Collide - Beneath The Skin (12 tracks) +Album Reviews

Does this band get any better?

deathfromafar | North Canterbury New Zealand | 09/21/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"As the reviewer below says, it is beyond comprehension that this band is not as well heard of. A friend of mine, with well developed musical taste heard me cranking up the title track ( a superb cut) and said " Oh my G*d- what is that?"Its that good. No, its better. Despite what the sad soul below said, this is not mindless pop. To call this pop is like calling Britney Beethoven- totally wrong. Souring, grinding electronics, amazing sound scapes, and a lead singers voice whos depth and talent of voice will leave you, literally ,breathless. This is an incredibly good album, not only for Goths , or fans of industrial rock, but anyone who knows what exactly makes a good band- passion, purpose and talent.If you want a comparison, gentle reader, try a blend of Tool, Tori Amos and Curve. Kind of. Collide deserve a much wider audience, but we live in a world where people buy Eminem albums, so I guess they may not get the recognition they so deeply deserve."

Dark Poetry Set To Music!

Clarissa | Ontario, California | 01/04/2003

(4 out of 5 stars)

""Spiral revelation, morphis of change
What a sensation
Growing in form.
Imagination, opens the door
In-between spaces
Oh dear she explodes..."I honestly can't imagine a single soul not enjoying the music of Collide but for those who don't like them, or for those who haven't had the opportunity to hear them yet, well I pity you for you're truly missing out! I've been buying a lot of industrial/goth-related music lately but none have affected me the way that Collide has. Statik (producer/mixer) and kaRIN (vocals/lyrics) are simply brilliant when it comes to getting beneath the skin for the music they create is sure to send delicious chills down the spines of all who listen!The lyrics are like dark poetry set to music but when kaRIN lends her lush, breathy vocals to the haunting words she concocts, a sensation unlike any other is sure to close around you as she weaves her delicate spell around her attentive follower... Of course it is very important to have an equal balance between the voice AND the instrumentations so, unleashing their intricate magic, Collide adds some grinding guitars to the mix which dance around leaping flames of industrial/electronic beats! Now, because of poor sound quality, I am sadly obliged to give this album a star below what it probably deserves. The songs in themselves are all amazing as they showcase the potential that Collide is known for but the production (which is probably due to a low budget) kills the whole experience! And while it angers me to know that Collide will most-likely never gain the recognition or the following in which they rightfully deserve, I consider Collide to be one of my all-time favorite bands and am looking forward to all future releases! I also recommend the fabulous 'Chasing The Ghost', which has better sound quality than this, as well as 'Distort' which features some incredible remixes from 'Beneath the Skin'."

Someone, please - tell me, Why is Collide so unheard of???

Cognitive Dissonance | the 9th Layer of Hell | 10/30/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"I just don't understand it. I guess Collide missed the boat when it came to publicity or something. Maybe they didn't pay off the right person to get some airplay. It's almost criminal, in my opinion, that this band isn't a lot bigger... and that I only heard of them 3 months ago. These two (kaRIN and Statik) are absolute geniuses. Statik shows expert musical manipulations with every song, and kaRIN's voice is drop-dead gorgeous. And they are both inventive with the styles they use throughout all the music. There are no two songs here that sound the same, but a very impressive variety, ranging from the noisy jackhammer of "Beneath the Skin" to the peaceful flow of "Deep" and "Black"...This album has it all... it's accessible without being cheezy, and beautiful without being bland... For more proof listen to the samples here and the (full-length) samples on Collide's homepage. It'll blow your damn mind. Then buy the CD's and support a band that should be a legend... and hopefully will."

Settled Beneath My Skin Very Well

K. Franklin | Yonkers, NY | 10/25/2005

(4 out of 5 stars)

"After hearing more recent and very appealing work by Collide, I wanted to start at the beginning (Beneath the Skin) and move my way up. Something about the contrast of sugar-sweet female vocals with whipping electronica drew me in. First off, don't be fooled by their over-the-top gothy cover art and webpage design. Though the music has a haunting quality to it, it's certainly not over-the-top in any sense.

Collide's sound is a mixture of darkwave and industrial--some songs with a dance quality, others with more of a swaying feel. The production production approach by Static is something softer than VNV Nation or Apoptygma Berzerk, but harder-hitting than Depeche Mode, with Karen's vocals comparable to Love Spirals Downwards or Miranda Sex Garden.

A couple of my favorite tracks on here are "Falling Up" and "Dreams and Illusions." "Falling Up" gives you the feeling of having a heart attack amidst a crowded church, with it's fast-paced, choir-like background and the sense of being carried away. "Dreams and Illusions" has a mysterious quality to it, as the title conveys. "Beneath the Skin" and "Violet's Dance" put you inside a torture chamber. "Deep" sounds like industrial and more metal with a light sexual quality to it, with the buzzing guitar background serving like a voice. I'm not sure that the last two remixes contribute much to the album, though.

Karin's vocals, throughout much of this album, are basically and elevated whisper. I'm wondering if maybe they weren't too downplayed--sometimes the lyrics are too indistinctive to understand. I don't like the words feeling masked like these; it makes them seem unimportant. It tends to be to much "beneath the skin" when it could be surfaced. Another small critique is the over-repitition of background patterns, but that tends to be my critique with a lot of music, including music I love. After this album I can say I'm a new fan of Collide.

"

Industrial music with ethereal vocals

K. Franklin | 04/06/2000

(5 out of 5 stars)

"this is an excellent CD - industrial music contrasted with the ethereal female vocals. music is a bit haunting, with a harder edge. a bit of variety, with some slower songs (pandora's box), danceable beats and harsher guitars (falling up). i also recommend their CD of remixes "Distort.""

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	Collide Beneath The Skin Genres: Dance & Electronic, Alternative Rock, Pop, Rock, Metal Track Listings (12) - Disc #1 Violet's Dance Beneath the Skin Falling Up Deep - Collide, Candelaria, Chris Black Strange Dreams and Illusions Have Faith Pandora's Box 95 & 7 Deep [Christ Analogue Remix] - Collide, Alin, Wade Beneath the Skin [Subconscious Remix]
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