Deadverse Massive Vol. 1: Rarities 1999-2006

Deadverse Massive Vol. 1: Rarities 1999-2006
Label: Hydra Head
Length: LP
Rated: NONE
Media: CD
Format: Album
WorkNameSort: Deadverse Massive Vol. 1: Rarities 1999-2006
If the crushing sonic landscapes that typically lie atop Dälek’s rhymes like an elephant on heavy drugs haven’t convinced you that this rapper is profoundly influenced by My Bloody Valentine, then these auxiliary recordings sure will. Besides muting his usual aural terrorism, there’s some full-on shoegazing going on here (the sheer instrumental gauze of ‘Vague Recollectionâ?�). The collection reveals a more sedate though no less atmospheric side. Floating like opium smoke, the music’s still dark, just in a different way. If his regular albums are the trip, this is the comedown, a phase that, though less rushing, is just as distinctive experientially. The pick is ‘Megaton (Deadverse Remix),â?� which floats on a somnambulant drift until its midpoint, when it drops into one sweet-ass donkey kick that sounds like John Bonham banging out a hip-hop beat. It’s not as purely thrilling as his albums ‘ an exceedingly tall order ‘ but it does contain worthwhile moments and shows the girders of a captivating artist.

This article appears in Jul 18-24, 2007.