.chvad. » THINGS OUTSIDE THE SKIN

NEWS! iDoser – Mettle II: Moth Mescaline Mix crosses over Gates of Hades.

Chvad SB — Thu, 22 Jul 2010 19:52:45 +0000

Remember to get your next fill dose HERE:

iDoser – Mettle II: Moth Mescaline Mix – THINGS OUTSIDE THE SKIN

Chvad SB — Thu, 15 Jul 2010 20:37:55 +0000

iDoser – Mettle II: Moth Mescalin Mix:
Binaural brainwave jam by THINGS OUTSIDE THE SKIN.
www.outside-the-skin.com

What happens when bytes of data fuck with YOUR air pressure?

Ear Candy Magazine – THINGS OUTSIDE THE SKIN “YKIAA” (2005)

Chvad SB — Thu, 13 May 2010 20:47:49 +0000

Review Source: Ear Candy Magazine
Artist: THINGS OUTSIDE THE SKIN
Release: You Knew It All Along
Label: Facility Records

Brooklyn, NY’s industrial rockers Things Outside the Skin’s third full-length release contains a cavalcade of big synthetic beats, swirling effects, and a slew of vitriolic vocalizations. Making creepy music seems effortless for this trio of electronic gurus, as a plethora of scintillating sounds grab your ear’s attention as the pseudo rap of tracks like “The Most Appealing Thing” assaults you from the front. Mixing it up like Mike Patton meeting the Transplants on the homage to Phil Hartman “Another Dead Comedian” while taking the rave from the warehouse to your speakers on “Town & Country”, YOU KNEW IT ALL ALONG goes 22-tracks deep (incuding remixes and edits), leading you on a twisted ride through the minds of master musical manipulators that know their way around a synthesizer as well as they realize the power of a well-crafted song. If you dig left of center Goth rock, this group will not disappoint.

-review by Mike SOS

** review re-printed in www.americoremagazine.com, www.thedelimagazine.com, and in www.houstonmusicreview.com.

Legends Magazine – THINGS OUTSIDE THE SKIN “YKIAA” (2006)

Chvad SB — Thu, 13 May 2010 20:47:06 +0000

Review Source: Legends Magazine
Artist: THINGS OUTSIDE THE SKIN
Release: You Knew It All Along
Label: Facility Records

Things Outside the Skin push out their 3rd full length with You Knew It All Along (Facility Records). A November 2005 tour is planned. Based in Brooklyn, the threesome of Chvad SB (vox/synths/guitar), Blight (bass) and Tim Durland (drums) can be found shredding NYC clubs fairly often. At first listen, You Knew it All Along seemed lopsided when taken as a whole, with strange workings, fluffy high melodies at times and funky covers – but after a few spins it’s apparent that Things Outside the Skin aren’t your typical outfit.

At first the opening track American Way immediately reminded me of Quite a Dilemma era Bunker Soldier(1) only a bit more serious. With a rap-centric style, heavily vox-laced, and groovy accompniaments American Way is a refreshing piece of songwriting with everything from the well layed out tracking to the spit-style metal-dirged vocals laced with contempt and more than a bit of “I’ve had enough” attitude.

Mettle IV: Programmed Apathy however takes things into a heavier industrial deepness. One of the best things about their work is the lyrical content – splittingly angry and blindingly dark, the lyrics alone are worth the price of admission. With such rants as Cow Tippin’ to the government blasting of American Way, this is one of those CDs where you want to read the jacket along with the music. Vocal style is SMP-like(2), but muted with a more underground feel. Everything from government to commercialism is discussed – or railed at – throughout You Knew it All Along. Lyrics take you to twisted and enjoyable directions as well such as in The Most Appealing Thing (“It appeals to me but can’t reveal to me”) or So Emotional Tao (“Music is Amotional”).

It’s a long album as well – 22 tracks long. I’d consider less than half as full song offerings, the rest being strange covers (Spice Up Your Life, Going Under), radio edits of previous tracks and remixes by such acts as Headache, Flood Damage and The Gothsicles among others. The Going Under track is a dreamy modernistic take on Devo.

Things Outside the Skin’s You Knew it All Along is strange but surprising, mixing up drum ‘n bass thythms, Devo-esque lyrics, industrial melodies and a healthy dose of spite. Some of the better lyrics I’ve read in a while, as good as favorites like Lucid Dimentia(3) or Noxious Emotion(4), and while the album doesn’t profess anything extraoridinarily new it certainly takes the best of what’s already been there to create something refreshingly unique.

