Reviewed - 11/07/04

Internal Punishment Programs
[Candlelight/Nocturnal Art Productions]

Red Harvest is one of those bands that are always on my radar. I won't say their albums blow me away every time, but I can depend on them to always put out quality releases without ever feeling like they repeated themselves. Their albums are always an evolutionary step forward from their last album while never really changing too dramatically. Also, their albums always manage to maintain my interest even after years of listening to them. I feel like I'm discovering some new subtlety with each listen.

Red Harvest hasn't disappointed me with Internal Punishment Programs. True to form, IPP continues their slow evolution towards increased heaviness and decreased overt black metal influences while keeping most of their dark, electronically chilled atmospheres intact. The only real surprise to me is that there are numerous instances on this CD where the industrial elements feel noticeably reduced. But maybe that industrial reduction is just the result of them blending their influences even more. This is heavier than Sick Transit Gloria Mundi, but also seems to show a slight increase in their accessibility. Now don't flip out on me for saying that and don't write them off as commercial. It's just something about their songs that makes them weirdly accessible even though they don't ever do anything catchy and in almost every way represent the antithesis of accessible music. There's no clean vocals or catchy choruses, but there's a sincerity in their music that you don't really expect from bands doing something intentionally harsh, oppressive, and futuristic. Yes, I find that accessible by my own definition at the very least.

Truth be told, it's hard to accurately describe them. They are one of those bands that are best if you hear them. Unlike many "cyber" bands that evolved out of black metal, Red Harvest have found a totally different direction to take those ideas than any of their peers. And, hell, they've been following their own path for a lot longer. You could say that while these other cyber-metal bands are doing sci-fi, Red Harvest is doing science fiction. Red Harvest are like the soundtrack to a movie about cybernetically enhanced mutants in a post apocalyptic future. Only in Red Harvest's movie, the mutants feel genuine fear and pain at some level. Of course, they still kill you cuz they're mutants and mutants will kill you; but as you bleed to death from their attacks, you know that deep down, they feel some remorse for their actions. You know that their paranoia-fueled violence will only lead to their self-destruction. But then they eat you and you stop thinking about it. Yeah. Red Harvest is like that.