PAIN
REBIRTH
ALBUM STOCKHOLM RELEASE: DECEMBER 24, 2000 REVIEW: JANUARY 19, 2000


Pain is everywhere. It’s not often a Swedish industrial artist gets this kind of backing from a major company. No doubt, the success of bands like Rammstein and Marilyn Manson has opened the door.
Pain is a solo project by the respected producer Peter Tägtgren. Almost every famous black metal gang has travelled to his Abyss Studio. He has also released eight albums and toured the world with his band Hypocrisy. I guess he is no celebrity among the Release readers though. “Rebirth” is his second effort to incorporate metal and machines.
Mr Tägtgren describes his music like E-Type meets Metallica. An accurate and good description if one wants to reach the masses and not the people who has cared for industrial rock sounds for years on end. He claims that he never liked electronic music before. And that there aren’t many artists performing machine metal. Good morning to you.
This is Rammstein light without important balancing details like whistles or computer game melodies. Or a Die Krupps echo seven long years after “II – the Final Option”.
The problem is that I like “Rebirth”... The music’s not new, but it’s very well made. This man knows what he’s doing. While many acts lose themselves in all the sound mayhem, Tägtgren has put a lot of effort into balancing the heavy and fat production. He also delivers real, down to earth songs that are dangerously catchy.
So even though I’ve heard dozens of records like this, I don’t mind after all.

MIKAEL KAHRLE