Atrocity Machine by Body Void

Whenever I critically engage with a new album, usually my biggest takeaways aren’t about the songwriting or the instrumental features. What’s more interesting to me is the context of each record–not only where it fits within a subgenre and how it plays into or subverts expectations, but what it says about the culture, attitudes, hopes, and fears of the people who recorded that album. And for a record like Atrocity Machine by Body Void, this chaotic release tells listeners a lot about the fatalistic zeitgeist that we all face today.

Like a long-term nuclear waste warning message, Atrocity Machine uses sharp, evocative imagery to show that nothing good lies ahead on our current path. The introduction “Microwave” consists of a half-minute of low oscillating drone, a paranoia-inducing tone that sets the stage for the rest of this release. What follows feels like watching a car crash in slow motion. Each track sinks further into a black hole of doom sludge—obliterating any sense of hope that dares to enter, and twisting gravity under the weight of each gut-churning riff. The final song, “Atrocity Machine” is perhaps the most depressing track on this record, a solid 10 minutes of tortured mourning for the state of the world, with no happy endings.

Full of defeatist politics, thick with distortion and industrial noise, and played at a dirge pace, this record isn’t exactly an easy listen. But for those who need to purge their pessimism, Atrocity Machine offers the perfect soundtrack. Assuming society doesn’t fully collapse within the next two months, we expect this record will be on a few end of the year lists. -Kalen