-review by Marcus Pan

e-lectric – THINGS OUTSIDE THE SKIN “YKIAA” (2005)

Chvad SB — Thu, 13 May 2010 20:46:21 +0000

Review Source: e-lectric
Artist: THINGS OUTSIDE THE SKIN
Release: You Knew It All Along
Label: Facility Records

Translation (courtesy of Emma Olson and Marjorie Wood):

THINGS OUTSIDE THE SKIN are from Brooklyn, New York. The music on their third, 23 track long album should probably be called Electro-Industrial. Not content with just screaming, one can identify many different influences. Punk, Hip Hop and EBM have all had an impact on them. Apart from aggressiveness one can also find complex sounds and experimental tracks on “You Knew It All Along”. It is very dark and noisy, but ever-changing and humorous. How else would you explain the loud and aggressive “Spice Up Your Life” – a Spice-Girls cover? There you go.

Original German text:

Aus dem tiefsten Brooklyn/New York kommen Things Outside The Skin. Die Musik auf ihrem 23 (!!!) Tracks umfassenden dritten Album ist wohl am ehesten als Electro-Industrial zu bezeichnen. Aber hier wird nicht nur gebrüllt und draufgehauen, es sind unglaublich vielschichtige Einflüsse auszumachen. Punk, Hip Hop und EBM sind nicht folgenlos an der Band vorübergegangen. Bei aller Aggressivität sind auf “You Knew It All Along” auch ausgefeilte Sounds und experimentelle Tracks zu finden. Sehr brachial, düster und noisig, aber durchaus abwechslungsreich und mit einer satten Prise Humor gewürzt. Oder wie erklärt man der Dampframmen-Fangemeinde sonst eine Spice Girls-Coverversion? Na also.

Virus Magazine – THINGS OUTSIDE THE SKIN “YKIAA” (2005)

Chvad SB — Thu, 13 May 2010 20:45:36 +0000

Review Source: Virus Magazine
Artist: THINGS OUTSIDE THE SKIN
Title: You Knew It All Along
Label: Facility Records
Rating: 7 out of 10

Um…there are two versions of the Spice Girls’ “Spice Up Your Life.”

Self-described as an “aggro-tech industrial band from Brooklyn, NY”, Things Outside The Skin is one of those bands that is impossible to describe accurately, because the band does not sound like anyone else.

Personally, I have always appreciated bands that take chances and experiment with sound. And that’s what this CD sounds like: an experiment, which is not necessarily a bad thing, depending on what you want to listen to.

Basically, what you have here is a brew of politico-rants chopped in a distorto-matic blender, humorous samples, and pants-around-your-ankles fratboy music devoid of melody and sanity, cruising back and forth between Tribeca partygirls dancing to the Beastie Boys, to smashing beer bottles with slingshots in a subway tunnel with the Residents.

There are 23 tracks of mayhem and skidoo, but with little variation to be found, with the exception of some decent remixes (tracks 15 and 17), and an, albeit brief, untitled sample-gem (track 23).

This CD certainly provides a strong case for less is better. Interesting, but not captivating. 7 out of 10 skulls rating.

-review by Michael Casano

Industrial.org – THINGS OUTSIDE THE SKIN “YKIAA” (2006)

Chvad SB — Thu, 13 May 2010 20:44:32 +0000

Review Source: Industrial.org
Artist: THINGS OUTSIDE THE SKIN
Release: You Knew It All Along
Label: Facility Records

Chvad SB has been making music for about 15 years or so now, first via the project Recherché’ and more recently with Things outside the skin. “You knew it all along” is the first I’ve heard of his stuff and I’m pretty ambivalent as to what I think of this disc. When I first put it on, I really didn’t like it at all, but after multiple listens, it started to grow on me. I can’t say I love it, but it definitely isn’t a total waste of plastic either.

Musically, this disc is pretty decent. It’s not a really new approach, but its nice and there is enough variety to not make you bored. Basically steady beats with nice synth melodies and guitar and bass thrown into the mix, sometimes drifting into a bit more rockish territory, but overall good. Basically a somewhat modified take on the 80′s and early 90′s industrial rock/ coldwave acts with a kind of goofy tinge. Not exactly the type of stuff worth drooling over, but good. No, my main beef here lies with the vocal delivery and the lyrics.

The delivery here is for the most part deadpan distorted talking/ shouting/ rapping, bringing to mind stuff like Revolting Cocks and some Ministry, only with a somewhat more goofy and wacky Devo vibe. I actually can get into the aforementioned bands vocals, but the specific styles here just get on my nerves, as does what is being said a lot of the times. I really agree with the “fuck bush” sentiment, and a lot of the social commentary here, but the juvenile nature of the lyrics really bug me. It just seems really heavy handed and kinda trite in a punk rock way, especially the peta friendly anti-beef anthem “Cow tippin’”, which spots the brilliant chorus of “cow tippin’, yeah yeah yeah yeah!”. I’m really not trying to be mean, as I think I understand where the dudes coming from, but I just can’t get into that type of stuff, its just rubs the wrong way, maybe because I was writing similar things a few years back. I mean, this guy has to at least be in his late twenties, and it just seems immature to me. But when it comes down to it, I do agree with most of his points. I just wish they were expressed in a better fashion.

Having said all that, I want to reiterate that I don’t hate this. I do like it, I just think there are some major flaws. But hey, anybody who can cover the spice girls and still sound cool deserves some respect. And their Devo cover is cool too. This isn’t completely my thing, but I think a lot of other people out there may really dig it. So don’t just suck up my opinion, go judge for yourself!

-review by Royce Icon

DSBP – THINGS OUTSIDE THE SKIN “YKIAA” (2005)

Chvad SB — Thu, 13 May 2010 20:43:45 +0000

Review Source: DSBP
Artist: THINGS OUTSIDE THE SKIN
Release: You Knew It All Along
Label: Facility Records

22 tracks fill up this debut from a very original sounding band that mixes electro,industrial,punk, hip-hop,noise, satire and they have a very strong live presence as well with many shows, and a diverse fan base. Check these guys out if you like SMP, DEVO, Ministry, Consolidated, GodFlesh, Michael Patton..call it edgy industrial punk, if you will. Includes covers of Devo, Spice Girls, and remixes by Hypoid, Headache, Flood Damage,Gothsicles, Heretics in the lab,and more…

-review by Tommy T

Terrorizer Magazine THINGS OUTSIDE THE SKIN “YKIAA” (2006)

Chvad SB — Thu, 13 May 2010 20:42:39 +0000

Review Source: Terrorizer Magazine (issue #136)
Artist: THINGS OUTSIDE THE SKIN
Release: You Knew It All Along
Label: Facility Records
Rating: 4 out of 10

Influences from all over the industrial spectrum make up THINGS OUTSIDE THE SKIN’s sound, incorporating everything from PWEI, Consolidated and 16 Volt to the Beastie Boys to Ministry and GGFH. Get the Picture? What t.o.t.s. do, self-replicating the bands they love, isn’t bad but it’s just not that original.

-review by Alex Boniwell

Industrial.org – THINGS OUTSIDE THE SKIN” YKIAA” (2005)

Chvad SB — Thu, 13 May 2010 20:41:02 +0000

Review Source: Industrial.org
Artist: THINGS OUTSIDE THE SKIN
Release: You Knew It All Along
Label: Facility Records

I have listened to the CD repeatedly and I must say it is quite heterogeneous in nature. The first two tracks are quite hard hitting and I do love them. Hard beats with some fancy glitchy synth lines remind me of an evilized Rob Zombie a tad there. Then we are completely surprised with the Spice Girls parody with track 3 (Spice Up Your Life) which offers some more standard beats paired with vocal craziness and some very weird synthesizers. Track 4 (The Most Appealing Thing) hits it hard again – a tad delivered in a rap/hip-hop style paired with harsh electronica. The same is true for the next track (Going Under). After that – another funny one: The cow song! (Cow Tippin’). Then it gets very hard again with electro-industrial rap (?) (So Emotional Tao). This basically describes the flow of the CD. The tracks change in style between industrial rock to electro-industrial with rap influence to more EBM type tracks, which keeps it interesting for the listener.

My favorite tracks are “American Way” (the lyrics of which I would dedicate to never having found a WMD), “Town & Country” and “Horror Culture” (sounds a bit like Bile meats NIN on LSD).

In addition to 11 original tracks, the CD contains another 8 remixes and 3 radio edits of the tracks. You get a lot for your money and surprisingly, the production is excellent. Very cool mixes!

In regards to the lyrics (to contrast a previous review): I like them! Some of them are grotesque, some harsh as hell (track 1), some funny. Just the right mix for me.

A very solid release with a touch of NY city beats and rap on occasion.

-review by Kai (of Random Insults)