Satisfaction, inc. is a one-"man" gothic/industrial/electronic "band" from Kankakee, IL. The artist is a former bassist of Kankakee's premier early-2000's rap-rock band PLAN: BE, and former multi-instrumentalist of Carbondale, Illinois' death-punk band DREK SQUAD and electronic band BANGA PETRO. For his solo effort the artist released Dirt Sounds.
Breakup albums are nothing new but there’s a reason they are made. People can relate and also serves as a catharsis for the artist as well in my opinion. The album begins “Superfluous” and you get an atmospheric soundscape with lush pads and a steady beat. There are some samples in the song that sound like an old court hearing as well lead vocals. I thought the delivery for the vocals was inventive and had a unique approach to delivery. There are some changes in BPM and proved to be an intricate song with complexity. “The Sophistication” is a great song. The beat is steady and synths ping against the mix. I thought the layering was well done. It creates this soothing soundscape with the distorted vocals coming through the song. It also happens to be a catchy tune. “Two Million” felt like this lo-fi version of a band like Tool with a side of grunge. The guitar is prominent here but the artist is able to embrace the programmed drums. I thought the vocals were ominous and he leans into an affectation. There’s a good amount of emotion on display. The production on “Not Accurate” was psychedelic and fluid. There’s some organ and phaser on top of the song. The artist might be using a bit crusher as well. I loved the vocals on this song and it contains some of my favorite lines. “Times are tough all over, kid, so please pull up a chair. Another joke to please the crowd, and then we roll the snare.” The artist's essence was starting to emerge more and more to me as the album continued with “Princes of the Renaissance”, “Wider Implications” and “Mister Gratitude”. There were standouts I encourage you to listen to. “Operation: Project Codename” is a slow burn and one of the more subdued songs with noir-like feeling. Filters mutate the song on this smoky song which enhances the ephemeral like quality. The closer “Don't Get Up” put a lot of the artist's strengths on display. My main critique is sometimes I felt the dynamics could be improved. This was happening for a number of reasons but the album as a whole was fairly lo-fi. I felt like there was a lot of pent up energy on this album. Suffice it to say I hope it helps him and others when a bad breakup occurs. Take a listen.
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