Ken Jay (Drums), Koichi Fukuda (Guitars, Programming), Wayne Static (Lead Vocals, Guitars, Programming), Tony Campos (Bass, Vocals)

I used to love Static-X back when they released their debut album, Wisconsin Death Trip. That album took a unique approach to industrial metal as it sounded more machine-like than anything I had heard previously. And Static-X has a warped sense of humor, which added to the music’s personality. You only have to see the music video for “I’m with Stupid” to realize just how warped they can be.

However, their machine-like sound was gone when Koichi Fukuda left the band and was replaced by Tripp Eisen. The loss of their unique sound was especially ironic considering that Static-X’s second album was called Machine. Then things just went downhill from there. I disliked Shadow Zone even more than Machine and I have no hope for their most recent release, Beneath… Between… Beyond…, which is just a collection of B-sides and rarities in any case.

But I still like to go back and listen to Wisconsin Death Trip every once in a while since it’s such a good album. And the final track on the album, “December,” is probably the best example of their talent. It has a harsh ambience that keeps building up until it reaches an emotionally chaotic climax, which is eventually taken over by ear piercing static. Wayne Static’s whispered vocal delivery is much different from his singing on the rest of the album and makes for an interesting change of pace. It also creates a sense of overwhelming hopelessness when his whispering voice is being drowned out by the chugging guitars and ambient noise. This is one of the songs I usually listen to when I’m feeling very melancholy.

Buy Static-X’s album Wisconsin Death Trip

Static-X – December