Like a fine swine, Raymond Watts’ offerings with PIG just get better as I age. With the swagger and worship that always reminds me of a much naughtier Nick Cave, we get the pleasure of Dirt Box (Metropolis Records).

A follow-up EP to the album Hurt People Hurt, released in May of this year, Dirt Box includes remix standouts from the likes of Chris Hall of Stabbing Westward as well as Combichrist. Watts is an incredible builder of soundscapes. He understands space and allows the music to breathe. With collaborators Marc Heal (Cubanate, C-Tec) and Jim Davies (ex-The Prodigy and Pitchshifter), especially on the heavy and brilliant “Your Reptilian Overlord Presents,” it’s just proof that the ever-evolving Watts understands the balance of both glam and Industrial.

The opening lines of the single, “An American Ideal of Beauty,” immediately captured my attention and just continued to pull me in. I like to listen to projects from Watts using good headphones, because there are already so many layers. The rich, gospel-tinged vocals and the industrial glam feel are peak PIG, and prepares us for the beauty of what comes next.

Someone once told me they loved Raymond’s voice so much that he could read the phone book and it would probably get them pregnant. On this record, with the Bowie-esque delivery of the verse in “Infidels,” there’s no question that statement still stands.

Black Sabbath/Type O Negative riffs pull you right in with “Butterfly,” a swanky, sexy, beckon across the dance floor. The Blues just bleed their way through and leave you wanting more.

The original tracks and remixes on Dirt Box give you this beautiful mix – the nostalgia of industrial music you desperately miss, with a nod to the good things about the modern version of the genre and its offshoots. The remixes for each of these songs can definitely play a little dress-up on the dance floor. PIG always gives us what we want.

Buy the EP here: 
https://pigindustries.bandcamp.com/album/dirt-box

9 / 10
MELISSA COTÉ
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