Oh the dreaded ‘remix’ album. How often have I avoided these like the plague as some of my favorite Industrial Metal bands have thrown them out (including the likes of FEAR FACTORY and MINISTRY, whom I have yet to actually like any of their remixes) and now we have one for the Post Thrash titans that are PRONG.

The oddest part is that with PRONG’s 2007 release of “Power Of The Damager”, the band had finally gotten back on track with their musical approach and it was one of the big surprises of the year. So why would one want to comprise how much distance you had come with a remix of that entire album? Beats me, but PRONG did and now we have “Power Of The Damn MiXXXer” in 2009.

Overall, it’s hard for me to say that this was good or bad. I enjoy the original material that these remixes use, and for the most part they stay true to the feeling and approach of the first round of songs. That in itself is something to be said about the integrity of this remix album and I support that. There is a reason we love the songs to begin with so don’t change them too much. Granted there are a couple of remixes that obliterate any of the original song (like the “Pure Ether” or “Bad Fall” remixes) but those are easily skippable in the long run of things. They tend to either fall too heavily on Techno beats or just simply become massively repetitive and monotonous.

Sans a few songs, I had fun with “Power Of The Damn MiXXXer”. My first listens were more laid back then I normally do and it seemed to do some good things for my enjoyment of the album. I tried not to take it too seriously and I ended up finding a handful of tracks that sparked my engine. Unfortunately, as with a lot of Techno inspired music, I did grow tired of the album quickly. Upon repeated listenings I found I had lost a lot of my vigor for the music and it turned to annoyance.

Essentially, I believe that “Power Of The Damn MiXXXer” is for those diehard fans of PRONG only or for fans of remixes. The majority of Metalheads are going to find this release quite trite and useless in their collections. It was fun to hear a few times but it quickly loses its charm and becomes just another remix album. Too bad really, because for a while I thought I might actually really enjoy a remix album. Check this out if you like some of MINISTRY’s more Industrial work.

Song to check out: “Worst Of It (Worst Of The Worst Mix)”.

(Online May 2, 2009)