Shortly after 2002’s album “Concrete”, which was to appease
Roadrunner Records’ album number requirement the band had agreed upon, another
such release would follow in the form of a compilation known as, “Hatefiles”.
Now, the major difference between the two obligatory releases is that
“Concrete” was essentially the songs that appeared on “Soul of a New Machine”,
but the unfiltered versions of those songs recorded under the “Ulceration”
banner. That, along with a few other demos and a couple unrealized tracks made
“Concerete” more of a compilation of demos and rough recordings as opposed to
an album. “Hatefiles” on the other hand, is a straight compilation, composed of
unreleased and remixed tracks.
To those unfamiliar, Fear Factory has hand a hand in movie
soundtracks as well as video game soundtracks, some of which I had never heard
or realized until the release of “Hatefiles”. The first four tracks are from
the video game world, "Terminator: Dawn of Fate", “Frequency” and
“Demolition Racer” to be exact, none of which I played in the past. They are
solid tracks, that perhaps do not sound like they could be a part of any
particular Fear Factory album, they do however, carry they Fear Factory sound. The songs' industrial
nature and thick, groovy atmosphere make these songs a welcome addition fan any
Fear Factory fan.
The next two are radio edits of previous songs
"Invisible Wounds (Dark Bodies)"and “Resurrection”. Now, “Resurrection”
has a nice change up to its sound, retaining its core, but is more condensed
and shortened to give more impact. but
the edit of "Invisible Wounds (Dark Bodies) the Suture Remix” is one of my
favorite Fear Factory songs of all time. I enjoyed the original version on
Digimortal, but remix has some much more emotion and spunk to its sound that I
always learn toward it before the original. The song was also featured on the
Resident Evil Soundtrack.
The rest of the tracks are techno versions of previous songs
similar to “Fear is the Mindkiller” or “Remanufacture”, a demo and a live track.
Of the entire collection, I found the video game tracks, the radio edits and
the lone demo ("Dark Bodies") to be the most interesting. The techno
remixes are saturated with heavy dosages of electronic and synthesizers that
give the original recordings a bouncy and dance club vibe to them, so fans of
such should find a little goodness here as well.
Rating: 2.5
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