text: Oscar Wendt

N.K.V.D.

Totalitarian Industrial Oppression

Krucyator Productions

October 17th, 2016

Think of the Soviet Union. Think of the ruthless political repression. Think of industrial black metal. Done it? Then you get the creation called N.K.V.D. which is an obvious reference to the infamous Soviet agency. If you have heard of Autokrator, the most vicious industrial black metal creation out there, you know what you can expect from N.K.V.D. as it’s another venture of the same guy, the Frenchman called Loïc F. Totalitarian Industrial Oppression is a compilation uniting two previous releases, Diktatura and Vlast, together to establish an ultimate assembly of the most uncompromising industrial music you can imagine. The album has seen the light of day on the October 17th through Krucyator Productions and Clan of Exclusion.

There aren’t many bands or projects I know that move in the similar musical regions so I think it’s good to look at the album from the perspective of its hermetic canons. When I made myself familiar with Autokrator last year, I was mercilessly knocked off my feet with its extremely heavy and profound undertone which could probably make ‘normal‘ people end up in some mental institutions. N.K.V.D. sounds a little bit different – it is still exceptionally dirty and unapproachable for an inexperienced individual, but it does have a feeling of a little less chaos. Or maybe a bit more controlled chaos. Don’t get me wrong however – that controlled chaos is still overwhelming and I think this is the best way to initially describe Totalitarian Industrial Oppression.

N.K.V.D.’s cold and deep sound is seasoned with some frequent samples referring to USSR’s dictatorship. It feels that the music is a perfect interpretation of this particular period with its brutality acting like an accreditation of extrajudicial killings or political assassinations. What I also like about this release is the variety of tempos. It’s not like it’s the indestructible wall of electronic drums blasts – some songs feature really nice atmospheric riffs building up the grim aura of totalitarian oppression.

Totalitarian Industrial Oppression might bring some Mysticum to your mind, but it is governed by its own rights and regulations. It paves its own way in the black metal scene and includes some features characteristic only for its author’s creative work. Loïc F seems to be consistent in his music but, at the same time, he can distinguish both Autokrator and N.K.V.D. not only thematically but also through some unique aspects specific to the project.

I like albums that provoke a listener to investigate their context and circumstances that make a particular record special. Soviet Union undoubtedly plays a vital role in this experiment and it’s great to observe how that theme is translated into the adequate music. Totalitarian Industrial Oppression which, as I mentioned before, consists of N.K.V.D’s previous work, is a well-compiled creation that explores a lot of musical regions that are certainly new to me. And oh yeah, just like in case of Autokrator, I am really curious how this overwhelming chaos would sound live…

Krucyator Productions
N.K.V.D.
Clan of Exclusion

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