Following on the heels of this year’s new full-length release Abandoned Language, New Jersey underground doomy hip-hop masters Dalek have teamed up with Hydra Head Records to document some rare cuts.
Spanning the last seven years, this collection of thirteen tracks includes four remixes (including Enon’s “In This City”) as well as nine unreleased or rare B-sides, comp tracks, or alternate versions of songs. Though many rarity compilations seem to do more to date the artist involved and wind up being aimed at die hard fans, Deadverse Massive Vol. 1 boasts a roster of material that is all top notch and is arranged in such a manner that it could easily be a new, full-length release on its own.
In its own right a subtle art, the way this album is put together so skillfully is a compliment to both artist and Hydra Head Records, which has issued its first hip hop release with Deadverse Massive Vol. 1. Dalek‘s droning, discordant loops and distorted beats lend themselves more to a bleak and dark genre such as hardcore than they do to traditional hip hop.
With many of the tracks being ambient, instrumental pieces, the few tracks that do feature Dalek‘s vocals are, as always, strong and powerful tracks that showcase their talent for strong lyricism and vocal delivery. This disc nicely blends the ambient, droning tracks with the more traditional vocal tracks seamlessly, creating an atmosphere that is as dark and despairing as it is empowering and powerful.
– Chris Smith
Dalek (Hydra Head)