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Doll Doll Doll

Venetian Snares

10/10

I reckoned I should totally give this album a review, considering I Love Love Love it (I'll get to something I want to review objectively instead of talking about random albums I like soon, I promise) and that it's 24th Anniversary is today (as of 01/09/25). A fair warning from this point forward, a lot of this review will discuss unsavoury topics like extreme torture, rape and child abuse. I don't blame you if you'd rather not bury yourself in misery thinking about those sorts of things, it's alright.

I think the 'Elephant in The Room' to be addressed here is the nature of this album. It is dark, very dark, and honestly? At some times fairly edgy. I haven't really come across an album as disturbing as this one which actually feels cohesive and carefully-executed (I specify the last part, because I know someone can throw me some sickly, obscure goregrind band which has an album containing 20 minutes of inaudibly downtuned guitars and somebody vomiting - and which also has an album cover of a little girl's face being blown off with a shotgun, while her corpse gets raped or some ghastly shit like that. Those sorts of albums are bad at being "dark" in the same way that the Human Centipede trilogy are bad horror films. The extreme-ness and repulsion wears itself off after a while of reflection, and it becomes more irritating and concerning than anything, on how whoever made this sort of thing gets a kick out of showing the most visceral and vile things imaginable, for the sole purpose of nauseating people with "Yes, the human body can do such grotesque, vile things to itself!" instead of any remotely-decent attempt to explore what that sort of suffering means for the person, to attempt to make the horror something tangible instead of primal - which is where these sorts of media devolve into a messy playpen of an (at-heart) edgy, gore-obsessed teen who loves to desperately disturb others as much as possible either out of insecurity or as some sort of very ineffective coping mechanism.)

As much as I love Venetian Snares' work, his earlier music sadly does devolve into similar at times (most notably on his 'Horse and Goat' EP. If you're thinking of searching it up - be warned, it's not very tasteful. Honestly, what was Trevor Brown thinking with that cover art?) However, Doll Doll Doll felt like a modest balance between horrible-ness and thoughtful execution. It gravitates to the end of being extreme and lacking of taste with the sample of JonBenet Ramsey's information line - as well as a subtle, brief sample from an actual snuff tape (Jesus Christ). As horrible as they are, it partially serves it's purpose in the album - abrupt, shocking, nauseating and echoing through your mind during the enslaught of noisy breaks and masterfully-crafted electronic whimpers, groans and cries.

What avoided me from throwing this album away because of these aspects (which a lot of people have) is that I felt the cold and calculated nature of this album succeeds in what most dark, taboo releases don't - this album terrifies, upsets and wounds on a deep, spiritual level. The otherwise tasteless samples served as a reverberated cry that helped completely shatter my psyche and senses of safety and comfort while listening - reminding me that the sickening ideas it conveyed were completely grounded in reality, that it can (and will) happen over and over again. Where this album differs from most splattery, tasteless media is that it attempts to have you meditate (or maybe drown in) the absolute horror, misery and pain of the mind of the person being tortured; an unloved, abused, assaulted and violated child. It locks you in this cage masterfully.

The opening 2 tracks 'Pygmalion' and 'Remi' I at first hated. They served little-to-no use concept-wise, and felt like timewasters. I, however, begun to really like these tracks. Snares' synthwork shines in this album, I feel a lot of people sleep on it - the sobbing, terrified and trembling artificial sounds are so addictive and disturbing, I have never heard the feeling it induces replicated well in any other release, not even his own later ones. This - along with the skittish and abrasive but foreboding and ominous breaks paints a deep, black sea of horror in my soul - can't think of a better word for it. 'I Rent The Ocean' has a grandiose choir rise, along with fleeting cries and drunken brass. It scratches me with the idea of somebody frail, confused - the choir emanating the idea of something vast and incomprehensible, maybe?

'Dollmaker' is where the album spreads out it's terrifying, bloody wings entirely. The track starts out jazzy, conventional, playful but unsettling - as layers of tastefully jarring instruments build up - I especially like the sample of Apocalyptica performing 'Harvester of Sorrow' as the gabber kicks and harsh, unforgiving bass are introduced. It then goes mostly silent, with only the sound of the warbling, biting synth I praised earlier, before unexpectedly blasting a sample of Sway & King Tech's 'The Anthem' "I fucking murder your young style, like JonBenet Ramsey". Shocking, but to be fair, the 8 MCs on the original record were past the point of tastefulness. The song continues with unsettling lines spewed out whilst your senses are battered with hard gabber kicks, before ending on a recording of the JonBenet Ramsey Telephone Info Line. Cruel, disturbing, but addictive. A masterful song and my favourite from this record.

The track then transitions into the next one, 'Befriend a Childkiller' - which begins with the hum-buzz of lights and clinical synths - both meanings, in that it's cold and also strangely reminds me of a hospital. It then becomes more dissonant, before sampling Fallout 2(?!). A few video game samples are on this record - this and samples from the cave music in 'Earthbound' on Remi. It plays Sulik speaking of a

Spirit- spirit of poison
Howling spirit, killing spirit that walks
Spirit creature not wearing the shape of a man

Ominous, and very well chosen. The rest of the track consists of screaming breakbeats whilst Sulik repeats the title name (or distorted lines which ring close to it) as well as other scary, harsh noises over a growling bass. It feels depraved and soul-crushing, flooding your mind with the worst possible things while nothing has to be said. It makes me think of all the horror in the world, and how inhuman monsters capable of such terror work and live amongst us - made of the same flesh and blood as you and I.

'Pressure Torture' is more an experience than a track. To put it bluntly - it's painful. It's a perfect auditory depiction of complete and utter mutilation to your being - it's not easy to listen to and for me, invokes absolute terror. It has you beg for mercy but keeps going, and going, and going until you can barely handle it. It tears you apart with samples of screaming and crying overlayed with the electronic equivalent of having your skull bashed in with a hammer. It's soul-tearing, and makes me shiver at the brink of human suffering - and why every soul is cursed with the possibility of living through it, millions upon millions of people in waves and waves throughout history. It's horrifying, completely and utterly horrifying and left a deep, gaping emotional wound in me.

It's of good note to mention that there's a vinyl-exclusive track for this album called 'Interstellar Narcotics'. It's a very addictive, growling track - with a synth that feels like a mocking laugh, does anyone else hear it? Shame it isn't in the final album, it would've been a good addition around here. I absolutely love the sounds in it, very grind-y, metallic and tastefully chaotic. It gets a bit repetitive, though - but it's still an earworm. You can view a rip of the track here.

'Macerate and Petrify' paints the most vivid scene for me. It's someone being beaten over and over again in a home which should keep them safe, whilst cars drive past over and over, taunting them with freedom.
This track has some of the most gut-wrenching spoken word I've ever heard:

Every day, in each and every day of the rest of your miserable life
There's nothing for you but more pain and sadness

This is then followed by nightmare-ish, screaming vocals which are then suddenly silenced. It's heartbreaking, nauseating and discomforting. This track was probably the most psychologically tormenting for me, it feels like complete and utter fear and helplessness.

'All the Children Are Dead' is a nightmare. It's a hopeless, traumatised and miserable ending. It's drenched with more scathing breaks, and is a nauseating story with interludes of scornful breakbeat - before ending with a child screaming for help whilst chained dogs bark at them. Complete and utter horror. I'll leave some of the haunting spoken word lyrics of this final track as the ending to this rather long review.

There were 74 children murdered
One right after another
-mutilated carcasses floating on top of the water-
He would lay on his bed and he would say "All the children are dead"
"All the children are dead"?
"All the children are dead"
-he said "All the children are dead"?

"All the children are dead."