Perturbator - New Model

(Blood Music 2017)

Perturbator is one of the biggest names in synthwave, and has done more to develop the trendy darksynth sound that anyone else. But with New Model, James Kent abandons a successful formula for something quite different.



New Model is still very retro '80s--just in a different way. This is not standard darksynth. New Model draws more from industrial music of the '80s than anything else, but it still sounds modern. It does still shows Kent's background in metal, just not in a cliche way.

As far as my opinion goes, I have to say it took me a while to really appreciate how good New Model is, maybe because I was shocked by the change in sound. But there are some songs that I just adore. "Birth of the New Model" is a great opener, full of character. "Vantablack" is one of the most atmospheric dark songs I have heard in the genre. The vocal style takes some getting used to but it is daring and there is too little of that in this scene. It has nice chorus guitars and a reverbed brass sound that remind me of Makeup & Vanity Set. "Corrupted by Design" is like '80s EBM but with modern production values and lots of little neat compositional flourishes. It has a bassline that just sounds incredible. I was singing it in the office and everyone started looking at me like I was crazy.

The other thing I will say is, this is a very loud album. Usually I will complain about this, but in this case it sounds great. The only exception is "Tainted Empire," which I found grating. The lesson here is maybe that loud isn't the problem, it is how you do loud. Most producers should avoid compressing their mixes to death, but Kent is not most producers.

Score: 9.5