daylies music: Cyclic Defrost Magazine

Saturday, February 28, 2009

Cyclic Defrost Magazine

The Teknoist - …Like A Hurricane Made Of Zombies (Ad Noiseam)

Posted: 28 Feb 2009 02:19 AM PST

The Teknoist

Manchester, UK-based hardcore / gabber / breakcore producer Mike Hayward has been releasing tracks as The Teknoist since 2003 on labels including Cock Rock Disco, Planet Mu and his own Ninja Columbo imprint, but in the wake of last year’s split 12" with Eustacian ‘Pillaged & Plundered’, ‘Like A Hurricane’ represents his debut full-length under the moniker for Ad Noiseam. Those who’ve heard the aforementioned 12" will no doubt already have a good idea of what to expect here. As furious time-stretched workouts such as ‘War Dog’ and ‘Richie’s Breakcore Lovesong’ clearly illustrate, The Teknoist specialises in utilising all the familiar hallmarks of the breakcore genre – the spooky samples pillaged from war / horror movies, violently mutilated Amen breaks and neckbreaking sudden stop-start dynamics.

In this case however, while Hayward’s certainly managed to craft one of the most sleek, impressive and downright fearsome breakcore thrasharamas of recent times, the sheer sonic violence is frequently underpinned with a sense of wide-eyed epic grandeur – something that’s down to his deft deployment of deep orchestral chords beneath many of the furious arrangements. The hammering ‘War Dog’ meanwhile sees the familiar sludgy Slayer-style metal riffs making an appearance to spectacular effect, before closer ‘Closing Up VIP’ plays the biggest wildcard here, opening with a beatless wash of gorgeous synthetic orchestration before slowly unfurling into an epic journey out that’s equal parts gabbercore and movie theme. An impressive debut album from The Teknoist that also provides a pretty sweet entry point for those new to the breakcore / gabber game.