Review by Jack on June 14, 2005.

Let’s face it, Red Harvest were always going to have a very, very tough time topping Sick Transit Gloria Mundi, but more to the point it was always going to be hard to come up with something in the same stratosphere as ‘AEP’ from STGM. 2 years on and we are presented with Internal Punishment Programs.

Due to the lofty standards set by STGM I was always going to go into Internal Punishment Programs with equally high expectations. To cut straight to the point, Internal Punishment Programs is a slightly disappointing record as it sees them not really extending themselves musically but rather forging a by the numbers industrial record.

Where Internal Punishment Programs falls down is the lack of true density on the record. Each song has its own identity etc, etc, but for an industrial metal band Red Harvest just lack the wall of sound that you have come to expect from them since STGM.

That being said there are some very classy songs that push the envelope as far as metal is concerned. ‘Abstract Morality Junction’ is a deft number that really pushes Red Harvest out of the metal boundaries and into the broader industrial pool; it’s a much more precise and clinical track that sees Red Harvest experimenting further with their synthesized sound.

Internal Punishment Programs is a good record. However, it doesn’t push Red Harvest in the same way that Sick Transit Gloria Mundi did a couple of years ago. Whether that’s me having unfair expectations of Red Harvest or looking for something that really smacks you in the face is another issue of debate. Red Harvest are such a good band, it’s not unrealistic to expect the best…

Review by Jack on June 14, 2005.

Let’s face it, Red Harvest were always going to have a very, very tough time topping Sick Transit Gloria Mundi, but more to the point it was always going to be hard to come up with something in the same stratosphere as ‘AEP’ from STGM. 2 years on and we are presented with Internal Punishment Programs.

Due to the lofty standards set by STGM I was always going to go into Internal Punishment Programs with equally high expectations. To cut straight to the point, Internal Punishment Programs is a slightly disappointing record as it sees them not really extending themselves musically but rather forging a by the numbers industrial record.

Where Internal Punishment Programs falls down is the lack of true density on the record. Each song has its own identity etc, etc, but for an industrial metal band Red Harvest just lack the wall of sound that you have come to expect from them since STGM.

That being said there are some very classy songs that push the envelope as far as metal is concerned. ‘Abstract Morality Junction’ is a deft number that really pushes Red Harvest out of the metal boundaries and into the broader industrial pool; it’s a much more precise and clinical track that sees Red Harvest experimenting further with their synthesized sound.

Internal Punishment Programs is a good record. However, it doesn’t push Red Harvest in the same way that Sick Transit Gloria Mundi did a couple of years ago. Whether that’s me having unfair expectations of Red Harvest or looking for something that really smacks you in the face is another issue of debate. Red Harvest are such a good band, it’s not unrealistic to expect the best…

Review by Jack on June 14, 2005.

Let’s face it, Red Harvest were always going to have a very, very tough time topping Sick Transit Gloria Mundi, but more to the point it was always going to be hard to come up with something in the same stratosphere as ‘AEP’ from STGM. 2 years on and we are presented with Internal Punishment Programs.

Due to the lofty standards set by STGM I was always going to go into Internal Punishment Programs with equally high expectations. To cut straight to the point, Internal Punishment Programs is a slightly disappointing record as it sees them not really extending themselves musically but rather forging a by the numbers industrial record.

Where Internal Punishment Programs falls down is the lack of true density on the record. Each song has its own identity etc, etc, but for an industrial metal band Red Harvest just lack the wall of sound that you have come to expect from them since STGM.

That being said there are some very classy songs that push the envelope as far as metal is concerned. ‘Abstract Morality Junction’ is a deft number that really pushes Red Harvest out of the metal boundaries and into the broader industrial pool; it’s a much more precise and clinical track that sees Red Harvest experimenting further with their synthesized sound.

Internal Punishment Programs is a good record. However, it doesn’t push Red Harvest in the same way that Sick Transit Gloria Mundi did a couple of years ago. Whether that’s me having unfair expectations of Red Harvest or looking for something that really smacks you in the face is another issue of debate. Red Harvest are such a good band, it’s not unrealistic to expect the best…

Review by Jack on June 14, 2005.

Let’s face it, Red Harvest were always going to have a very, very tough time topping Sick Transit Gloria Mundi, but more to the point it was always going to be hard to come up with something in the same stratosphere as ‘AEP’ from STGM. 2 years on and we are presented with Internal Punishment Programs.

Due to the lofty standards set by STGM I was always going to go into Internal Punishment Programs with equally high expectations. To cut straight to the point, Internal Punishment Programs is a slightly disappointing record as it sees them not really extending themselves musically but rather forging a by the numbers industrial record.

Where Internal Punishment Programs falls down is the lack of true density on the record. Each song has its own identity etc, etc, but for an industrial metal band Red Harvest just lack the wall of sound that you have come to expect from them since STGM.

That being said there are some very classy songs that push the envelope as far as metal is concerned. ‘Abstract Morality Junction’ is a deft number that really pushes Red Harvest out of the metal boundaries and into the broader industrial pool; it’s a much more precise and clinical track that sees Red Harvest experimenting further with their synthesized sound.

Internal Punishment Programs is a good record. However, it doesn’t push Red Harvest in the same way that Sick Transit Gloria Mundi did a couple of years ago. Whether that’s me having unfair expectations of Red Harvest or looking for something that really smacks you in the face is another issue of debate. Red Harvest are such a good band, it’s not unrealistic to expect the best…

Review by JD on March 9, 2016.

Hailing from the lands of the Olympic games, Greece, stoner rockers Profound Sleep come at you with this somewhat disjointed mixture of stoner power that is infused with a healthy dosage of psychedelic and 70’s prog rock added in to some very chunky riffs.

Sounding like some spawn of Black Sabbath, Trouble, The Sensational Alex Harvey Band and Pink Floyd… Profound Sleep is one of those bands that somehow pulls it all together and makes it work. Strong 70’s inspired guitar work along with brilliant bass and drum work well as the haunting vocals pull you into this vortex of color that then goes bleak. It is an intense, yet rather confused ride.

Throughout the six songs here, you hear the talent oozing, yet the songs at times seem not quite done. Some are over played, while others seem to cast away the strange yet intriguing lyrics in their race for dominance. Case in point is the song I care… a well-crafted lyrically that seems to get bogged down by the music almost doing too much and leaving little discovery room as it beats the words out for dominance and the muddies everything. . . and that is not a good thing.

A nice record to hear, but the very obvious flaws make it hard to want to listen to the Profound Sleep disk a second time. Shows that sometimes even good musicianship can be a detriment, when not done rig, to the point where the lyrics become sadly expendable. Those words need to be the thing that shines more. It’s sad, as this album could have been an epic journey… but it only made me want to get off at the next stop.

I sort of ‘fell asleep’ to this… and not in a nice way. That says volumes.

Rating: 6.5 out of 10