over the driving rhythm. Luxt uses the same electronic drum pads in the studio that they do on stage, giving the album a very live and palpable feel. Knock You Down is another great track, with a bombastic beat that shakes yer speakers, more staticy guitars, some more light string work, and various bits of noise amidst the booming beat. Blast Furnace follows the same tradition as Monkey Love, but this time the drums are thumping as all hell...sounding like NIN meets Acumen meets a blender. Very cool. There are some surprises too...No Turning Back is a slower, breakbeat driven track with some exquisite string work in the chorus that is almost gothic in a way. Wicked, the customary hidden song, is another slow cruncher, this time however sporting a relaxing, almost Underworld like string pattern in the back, and Anna's great vox...with no guitars!, making an interesting spin. Innocence Lost 2000 is a recreation of Luxt's song off their very first album, with a more modern Luxt sound added...making another entirely danceable and yet electronically limited tune. Some tracks, like User and Inside are way too rock n'roll for me, sounding like Limp Bizkit with a chick, but, thankfully, these tracks are few and far between. This album will make even the staunchest electro-head start moshing. Buy it if ya have a hankering for something a little bit like your younger brothers Korn tape with an industrial spin on it.

reviewed by D. Sudia

CHALKHEAD RECORDS
Luxt is:
Anna Christine / Erie Loch
Contact Luxt  @
PO BOX 161645
Sacremento, CA 95816
e-mail: luxt@chalkhead.com
Luxt  homepage:
http://www.chalkhead.com