Search - Various :: New Violent Breed Vol. 1

From Oakland, California's COP International label comes this tidy sampler of 15 industrial bands and what they've been occupying themselves with as the millennium draws to a close. Predictably, it's grim stuff--as if song titles like "Crashtime," "Suffering," and "Wasteground" weren't enough of a hint, not to mention the disc's title. Industrial clichés aside, this proves to be one of the stronger compilations on the market, clocking in at a value-added 73 minutes and featuring several worthwhile remixes and exclusive tracks from some familiar and not-so-familiar names. Highlights include VNV Nation's melodic "Solitary (Signals Edit)," the much-improved Pain Station's "Martyr," Solitary Experiments' strictly Teutonic "God, Where Are You," and Yavin 4's aggressive (and very impressive) drum & bass symphony, "Red 5." --Steve Landau