BIO-TEK THE CEREMONY OF INNOCENCE ALBUM DOPPLER EFFECT RELEASE: APRIL 23, 2002 REVIEW: MAY 22, 2002

I've been a fan of Jonathan Sharp's work since hearing New Mind in 1992. His use of different styles has always been a pleasure to hear.
In 1996, after releasing two albums as New Mind, Mr Sharp embarked on another musical endeavour entitled Bio-Tek. This entity's purpose was to allow him to make EBM music in the best way it can be done: a tribute band. It is for this reason (and many others) that Bio-Tek has always impressed me. The concept of managing to squeeze out something from a genre that is absolutely dead for me is an intriguing one.
With this, the fourth entry in the Bio-Tek discography a stark change has taken place, one which makes me really really curious what the next New Mind CD will sound like. The tracks themselves have a more compact and compressed feel to them. The anger which is brooding on this release is quite malevolent to behold. The first track is an atmospheric intro which then bleeds into the dance-floor killer "Reborn".
If other bands who take their EBM work seriously heard this, I'd dare think they'd be tempted to hang it up. The man makes it sound so easy when it so isn't. "The Ceremony of Innocence" is a highly polished and well-produced album which has some devastatingly powerful moments and towards the end, cinematic bliss which just floors me.
A key track to listen to is entitled "Vengeance Not Victory", you work out who its aimed at. Wickedly funny stuff to hear. The only low point of the album comes in the form of the 3" bonus disc which is included in the box-set version of this release. It contains a Bio-Tek track and an Oneroid Psychosis track with both bands remixing each other's work. Bio-Tek's remix is a good one, Oneroid Psychosis' remix is extraneous to be kind but not nearly as mind-numbingly dull as Inertia's remake of "Vengeance Not Victory".
This release is well worth picking up if you like dark electronic dance/soundtrack-ish music that doesn't take itself too seriously.

PETER MARKS