ITCN, the EBM project created by Victor ML in 2008, has just released its fifth album, aptly titled Survivor. The band released their first EP in 2010, preceded by several demos, and a year later, their first full-length, entitled Forward!. Their new work combines EBM, dark electro, synthpop and industrial and is available on CD and digital download. They will be opening for China Crisis in Madrid on the 17th of June, a perfect occasion to see both bands.
Survivor includes 15 tracks in which each song has a year connected with the title and in which they face, from their particular point of view, notable events that occurred on those dates, not always so obvious. Overall, we found the album to contain some pretty good tracks. It’s diverse enough to keep your attention and it looks back to a style that many of us love.
“1999 – Data Breach” is the short intro that introduces us to the sonic universe of the album. The album follows with “2020 – Baggage” a catchy 90’s EBM track, with synths that give it a dark electro feel. With a heavier and more marked rhythm we have “1961 – Divided”, with that aggressive touch of the best EBM. One of the best tracks. “1305 BC – Shadows”, on the other hand, has a futurepop feel a la And One. “1808 – Riot” is the fifth track, disturbing, with a powerful chorus, while “2013 – Hope” is an instrumental. In the middle of the album, we find “1984 – Control”, with its striking keyboards. It’s the track with the best chances of becoming a hit, and it’s another sample of quality futurepop. “2021 – Eternal” is a slow and intense, less aggressive track, Survivor‘s sensitive moment. With the revealing name of “1980 – 80’s Are Dead” we have a fun and danceable synth pop/futurepop composition. After the instrumental “1242 – Beat It”, Survivor continues with “1972 – Talion”, another dark (redundant) dark electro track. ITCN slows down and gets more intense on “2014 – Propaganda” and delivers another powerful track in the form of “1760 – Industrial Revolution”, EBM with light industrial touches. We approach the end with a cover of Rammstein‘s “16 AD – Deutschland” sung in German, with an emotional piano ending. I admit I’m not a big fan of the popular industrial metal band, but the version is not bad. The album comes to an end with “2022 – War”, a slower, more industrial and intense song.
