"Poor Alex. Lucky listener.": A review of Spacemak3r's "Spacemak3r II"

Ladies and gentlemen!

A few years ago I discovered the outstanding lyrical, musical and visual project Spacemak3r and reviewed its first output with enthusiasm. You can read my review under the following link and I can tell you that it's still valid since the band has never stopped to fascinate me since I discovered it: http://kluseba.eklablog.com/spacemak3r-spacemak3r-2010-10-10-a58676793

Last year, the project finally released its follow-up and I can tell you that the second record is just as great as the debut album. Please take a look at my detailed review, check out the band's fascinating clips and support this overlooked project by purchasing its unique music on iTunes or on their personal webstore for a truly fair price.

Please enjoy the music and take care!

Sincerely yours,

Sebastian Kluth

Spacemak3r is an interesting project from Quebec City that convinces artistically, lyrically and musically. The band's splendid artworks on the album covers and booklets, their visually stunning video clips and even the different actors and settings on stage recall Tim Burton movies in a colourful yet somber way. The different songs talk about a schizophrenic boy called Alexander who is making up imaginary characters who are haunting him day by day. The band's music is a vivid mixture of bass-dominated nu metal in the key of KoRn, straight industrial metal à la Marilyn Manson, contemporary metalcore acts like Trivium, symphonic gothic metal recalling the underrated Le Grand Guignol and dystopian dubstep elements that remind me of Skrillex among others.

As if this incredible mixture of genres wasn't enough, the band also invited creative photographer Paul Di Giacomo who is also a member of the hardcore band Never More Than Less and violonist Sébastien Savard to perform on two of the eleven new tracks. Paul Di Giacomo appears on the vivid "Rock Bottom" that sounds like a mixture of early Rammstein and early Linkin Park with a mean twist. Sébastien Savard appears on the epic album closer "Violince" that also offers a short hidden passage. The track sounds like a majestic Apocalyptica song with dubstep elements that add a more dystopian and maddening feeling to it.

While all songs are great in their own way, I need to point out a few personal highlights. "Through the Mirror" is one of the calmer tracks and slowly builds up a nightmarish atmosphere with distorted guitar sounds, dominantly slapping bass licks, epic symphonic sound samples, electronic sound samples and hypnotizing vocal effects. Each stylistic element works perfectly in this tune and the different sounds don't collide in a chaotic way but fusion to build something truly atmospheric and unique. This track presents everything Spacemak3r stands for. It's highly recommended to listen to this song at night to increase its scary atmosphere. "Trick 'r Treat" is a crazy up-tempo track with heavy dubstep influences and a lot of uneasy scratching parts that make you want to jump around and go insane. This is probably the weirdest song on an amazingly disturbing album.

In the end, this record is probably the scariest album since the gothic metal masterpiece "Carpathia: A Dramatic Poem" by The Vision Bleak which came out ten years earlier and happens to be one of my favourite records of all times. This record is just as great as the first Spacemak3r release and I hope this project will finally get the credit it deserves since this is easily the best contemporary rock or metal band from the beautiful province of Quebec. I hope these guys play some more concerts in the future and don't hesitate to book shows in Ottawa or all over Canada in general.

Final rating: 10/10

Here are some additional video clips:

1. The story behind the project (in French):

2. The project live in concert at l'Agitée in Quebec City in 2014:

3. Non-album track "Jingle Bell Rock" (2012):

Please support the band and check out the following links:

Facebook: http://fr-ca.facebook.com/spacemak3r

Homepage: http://www.spacemak3r.com/

iTunes: http://itunes.apple.com/ca/artist/spacemak3r/id398437399?l=fr