Monoid — Satisfaction Shift

Active since the mid-1990s Monoid is the abstract industrial/ noise-edged electronica project of Germany’s Martin Steinebach (Compest, Conscientia Peccati, EM1V, StillStand). Satisfaction Shift is the project's 11th full-length album- it appears as a pro-pressed CDR on Oxidation.

The album features eight tracks in total-these have runtimes between four & eight minutes a piece. And it’s an album deep in uneasy moodiness, with a thick & paranoid production-  that’s often bass-bound brooding & sound layer detailed- featuring whispered/ unsettling hissed vocals, and troubling dialogue samples.
 
We move from the muffled bass purr meets slowly swirling electro disquiet of “Satisfy” which opens with a sample of a woman talking about a drug-hazed sexual attack. Before later on shifted into chilling whispered male vocals over its suffocating and trudging soundscape- which in its last quarter takes in touches of ethnic ambient percussion into the mix.  Onto wound down techno slug meets muffled vocal hazing of “HowItShouldbe” which towards its final throws adds in jarring electro blips ‘n’ blops
 
In the album's second half, we move from “Polarity” which begins all brooding bass synth purr meets angularly twittering electronics. Before kicking into snaping ‘n’ hiss beat craft, pitch swoop ‘n’ whistling, and moody synth scaping. Onto “Statis” with its sinister spray electro textures, sinister bass tone bob, uneasy dialogue chatter, and whispered male vocals.
 
 
From its beginning to end  Satisfaction Shift creates a very tangible feeling of grim, at times decidedly anxious unease. And I must say I was rather taken/ impressed by the whole thing- so I will certainly be checking out some of the project's back catalogue. To hear samples, and pick up a copy of Satisfaction Shift drop in here.