Pulse (Front 242 album)
| Pulse | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|
.jpg) | ||||
| Studio album by | ||||
| Released | May 6, 2003 | |||
| Studio | Art & Strategy | |||
| Genre | ||||
| Length | 74:07 | |||
| Label | Metropolis Records | |||
| Producer | Daniel Bressanutti | |||
| Front 242 chronology | ||||
| ||||
| (Filtered) Pulse cover | ||||
_Pulse_(2016).jpeg) Released in 2016 | ||||
Pulse is the eighth studio album by Front 242, released on May 6, 2003 through Metropolis Records. It was the group's first full-length studio release in ten years since 1993's 05:22:09:12 Off, marking their largest gap between albums. In 2016, a restructured version of Pulse was released under the title (Filtered) Pulse.
Content[edit]
Pulse is a blend of electronic body music and industrial music. Unusually for Front 242, the album predominantly comprises a set of suites divided into sub-tracks.[1]
(Filtered) Pulse reissue[edit]
On June 24, 2016, a restructured, heavily shortened, and remastered version of Pulse was released under the title (Filtered) Pulse.[2] It was released through Alfa Matrix as part of Front 242's thirty-fifth anniversary series of reissues.[3] This release was organized by Front 242's own Daniel Bressanutti.[4]
Critical reception[edit]
| Review scores | |
|---|---|
| Source | Rating |
| Allmusic |   [1] |
| Exclaim! | Unfavorable[5] |
| Release Magazine |   [6] |
| Uncut | 1/5[7] |
Pulse received mostly mixed reviews. John Bush of AllMusic appreciated the album, writing, "Pulse sounds like the record Front 242 wanted to make, the type they could make only once the pressure was off."[1] Release Magazine's John Carlsson was more lukewarm, praising its technical construction but deeming it samey and unchallenging.[6] Writing for Exclaim!, Coreen Wolanski lamented how Front 242 had fallen from being the indisputable pioneers of electronic body music to being so repetitive.[5] Uncut magazine provided the most scathing review, writing, "Had this record been released in 1988, it would have been hailed a masterpiece. But memories of the glory days of “Headhunter” have receded, and the rest of the world has long since caught up with and overtaken Front 242."[7]
Track listing[edit]
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "SEQ666" (P) | 4:02 |
| 2. | "SEQ666" (U) | 1:13 |
| 3. | "SEQ666" (L) | 1:20 |
| 4. | "SEQ666" (S) | 0:50 |
| 5. | "SEQ666" (E) | 5:09 |
| 6. | "Together" | 5:27 |
| 7. | "Triple X Girlfriend" | 3:45 |
| 8. | "No More No More" | 7:23 |
| 9. | "Beyond the Scale of Comprehension" | 7:22 |
| 10. | "Song" (Untitled) | 3:58 |
| 11. | "Song" (StarCandy) | 2:40 |
| 12. | "One" (With the Fire) | 3:26 |
| 13. | "One" (Reverse) | 2:23 |
| 14. | "Matrix" (OpenStatic) | 2:24 |
| 15. | "Matrix" (MegaHertz) | 3:50 |
| 16. | "Never Lost" (Faust) | 3:41 |
| 17. | "Never Lost" (Riley) | 7:01 |
| 18. | "7Rain" (Filter) | 4:10 |
| 19. | "Pan" (Dhe) | 1:56 |
| 20. | "Pan" (Mihk) | 3:07 |
| Total length: | 74:07 | |
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "7Rain" | 3:47 |
| 2. | "Together" | 5:22 |
| 3. | "Loud" | 3:54 |
| 4. | "Strobe" | 3:24 |
| 5. | "One" | 3:25 |
| 6. | "Matrix" | 6:12 |
| 7. | "TripleXXXgirlfriend" | 3:42 |
| 8. | "Collision" | 5:10 |
| 9. | "Strobe (Fragments)" | 4:13 |
| Total length: | 39:09 | |
Personnel[edit]
All credits adapted from Pulse liner notes.[8]
- Jean-Luc De Meyer – lead vocals
- Richard Jonckheere – percussion, backing vocals
- Daniel Bressanutti – graphic design, mixing, producing, publishing
- Patrick Codenys – mixing, producing, publishing
Chart positions[edit]
| Chart (2003) | Peak position |
