belladonnakillz

Lending more to the blitzkrieg style, hardcore-influenced electronica of Germany's Atari Teenage Riot than American contemporaries like AK1200 or DJ Dara (but sounding like an evil mixture of both), Toronto, Canada's Belladonnakillz (Peter Moskalyk) succeeds in producing an almost unheard-of sound in the current U.S. dance market with surprising results.

Rapid-fire drum beats and beautifully arranged piano lines merge wonderfully on track number three, "Yeah Hell Yeah," which is one of my favorites on this, his debut full-length release, and should remain a stand-out track for all future listeners. High pitched, whiney, emo-ish vocals collide perfectly in a firestorm of demented pop and evil jungle, on this one and almost every track throughout.

Track number five, "Tribute to Drugz," picks up with that same over-processed, yet wonderfully-produced twisted drum and pop heard screaming from North of the Canadian border. Track number six, "Grly Jungle," sounds like an old Orbital track sped up to 45 rpm and sung over top of in superb fashion. Track 12, "Sexy Girl," features acoustic guitar and a catchy-as-hell bass and vocal line across its entire length, qualifying as another true standout.

This one is just truly hard to define; a mix of gabber, drum and bass, and hard rock, given the production sense of a pop god, and then over-tweaked with a monstrous equalization that will send your speakers straight to the repair shop. Be forewarned.

Bella's previous work with acts like Hellfish, Panacea and Ventian Snares is evident on the explosive "Gotta Gotta Gotta Kill" or "From Bad to Worse." The CD's first single, the wickedly fun "Kill Bella Donna," is given the reworking treatment of Panacea on track 15 on this excellent, industrially-laced, 17-track musical assault. Another highlight, "Charming DXM," combines classical piano runs with the screams and chops from a video game layered over top of an amazing progressive jungle-core romp.

If you are looking for something equally fun, different, and unique, turn this one to number nine and watch the neighbors run!

-Carl Noone Jr. - mergedigital.com

Belladonnakillz make hardcore techno pop songs about taking drugs and fucking. Normally this isn't the type of stuff I can get into, especially with the vocals being so high pitched and slightly obnoxious, but this cd has grown on me like a skin fungus. I really get off on the sense of humor on display here, and the vocal melodies and hooks are simply fucking superb in their infectiousness. The production is really good too, making everything flow in such a way that you really don't give a shit that you've heard these sounds a million times before.

There is still a part of me that wants to totally bash this stuff, but I simply can't, because it's just too fucking good. The only real complaint I have here is that some of the tracks without vocals get really redundant due to their sample based nature (especially "i H8 PoLiTiXxX", which relies way too much on a Busta Rhymes sample), but for the most part those songs are good too, just not as good as the tracks with vocals.

If you were to ask me for a favorite track, I would definitely point my finger at "Kill Bella Donna" (track 8), with its catchy Eminem-esque chorus and general in your face vibe.

Conclusion:
Though it's definitely an acquired taste, "Perverted and proud" kicks a ton of ass. Go ahead and take a chance, you might actually like it.

-Royce Icon - Industrial.org

BELLADONNAKILLZ "Perverted & Proud"
I've been listening to "Perverted & Proud" for nearly a month now and there's always something new about it that I enjoy - it's always fresh sounding. I could listen to it all day long and still feel like I'm listening to it for the very first time. I don't think I have another album in my vast collection that has this sort of effect on me. It's a one of a kind album. I guess you could say that it's "epic" but for some reason that doesn't even seem to be the right descriptive word to use; this album is almost above and beyond that. The music is based more on the electronic dance side of things though vocally it could be stuffed into the ballad rock slash spoken word category. It has its ultra synthy moments, its gritty dance moments, its soundscape/instrumental vibe moments, its techno moments and it's break beat moments, but all in all, it's a highly addictive collection of ear pleasing musical sounds. BELLADONNAKILLZ is by far one of my new favorite local bands. [Wednesday Elektra]
- spacejunkies.com

"Kill Bella Donna" starts off with the same hook as Moby's "Feelin' So Real" (random trivia - I was a dancer in that video) but that's where the similarities end. The song is very reminiscent of that happy hardcore era I was so entrenched in some ten years ago. It's upbeat, happy, techno, and funny. It's got that sound you hate yourself for loving but can't stop repeating. The simple chorus is very catchy; "Today, my baby's gone away. So long, bye bye."

"Sexy Grrl" starts off much more subdued (acoustic guitars anyone?) but that's only up to the 40 second mark where it departs into some techno-trance-rock-n-roll whatchamasoundlike. The mood is a lot like 'Rocco' by Death in Vegas (not to be confused with Dirty Vegas!).

"Yeah Hell Yeah", is a standout track for the album. Still happy and hardcore, the beats are straight-up jungle with a backing piano hook and some gritty bass kicks. This would make for a good addition to your jungle sets when you want to liven up the crowd a bit and give 'em something to smile about.

Panacea's remix of Kill Bella Donna is another standout. The track starts off with a recognizeable hook (although I can't place it at the moment) and moves into some absolutely tearing jungle. All the original lyrics are intact (too bad about the radio edit - how you gonna censor Panacea?) but otherwise the remix is sick - tough as nails.

The "Drrty" mixes are the same as the radio edits without the censoring.

I'd call this a very fun album, totally hardcore but still catchy as hell and definitely happy. My only complaint would be the use of unoriginal and obvious drumlines, samples, kicks, and hooks. In the end the songs end up sounding like a piece-meal of several others save for the programming and placement. Not to discredit it - that's what electronic music is all about - it just that I've heard all the different pieces somewhere before.

Come to think of it though - that's a big part of what makes happy hardcore so approachable; it sounds like everything you've already heard - except different.

"Perverted & Proud" didn't make it to the StaticBeats webcast as I've found in the past when anything gets too frantic people tune out, but I still give it my thumbs up for the sheer pleasure of its happy madness. Check it out! - staticbeats