Skinny Puppy – “Back & Forth”
Back when I was in the 7th or 8th grade, I came across two songs by Skinny Puppy, the first being “Hexonxox” and the second being “Cult” and the vast difference in sound, instrumentation and vocals absolutely bewildered me that the same band had produced both sounds. So, I took the deep dive, I started with “Rabies” and then “VIVIsectVI” – “Bites” and so forth. But the one that had alluded me during all that time was “Back & Forth” – of course, by late high school we had things like BitTorrent, Limewire, Blogspots that had rips and Apple iTunes, so it made the music contained on this tape very accessible. But still, nothing beats the feel of actual physical media (pun intended.) and I had to find this tape, eventually, four years ago I found a copy for a really, really good price and here we have copy number 29 of 50 in this reissue.
The A-Side opens with “Sleeping Beast“, to describe anything that comes from Skinny Puppy is always a challenge, because it is so well constructed and written, the beat keeps you hooked and the vocals are entrancing. You really have to give a lot of credit to cEvin Key and Nivek Ogre for their work. I had read somewhere that the sampling done of shows, movies, etc. on early Skinny Puppy is some of the first use of sampling in music, whether or not that is true, I don’t know. That little guitar solo at the end is beautiful, though it does come off as ominous and dark. Next up, my favorite track on this release “K9” – which I read online that the song is about domestic abuse through the eyes of a dog. Once more, whether or not that’s true, I do not know. However, musically and vocally, I find the song absolutely phenomenal. “Quiet Solitude” closes out the A-Side, and this is another song that just does it all for me. It’s got the beat, the rhythm is great, vocally and lyrically, it’s impressive. 10/10 a solid track.
The B-Side opens with “The Pit” and it’s got that synth tone starting it before cEvin comes in with those effects, the beat is good, a bit drone-y to start but that’s what we like. This music really keeps you hooked because you really don’t know what you’re going to hear next. “Dead of Winter” comes next, and it starts with like these ‘wooshing‘ noises and inaudible vocals, but once more entrancing in a way that almost makes you feel uneasy. Honestly though, not the creepiest song on the album. The ending of the track is a little creepy and off-putting. (In a good way.) “A.M. / Meat Flavor” comes next, and in my opinion, probably the creepiest track on the album with the beat of the music picking up pace with each passing second, distorted groans / moans in the back, and the creepy elfen like voice talking over the music before the track suddenly stops, before the voice comes back over some distortion repeating the line “ate human flesh” before the song cuts, leaving us to end the album with “Edge of Insanity” which is quiet, peaceful and once more ominous, but after everything that had been heard up this point, it has almost a calming effect like you’re now in a place of peace and harmony.
In the end, it definitely ranks up in my top 5 favorite Skinny Puppy albums. Their later stuff with Dwayne Goettel is legendary.
Catalog Number:
None.
Credits:
Keyboards, Drumbox, Tape, Effekt, Voice, Engineer, Mixer and Producer – Cevin Key
Vocals & Lyrik – Nivek Ogre
*Being an unofficial release, it is important to note that cEvin Key did not have anything to do with the production of this specific release.
Released:
1986
Find it on Discogs:
