Review: Death Valley High – Cvlt (As Fvk)

If you like your music electro-ish and goth-tinged then come on in… I may have something for you. Imagine Marilyn Manson, but slightly more off-kilter in terms of rhythm, with a skipful of rusty industrial metal dumped in the middle and we’re into Death Valley High Territory.

death-valley-high-cvlt-as-fvk-artworkCvlt (As Fvk) is twelve tracks of abrasive alt-industrial metal designed to scrub the flesh from your skeleton and reveal the chrome beneath. Some tracks are straight on rockers, such as opener “Sunshine Cleaners” and “Groei Donker” – both very different but equivalent in terms of heaviness.

That Manson influence is more clearly felt throughout the likes of recent single “Ick Switch” with its bass-heavy groove harking back just a bit to “Beautiful People”.

The thing with this album is that it’s easy to hear influences from many acts kicking around here and there. But as soon as you think you have it pegged as a bit too much like something you’ve heard before, it turns tail on you and skewers you with the resultant twist. It’s more mathcore than Manson, but more electro-goth than Dillinger Escape Plan; more mainstream than Fear Factory, but heavier than Sisters of Mercy.

“Ick Switch” (below) was a good choice for a pre-album release single, being one of the best tracks on here. I’d have been tempted to go with “Merci [FVKT]”, though. It’s a great piece of classic goth-rock embellished with electronic overtones, and an absolute catchy toe-tapper even on the first listen.

Overall, the album is like a blindfold pick’n’mix: no two tracks are quite the same, but they’re all pretty tasty.

Cvlt (As Fvk) was released on November 4th and picking it up via Amazon helps support this site: [amazon text=download] / [amazon text=CD&asin=B01M16G5IE]

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