[Pookie]

Originally Posted by sonicl

A rather kinder review.

Uniform - "Protocol"

From 'The Wire' issue #266

2nd Gen's Wajid Yaseen follows up "Not A Word", his 2003 Uniform debut, with a more focused and assured collection of dark electronic half-songs. "Protocol" sees him abandoning beats altogether for abrasive drones and brittle atmospheres. But, thankfully, he avoids the sulphurous murk of his Dark Ambient peers. Whereas its predecessor sounded thin and unfinished, Yaseen's tracks here serve as perfect backdrops to an impressive array of guest performances. Lydia Lunch's wry self-parody and Dalek's grand guignol macho posturing raise smiles and send shivers simultaneously.

Germseed's Alice Kemp provides material of unspeakable depravity for two monologues that can't help but suggest the Throbbing Gristle of "Hamburger Lady".

Alan Vega sounds more swaggeringly committed than at any time since the second Suicide album, certainly far more at home than he did with Pan Sonic. And Terry Edwards takes flight on sax on "The Symbolist", in a performance of genuine fury that recalls and surpasses the screaming clarinet workouts of Richard H Kirk with early Cabaret Voltaire.

That's what I said.