Pitchshifter — Peel Sessions 1991-93

Early 90s Nottingham-based industrial metal pioneers Pitch Shifter entered the BBC's Maida Vale studios on two separate occasions in April 1991 and March 1993 to record sessions for legendary BBC DJ and general underground music expert John Peel. This set compiles both sessions on one disc, six tracks in total, three from each session. "Gritter", "Tendrill "and "Dry Riser Inlet" from the 1991 session and  "(A Higher Form of) Killing  Radio Phuque Edit", "Diable (Wayco Survival Mix)" and "Deconstruction (Reconstruction)" from the 1993 session.

"Gritter" is the first up, and after a short drum intro, we are treated to one of the most brutal-sounding guitar/bass tones ever. JS Clayden’s guttural vocals are crushing here, and the whole thing takes what the likes of Godflesh were doing at this point and shifts it up a gear. It’s a great start to proceedings.  "Tendrill" is next and follows suit with more of the same bruising guitar and bass riffs, abrasive vocals and crushing drums. "Dry Riser Inlet" rounds out the first session with more of the same, however this isn’t a bad thing as all three tracks are bad assed heavy industrial metal with a hint of death metal and grindcore. Also worth mentioning is that despite the band’s utterly brutal sound, there’s still tons of melody to be heard throughout. The recording itself is really nice, the instruments are crystal clear, and you get a real sensation of just how earth-shattering these songs were at the time. 

The second session was recorded around the time of the band’s second full-length album, Desensitized, and it shows a shift in style to something that is still brutal and heavy but marginally less guitar-heavy than their debut album.  "(A Higher Form of) Killing" is a hooky drums and bass-heavy track with punky vocals. Not quite as guitar-heavy as the earlier session, but still brutally heavy in the drums and bass department, there is a definite shift in style to something more akin to what Ministry were doing at the time with its anthemic chants and samples. Diable is up next, and whilst this one takes things down a notch, there is a proggier feel to the proceedings. What we get is a mix of Ministry and Prong with loads of samples and some pretty avant garde guitar playing. The album closer "Deconstruction" shifts things up a gear or two, this is the fastest and heaviest of the three tracks in the second session and reminds me of Ministry at their heaviest with more than a nod to the band’s past as the UKs natural successor to Godflesh.

Overall, this is a very good selection of tracks from one of the UK's great industrial metal pioneers of the 1990s. The first three tracks all featured originally on the band's mini album, Submit, and to be honest, I prefer the Peel sessions versions of all three songs; they sound much heavier and the recording/ production is vastly superior to the originals. The same can be said of the other three tracks, which are drawn from the band’s second full-length album, Desensitized, which also benefits greatly from the better production/ recording of the Peel Sessions. If you’re a fan of Pitchshifter, this is a must buy, and I would also recommend it to anyone who loves industrial metal in general.