I seemed to miss last year's VO1D ep from this Australian project (featuring David Haley of Psycroptic fame for those not in the know) so Chokehold is the first new material I've heard from The Amenta since 2008's N0N. One new song, a cover, a remix, and two live tracks are included here, making it a nice little package. The title track kicks things off, an intense, twisted bit of industrial clanging that follows on from N0N in spirit, Chokehold is full of hammering basslines and almost Godflesh-like industrial atmosphere (a suitable comparison, as you'll see in a moment!) Chokehold never really builds into what you'd consider a proper 'song', preferring to pound away relentlessly in a mid-paced cycle, concentrating on atmosphere rather than heaviness - although this is quite crushing and will please Red Harvest fans.
The cover, Godflesh's Christbait Rising, is a classic song from a classic band, and The Amenta do it justice, sticking close to the original with a subtle added layer of electronics, particularly on the vocals. Both live tracks are good, with excellent sound that focuses on the metallic instrumentation, the electronics somewhat getting lost in the mix as you'd expect on Sekem but audible in Vermin, all enjoyable nonetheless. The closing remix of VO1D works well, enhancing the atmospheric qualities and being less annoying than some remixes by not turning it into a dance tune. All in all, Chokehold is a decent stopgap release, and I hope the band can follow N0N up properly with a full-length soon.
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