BLACK MAGNET is a one-man industrial metal project from Oklahoma. Or should I say, Industrial Electronic Punishment, as described on its Facebook 'About' section. "Hallucination Scene" is being released on September 4th via the 20 Buck Spin label. It is the first LP of this project. Previously, BLACK MAGNET released a self-titled 4 track EP in 2018. First of all, I must say that I get this kind of sound, as I was very much influenced during my teenage years by the industrial metal scene, especially by RAMMSTEIN, FEAR FACTORY, and NINE INCH NAILS. With this being said, I get that many people may not be as understanding as I am regarding this type of music. I mean, there's a lot of unsettling machinery noises and stuff, so be ready.

In the first track, "Divination Equipment", we already get a good taste of what the album is all about. This is maybe my favourite track of this LP. We can notice the artificial sounding drums that will be present in the rest of the album. The voice and the electronic elements reminded me a lot of the 90's industrial metal I was mentioning earlier. The highlight of this song for me is the heavy percussion. It makes you feel the urge to nod your head to the beat. "Anubis", the second track, is a little bit more calm in the beginning. For me, it sounded a little bit more post-punk, especially on the first verse after the intro and because of the lyrics. The rest of the song comes back to the industrial metal vibe. "Punishment Map" is a very short and punk song. The guitar riff on this one is a little bit more rock 'n roll instead of sounding like a machine as on previous tracks.

The fourth track of the album is "Neuroprophet". This is the one with the darker sound and atmosphere, especially in the chorus. There is also a solo on this song that fits the style of the song, not overdone or anything like that. The next song is "Trustfucker", and just like "Divination Equipment", starts with a buzzing sound as the instrumental raises above. On the first track, the buzzing sounded like a bug in the Matrix. On "Trustfucker", the initial noise sounds like flies. "Crush Me" is probably the most danceable song of the album. With a constant beat from beginning to end, this one will make you want to dance for sure. "Hegemon" is slower than the rest of the tracks and also the one I personally liked the least. The last song, "Walking In The Dark", is very edgy, and when you think about it, the name goes very well with the song. The lyrics are very dark and the whole track is very unsettling.

Overall, anything I could mark as a defect on this album can also be understood as a characteristic of its genre. Repetitive melodies and singing? Artificial sounding drums? Buzzing and machinery sound? You name it. I must say that for those who like industrial metal, this album could be the gem they are looking for. For those who are not familiar with the genre, it may be a good start as it reflects many characteristics of the style. I agree with the last line of their EPK; this is indeed a fitting soundtrack for the alternate dystopian timeline that is 2020.