Industrial and EBM bands almost always benefit from the remix treatment, because the problem these kinds of bands run into isn't usually a lack of good raw material -- rather, their problem is usually that they all take the same, cookie-cutter approach to their raw material. Nicely crafted synthesizer textures, sturdy beats, and even the occasional interesting chord progression all get jammed into the same by-the-numbers death-disco rhythmic framework, and too often the musical results are completely interchangeable from one band to another. But if you set a gaggle of talented cut-and-paste artists on the master tapes, things can start to get interesting. That's what happens on this collection of remixes based on tracks from 2003's
Vertical Theory album, which also includes a handful of what seem to be outtakes from the same sessions. (And actually,
Haujobb had a head start anyway since their original material is unusually rhythmically and texturally varied to begin with.) The featured remix artists include
Asche (whose surprisingly subtle, almost gentle treatment of Renegades of Noize is an album highlight), Glis (who brings a cool rhythmic sophistication to "Slide"), and
Haujobb themselves, whose dark and minimalist mix of "Metric" is another highlight track. Recommended. ~ Rick Anderson