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The
Mekano Set: a dark-roasted blend of spite, noise and extreme
weather conditions.
(zines / press / industry affiliates can contact
us here
to receive a press pack, or a copy of our press .pdf)
If you're looking for a break from pretty boys singing cheeky
chappy mock rock and don't mind the odd yelp of fulfilled desire
over sleazy electro rock then The Mekano Set could be right up
your street.
The Mekano Set cram more talent, excitement
and pre coital energy into a five track EP than most bands in
a 10 album career. This, the first Mekano Set EP, has five demos
that seethe and surge, convulse and contort, twirl and twine.
This is horny female electro goth that makes maximum use of the
effects pedal and sparing use of the vocoder, this is the sound
of melancholic synth rock as sexual stimulant.
First track 'The Hand' , with it's distorted vocals and heavy
breathing, sounds like a pre orgasmic P J Harvey during a particularly
intensive foreplay session with the Sister of Mercy (the band
that is not the religious order!!).
Next up is 'NotNow' which starts with highly suggestive groans
from singer Beth that could make a Eunuch horny and ends like
a pumped up Garbage. There is no let up with ambient third track
'House of Cards' which is a filthy masterpiece reminiscent of
Curve at their deep down dirtiest. On fourth track 'UnWrite' Beth
yelps like an orgasmic teenage opera singer over a banging, venomous
beat courtesy of Milk.
The Devil Has The Best Tuna
"The Mekano Set have a talent
for creating exciting electronic rock fields with edges, a noisy
touch and haunting atmospheres; it's like velvety, melt-in-your-mouth
chocolate ice cream with highly crispy candy splinters."
Virus Magazine.
"Slick spiky electronic rock that screams
darkness beneath a seemingly delicate exterior." Natasha
Scharf, Metal Hammer.
"The Mekano Set get us all worked up
with the promise of a song called 'Dirty Hand Job', and then totally
spoil the mood by being goths... about as menacing as a Crow soundtrack."
Emily Strange Mackay @ The Stool Pigeon.
"Still lamenting for the loss of a
heavier Republica? Yearning for a group to fill the chasm of the
increasingly errant Garbage? Would the idea of Massive Attack
with a confrontational front woman please you? Then The Mekano
Set are for you.
"Powering with swathes of keyboards and subtle programming,
this Brighton-based [trio] are far removed from the current popular
mainstream... 'The Hand' has singer Beth wrenching melancholic
vocal melodies from the book of PJ Harvey, while nefarious guitar
lines lurk throughout... The pulsing beats of 'UnWrite' are half
Jan Hammer / half Nine Inch Nails angst, with [Milk's] distorted
vocals riding tandem with [Beth's] seductive whispers. The whole
effect is like entering an 80's burlesque club in the middle of
filming Miami Vice. The quagmire of sounds doesn't make it the
best track on the EP though, and at times [the track] lacks in
dynamics.
"Not Now is a relaxed affair, allowing the music to breath
and a chance to hear the intricate layering of Milk's guitar /
programming / effects, which are pretty impressive when it's coming
from one man. House of Cards certainly recalls the Kate Bush comparisons
that Mekano might / might not enjoy, but it's a good closing track,
reveling in its own ambient malevolence." Ali MacQueen @
Rock Feedback.
"Seedily attractive, smooth, impressively
catchy, seething power..." Mick Mercer.
"Filthy electro-rock... like some kind
of beautiful crime." Niall O'Keeffe.
"Delicate, filthy, post coital purr."
Bubblegum Slut.
"Tracks swirl through the mists of
Milk's effects pedals, drawing the listener towards the prowling
pout of singer Beth. Unwrite and NotNow are stomping industrial
monsters, noise threatening to shear your cochlea clean away as
they drive into your head, on the back of momentous bass lines.
Reel to Real is less direct but no less disorientating. impressive
and compelling stuff." Meatbreak / Souce Magazine.
Brighton, UK based The Mekano Set aka Beth
(vocals), Patrick (bass), and Milk (vocals, guitar, beats) lead
us into a soundscape where (post-) rock and electronics grippingly
melt together.
The result is an amalgam between power and beauty, an interplay
between crunchy, forceful, at times even dirty and inclement effecting
moments and smooth, deep, and atmospheric carpets.
Imagine Cocteau Twins, Android Lust, Collide, Curve, and Trent
Reznor working on a Twin Peaks score and you get at least a little
idea.
Beth’s vocals are accompanying the moods and tempos of the
songs quite varied, switching between sexy, subtle, magic, and
demanding.
The MCD opens with "The Hand", a restrained piece that
serves a trippy but powerful rhythm that goes hand in hand with
guitar riffs and Beth's lush vocals. The atmosphere is quite nightly,
kinda sci-fi-driven, and painted with a certain fragrance of danger
whilst a post punk-ish flair shimmers through the surface.
"UnWrite" crosses the speakers with a pulsating tempo,
a certain seductive monotonous underlying tone and a notably droning,
juicy bass line. Beth accompanies this track with slightly distorted,
partly whispered vox.
"Dirty Hand Job" is an adrenaline-driven midtempo trip
with a strong, groovy rhythm and a certain filthy atmosphere.
Amidst the song one is confronted with a calm break that allows
to take a breath before the liveliness continues its way.
The Mekano Set have a talent for creating exciting electronic
rock fields with edges, a noisy touch and haunting atmospheres;
it's like velvety, melt-in-your-mouth chocolate ice cream with
highly crispy candy splinters. Breda, Virus
Magazine, 20 Jan 2007
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