Search - Razed in Black :: Sacrificed

Josh's Music Reviews

Joshua Feldblyum | Philadelphia PA | 01/11/2001

(4 out of 5 stars)

"The domain of industrial rock contains much fertile soil for powerful one-man bands like Nine Inch Nails (Trent Reznor), Skold (Tim Skold), and Pig (Raymond Watts). Unfortunately, most lists of this sort fail to include Hawaii's Romell Regulacion, a.k.a. Razed in Black. Don't let the location fool you though; unlike the state from which he hails, Regulacion is anything but mellow. He can fire off drum patterns better than any techno producer, torture his guitar more painfully than Skold or Gravity Kills, and warp a synthesizer far enough to make a diehard KMFDM fan drool. The songs on this CD range from tranquil but haunting soundscapes like "Guilty" and "I've Suffered Long Enough" to pounding electronic symphonies such as "Master" and "I Worship You." There are even extra goodies like "Caught," a wonderful intro to the rest of the album that sounds like it could appear in a Tim Burton movie, and an astounding cover of Metallica's "Damage Inc.," filled with a combination of the original crushing drums and guitars and scores of light-speed electronic blips. Everything is lain on heavily, but nothing is overdone, be it the compelling dance beat of "Solution," the robotic voice singing the chorus of "Lust," or such sound effects as the metallic echo in "Never Meant" and the bat-like screeching at the beginning of "I Worship You." The instrumentation here is a cross between the Twilight Zone, a Berlin rave, an overloaded computer, and one of the upper layers of Hell. In short, it's good stuff. The lyrics on Sacrificed, as could be predicted without much trouble, are about pain. Mostly the emotional kind (although not completely). Songs like "Better Off" and "I've Suffered Long Enough" resemble early Stabbing Westward, although more confident and honed down (after all, this is the third Razed in Black album). Unlike Stabbing Westward, however, physical pain is also explored in depth in S&M anthems like "I Worship You" and "Lust." Lyrics along the lines of "Force the blade against my throat/ Lick the blood against the edge" abound, satisfying the darker side in all of us while the lighter side occupies itself with the spooky music. For the most part though, the music is really the strong point on this CD, with the lyrics taking second chair. Of course, you still have to listen to both to get the full effect, but it's the head-spinning synthesizer work that really pulls you in. Any way you look at it, Razed in Black is a force to be reckoned with, and any so-called music expert should think twice before leaving this one-man army off of yet another "comprehensive" list of industrial powerhouses."

NIN and Cubanate at their Most Rockingly Tuneful

Riposte | Ireland | 12/04/2001

(5 out of 5 stars)

"Although on the first listen this may appear to be little more than Industrial madness, on closer inspection this album reveals itself to be an infectiously catchy and surprisingly tuneful release from soon-to-be Industrial Gods Razed in Black.Hailing from Hawaii of all places,Romell Regulacion,the one-man driving force behind RIB, has with this album, not only created a typically aggressive,menacing and darkly dancable Industrial affair, but has infact developed a sound that bridges the gap between the more mainstream Industrial acts such as NIN and the less commercial, noise experimentation of genre-defining luminaries such as Skinny Puppy.Combining heavy guitars,harsh distorted vocals,dark tuneful electronics and abrasive overlapping drumloops Romell experiments with the plethora of styles Industrial Music has to offer,without ever seeming arty or alienating his audience.Although the majority of songs here are beat-driven tracks interspersed with jagged guitar riffs the album also makes use of ominous synth atmospherics,melodic electronic bleeps and chimes as well as a host of strange and often comical found sounds.The four segue tracks do weigh down the proceedings a little, as does the sometimes overly frenetic drumming, but on the whole there really is no song here that I wouldn't recommend.Newer Pressings of the CD now come with the fantastic Oh My Goth! Single,one of the best things RIB have ever done (along with their cover of Hell's Bells,not available on this CD).There's not much I can say that hasn't already been stated in the previous review.This is a consistently fantastic album without one song that isn't completely enthralling.As is often the case with Industrial Music though,if you really want to enjoy this album you probably shouldn't bother with the lyrics,which can at times be painfully silly (such as on the opening to Nightmare).Nevertheless I would highly recommend this album to anyone who enjoys Noisy Industrial ROCK!!!
Can't wait for the new Full-Length."

I've heard better...but it's okay

ratsinthewall2 | Orlando, FL USA | 12/19/2002

(3 out of 5 stars)

"Razed in Black is the one man goth/industrial band of Romell Regulacion, from the unlikely tropical island of Hawaii. In this album Romell incorporates the whole S&M thing into his music, making segues with some weird sounds, and most of the lyrics contain violence, sex, domination, and sadness, and for me the whole S&M thing seems a little cliched, but he seems to pull it off pretty well, since it does seem to be necessary for his expression. The guitars in this album seem to be standard industrial guitars consisting primarily of power chords, so do not look for complex guitar riffs and such as you should never do with industrial music. The beats in this album are excellent, although Romell seems to overuse cheezy electronic bleeps in many songs including his cover of Metallica's Damage Inc. which Is relatively okay, but not as good as the original (although this is coming from a Metallica fan.) The music is dark, catchy, and original, and pretty aggressive, yet a bit repetitive at times, my favorite tracks are "Master," "I Worship You," and "I've Suffered Long Enough," and probably the best song is the extra track. I would recommend this album to any rivethead who is open to newer bands with guitars, and some who are into goth rock with some danceable beats."