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Angel Attack delivers his debut album Divine Practicalities on his label, House of Reptile. The Boston and London-based artist blends several sound palettes, sharing his most poignant body of work to date. The album includes two remixes by Univac and Blind Delon, respectively.
The title track acts as a prelude to the album. A broken-beat, experimental number, it dips into cinematic soundscapes and warbling percussion, which Angel Attack describes as an "introduction to summarise the emotions we are about to experience on the album." Tightening Tension follows suit. It's a mutation of broken techno with electro flavours over a malicious Moog bassline, featuring the vocals of French producer IV Horsemen, whose lyrics conjure a smokey, bone-chilling atmosphere between skittery drums.
Angel Attack dives into a metal-edged mood on Ankles, stitching distorted riffs between broken beats. The energy is visceral. Come To Me is straight-up Japanese Horror-inspired electro, combining eerie textures with thudding kickdrums and a gnarly scream — a freaky trip at just over five minutes.
Franco-Spanish author, singer, DJ and musician Pedro Peñas Robles, aka HIV+, features on Oblivion War. A sludgy, slow-burning soundscape ensues with a deluge of downtempo, hip-hop and EBM textures, complemented by HIV+'s gravelly voice. Whipping up the pace, Wrists blurs the lines between sci-fi, electro and goth. A stinging melody snakes between staccato claps and ghostly pads — lethal energy of the highest order.
Forgotten is the postlude-type track of the album, and this is where Angel Attack's interdisciplinary approach comes to life. It's the most piercing tune of the release, complete with a guitar melody, stripped-back drums and pagan throat chants provided by Angel Attack. An introspective offering, staying with the listener long after the record stops spinning.
Angel Attack invites two of his favourite artists to remix Tightening Tension. Catalan producer Univac twists up the stems, serving a searing electro interpretation with a winding synthline and reverb-drenched vocals. On Blind Delon's remix, the French synthwave and post-punk band seal the album with a dark and sultry 7-minute ride through noise. Potent synth notes and hair-raising vocals punctuate the soundscape, echoing the concept of the release: music as a mirror into the soul.
TRACKLIST
1. Divine Practicalities
2. Tightening Tension ft. IV Horsemen
3. Ankles
4. Come to Me
5. Oblivion War ft. HIV+
6. Wrists
7. Forgotten
8. Tightening Tension ft. IV Horsemen (Univac Remix)
9. Tightening Tension ft. IV Horsemen (Blind Delon Remix)
BIO
Angel Attack is a Boston and London-based producer, DJ and founder of the label House of Reptile. Following several DJ sets in 2022 in key venues like Electrowerkz in London, ://about blank in Berlin, Infra Boston, and formerly helming a two-year residency on Threads Radio, Angel Attack is known for his bewitching sound and dark-tinted aesthetic, bleeding into techno, EBM, electro, synth-wave and post-punk. Having remixed Blind Delon (due for release in 2023), Fairground of Tears' 'Death + Life', Noform's track 'Tochka Damage' and delivered productions like 'Orbits of Happiness' and 'Créature Irréelle' on House of Reptile, Angel Attack is an established producer. His first album offers an insight into his nebulous underworld, affirming his open-minded approach in the studio.