Gearwhore

Drive (Astralwerks)
by Chris Best

As I listened to this for the first time, I was astonished at how much it reminded me of old Wax Trax stuff. Wax Trax updated for 1998, that is. The beats hooked me, the harsh industrial sounds kept me listening, and every track was awesome, not some lame tax write-off album for Astralwerks. It’s harsh enough for industrial fans and dance-oriented enough for club kids and has every right to sound like Chicago industrial, considering Brian “Gearwhore” Natonski is from Chicago and was part of that whole scene (according to his bio, he worked at Chicago Trax for a while, too). It’s evident from his work that his new home in Southern California hasn’t softened him. This is killer.
(104 W. 29th St. New York, NY 10001)