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…