|---|---|
| US Top Dance/Electronic Albums (Billboard)[9] | 20 |
"Pulse" single[edit]
| "Pulse" | |
|---|---|
.jpg) | |
| Single by Front 242 | |
| from the album Pulse | |
| Released | 2003 |
| Length | 28:54 |
| Label | XIII BIS Records |
| Producer(s) | Daniel Bressanutti |
In advance of both Still & Raw and Pulse, the single "Pulse" was released through the French label XIII BIS Records.[10]
Track listing[edit]
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "Seq666 - PULSE
| 12:33 |
| 2. | "Triple X Girlfriend" | 3:42 |
| 3. | "One
| 5:49 |
| 4. | "Song
| 6:50 |
| Total length: | 28:54 | |
Personnel[edit]
All credits adapted from "Pulse" liner notes.[10]
- Jean-Luc De Meyer – lead vocals
- Richard Jonckheere – percussion, backing vocals
- Daniel Bressanutti – graphic design, mixing, producing, publishing
- Patrick Codenys – mixing, producing, publishing
Still & Raw EP[edit]
| Still & Raw | |
|---|---|
.jpg) | |
| EP by | |
| Released | April 8, 2003 |
| Length | 27:56 |
| Label | Metropolis Records |
Still & Raw is an EP[11] by Front 242 released on April 8, 2003 through Metropolis Records. It was intended to be a preview of Pulse.[12] Like the music on that succeeding album, Still & Raw's sound is calm and slow.[5] In 2016, a compilation combining Pulse and Still & Raw was released.[13] Matthew Jeanes of Brainwashed wrote about the EP, "Still & Raw isn't liable to turn the heads of those firmly glued to Mille Plateaux and Rephlex platters, but It's a worthwhile effort from an old standby that warrants a listen if you were a fan and at least a glimpse if you weren't."[14]
Track listing[edit]
| No. | Title | Length |
|---|---|---|
| 1. | "7Rain" | 3:52 |
| 2. | "Loud" | 3:58 |
| 3. | "Strobe" | 3:27 |
| 4. | "Collision" | 5:13 |
| 5. | "7Rain (GHost)" | 4:05 |
| 6. | "Strobe (Fragments)" | 7:21 |
| Total length: | 27:56 | |
Personnel[edit]
All credits adapted from Still & Raw liner notes.[15]
- Jean-Luc De Meyer – lead vocals
- Richard Jonckheere – percussion, backing vocals
- Daniel Bressanutti – graphic design, mixing, producing, publishing
- Patrick Codenys – mixing, producing, publishing
References[edit]
- ^ a b c Bush, John. "Front 242 – Pulse". AllMusic. Retrieved June 27, 2018.
- ^ "(Filtered) Pulse (Remastered)" (Press release). Alfa Matrix. 2016. Retrieved 2018-06-27.
- ^ "What is '(Filtered) Pulse' all about? Daniel B. from Front 242 explains". Side-Line. Retrieved June 27, 2018.
- ^ A., Alex. "Front 242, "[Filtered] Pulse"". I Die: You Die. Retrieved June 27, 2017.
- ^ a b c Colanski, Coreen. "Front 242: Pulse". Exclaim!. Retrieved June 27, 2018.
- ^ a b Carlsson, Johan. "Front 242: Pulse". Release Magazine. Retrieved June 27, 2018.
- ^ a b "Front 242 – Pulse". Uncut. Retrieved June 27, 2018.
- ^ Pulse (CD liner notes). Front 242. Metropolis Records. 2003. MET282.
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ "Front 242 Chart History (Top Dance/Electronic Albums)". Billboard. Retrieved June 27, 2018.
- ^ a b "Pulse" (single) (CD liner notes). Front 242. XIII Bis Records. 2003.
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link) - ^ "Front 242 – Still & Raw". AllMusic. Retrieved June 27, 2018.
- ^ "Still & Raw – Front 242 – Metropolis Records" (Press release). Metropolis Records. 2003. Retrieved 2018-06-27.
- ^ "Front 242 – Pulse / Still & Raw EP". AllMusic. Retrieved June 27, 2018.
- ^ Jeanes, Matthew. "Front 242, "Still & Raw"". Brainwashed. Retrieved June 27, 2018.
- ^ Still & Raw (CD liner notes). Front 242. Metropolis Records. 2003. MET 277.
{{cite AV media notes}}: CS1 maint: others in cite AV media (notes) (link)
