Dead Channel Sky in Bloomington, MN

Having previously recorded an Afrofuturist space opera (2016's
Splendor & Misery
) and twin albums evoking '90s horrorcore (2019's
There Existed an Addiction to Blood
and 2020's
Visions of Bodies Being Burned
), experimental noise-rap trio
clipping.
channel cyberpunk as well as revolutionary hip-hop and electro from the '80s and '90s with their fifth studio full-length,
Dead Channel Sky
. Opening with a sampled modem squeal, an instant memory trigger for anyone who was using the Internet before the 21st century, the release feeds on technological paranoia with breathless, rapid-fire rhymes about surveillance cameras and code-cracking. The fever-pitch lyrics are matched with production recalling dance music at its most headstrong, with "Dominator" based around a sample of the
Human Resource
rave classic of the same name, and the aggressive big beat of "Change the Channel" sounding like it would've been at home on the soundtrack to
The Matrix
along with
the Prodigy
and
Propellerheads
. "Run It" feels like a sequel to "The Deep,"
's 2017 single that took direct inspiration from the underwater mythology of Detroit electro duo
Drexciya
. "Dodger" is a noise-spiked drum'n'bass chase scene, while "Ask What Happened" taps into the more atmospheric side of jungle. "Mirrorshades pt. 2," named after a 1986 cyberpunk short story anthology, is more club-friendly, starting out like
Akufen
-style glitch-house before welcoming stylish guest verses by Canadian duo
Cartel Madras
. The tracks set to slower tempos, like the acid-dipped "Keep Pushing" and the
Aesop Rock
-featuring "Welcome Home Warrior," are somewhat comforting as they prioritize order over chaos, but they're still tense and thrilling.
is
at their most techno-shocked, reconnecting with the nexus of hip-hop and sci-fi fused by pioneers like
Afrika Bambaataa
in the early '80s. ~ Paul Simpson