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REVIEW: Die Form - "Rain of Blood" Austin Govella and Nicholette Marie
Die Form, pronounced "deform," and performing deformed electronic dance music. Philippe Fichot founded Die Form in 1978 on a bed of experimental sounds and loops. Staunchly non-pop for 22 years, Fichot's music combines eccentric sounds with experimental electronic rhythms. Lately, Fichot lays the whole over a danceable beat. This is far away from your typical gothic/darkwave. Die Form is too classy for that. Rain of Blood throws six songs at you. Only Radiomorphism is entirely new. Catchy, upbeat, mechanistic electronics and lots of open space in the song drive along with a steady beat. Philippe provides affected vocals. Cevin Key remixes Rain of Blood from Die Form's last album, Duality. The nice remix adds some sway to the rhythm. As with most Download remixes, it sounds a little dub-infected, and it's nothing spectacular: dark, experimental electronics leaning towards the dance floor. Theoretically, Automatic Love 2 remixes a previous song, but I can't find where it was originally released. The song's main riff is slightly reminiscent of Love is cold 1 and 2 from Duality. Easily the catchiest song on the single, a solid 4/4 dance rhythm marches beneath almost playful sequences, pausing on the break to add a bit of mystery. Automatic Love's simple song structure belies Fichot's compositional skill. Fichot revists La jeune fille et la mort on this single as well. As with the original, Eliane starts with a long, slow operatic intro laid over somber, classically arranged keyboards very similar to something you've heard before. On Duality, the song ends after a brief run, but in this version, Fichot grafts a slow, swanky rhythm, supplanting the staid neo-classical atmospheres with something altogether decadent and decayed, the operatic stylings processed through 21st century post-apocalyptic grime. Rounding out the single are remixes of Anode Current and Rain of Blood both performed by Fichot, and both from Duality as well. A solid single, Rain of Blood illustrates Fichot's dance instincts, as well as his staunch experimentalism. With the emphasis on danceable remixes, Rain of Blood is a little friendlier to ears, put-off by Die Form's harsh electronic fetish, but Die Form is still Die Form.
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