Danny - Vocals
Lee - Guitar
Lu - Bass
Mike - Drums
Phil - Keyboards

SYSTEMYK: "Cross Contamination"    systemyk          Casket Music 

      

Recorded at Philia Studios, Henley-On-Thames, UK
Produced and engineered by Nick Hemingway

review by Jelenes ___  

A trip into unhealthy minds. 

Lyrics and music bleed this malaise.

First LP for the UK metal indus band Systemyk that confirms the impressions we had listening to their demos from '04 'What Makes Me Human' and '05 'The Victim': this band has a big and impressive potential and creativity to deliver. Every musician has his/her importance, each instrument clearly identifiable and all mixing up well together. 'Cross Contamination' is a great combination of 13 melodic and energetic indus, metal and electro tracks with sharp, heavy guitars, pounding bass and drums and ethereal keyboards. Vocals are powerful, belching and angry and let you catch a glimpse of Danny's vocal abilities. This is a singer who can only get better and better with time. This album promises some great vocal performances from Danny on the next releases. Though the listener might be surprised by his singing at first. Indeed he doesn't add more melody to the songs and if you listen carefully you'll realise that it's a clever choice. 'Cross Contamination' has killer choruses, the kind of choruses that get stuck in your head at once. With a more melodic singing these songs would have become more commercial, and precisely Systemyk is not a commercial band. It's obvious on songs like 'Empty With You' and 'Deaf Ears' with their tormented but nonetheless catchy atmosphere or 'Darkside' and its pulsing, pounding catchiness that they could be 'hits' among the goth metal, indus and dark electro 'average' fans. However Systemyk's music requires one thing from the listener: attention and concentration. If you wish to get into their music the best thing to do is to listen to this album with headphones at night.You will get a better idea of what this band is capable of. They haven't chosen the easy path and this choice shows a very professional, mature and honest approach to the music.

Right from the first track 'Fear Inside' the direction of the whole album is clearly indicated. All the elements that define Systemyk's personality are here: Lee's monolithic heavy and haunting guitars, a clear and heavy drums sound, cold and ethereal keyboards, solid bass guitar. The songs are woven onto the same pattern but they come out in a variety of forms. Some have an emphasized rhythmic section, giving bass player Lu and drummer Mike more space to lay their pounding and pulsing notes and double pedal parts. Others will allow keyboard player Phil to bring whether a clubbing atmosphere or complete ethereal, ghost-like key layers that will stress the colder aspect of Systemyk's music.
Every song has a 'hit' potential like mentioned earlier and will certainly appeal to all those into dark music, be it heavy and 'straight in your face' or more melodic and mind-blowing with a gothic flavor. 'Cross Contamination' is a trip into unhealthy minds, with their emotional violence, their moments of lucidity, their despair. Lyrics and music bleed this malaise. 'Promises' and 'Impostors' are the most metal oriented tracks on the album. Relentless and upbeat tempo, with a wall of guitars and killer riffs, while keyboard layers add a haunting dimension, 'Promises' will have you headbanging and singing along the chorus that's stores itself in your brain at once. On 'Impostors' Lu delivers some groovy bass lines upon which Lee weaves a lace of lead guitar echoed by the indus sounding keys. A more elaborate and technical song, 'Impostors' alternates powerful and calmer parts, even though the band keeps the energy level high.
'Her Laughter' is an intense insane song. Lee's guitar is obsessive just like the chorus, again unforgettable and Danny sounds like a possessed man. 'Empty With You' is another intense, sad song. Here the band slows down to deliver a more emotional, heavy and tormented song. On solid bass and drums the keyboard layers float and stir you while the guitars pour down their heaviness. This is a track that will certainly appeal to all those who like dark heavy stuff with a touch of goth metal atmosphere.    
This same goth metal side of the band is showed in the beautiful instrumental interlude 'Contaminate'. Some delicate piano notes sustained by ghostly key layers of cold sounds announce a pleasant following. And it's called 'Questions'. Definitely an 80s keyboard intro that opens you the door of a nightclub, but don't expect to dance! Lee intervenes again with his heavy guitar riffs, this is a song where Danny delivers one of his best vocal performance. Angry but not screaming, always powerful, he has found the right balance between burning anger and cold resignation that matches perfectly the lyrics. One of the most fun choruses of the whole album, 'Questions' is a remarkable track and highly enjoyable.
Like mentioned at the beginning, Systemyk has already released demos, one of them being 'What Makes Me Human' in January 2004 that featured 'Ghost In The Machine'. We find this great track again on 'Cross Contamination'. Electro goth keyboards, heavy metal and distorted guitars, solid rhythmics and groovy and powerful bass lines, angry vocals makes a compact and energetic track. A pure Systemyk song, where every element that makes the band recognisable are present, coherent and well mixed. A killer track!

It is with a great pleasure that we hear a full length album from Systemyk. Their demos had some very exciting and promising songs and 'Cross Contamination' proves the band is up to it! Every song is a piece of great dark and intense music. Their talent shines through every single track, showing us Systemyk is more than just a metal indus act. They are more than that and this album is a proof. These young people have definitely a lot to tell and if you are into dark music -metal, indus, goth, electro- Systemyk is a band you have to follow.
In closing, congratulations Lu on her great work not only on bass but also on the artwork. She is the one who made this beautiful, sophisticated and elegant artwork, in total accordance with the music. I tell you these people are talented. Check them out!

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