Natural Born Killers & Randomized – “Red (As Blood)” & “The Awakening”

Natural Born Killers is an alternative/fusion duo, launched in 2015 that blends different genres of music, from electronic to rock, and quite a bit in between. The duo is formed by Sean Cadillac (Singer, Guitar, Producer, Dj) and Logan Wert (Bassist, Producer, Dj). After a debut EP and a full length album in 2016, the duo have recently their most ambitious project thus far – a concept album, entitled “RED” featuring Natural Born Killers & Randomized.

Every song on the recording represents a chapter of the central story, narrated with the official videos and a book written in both English and Chinese. “RED” tells the story of the mad Lord Effinyus (the anagram of “Find Yourself”), kept in jail and tortured by tenebrous figures (a doctor, an executioner and a nurse) who extrapolate a substance from him to keep them alive. Lord Effinyus has to solve a dark rebus that will bring him back into the light.

Natural Born Killers & Randomized have made a wondrous record based on overdriven dirty guitar riffs, glorious industrial type bass hooks and the kind of epic rock strut that is impossible sometimes to not be seduced by.

Behind all of this is a deep-rooted crossover electro-rock theory leaning towards maddening paranoia which lends the project not only a hallucinatory sci-fi cinematic hue, but a well of deranged lyrical themes to match the ominous nature of their tunes.

It’s the musical ability of not only Sean Cadillac but fellow member Logan Wert which truly shines through on this record. They remain capable of concocting sounds so crepuscular and epic that they meet the scale of their conceptual ambitions on “RED”.

The message in this album – about finding yourself – is absolutely amazingly communicated, and it uses its grand theatrics and instrumentals to shake you and leave an impression. It’s dark, angry, and sprinkled with lyrics that alternate from soft, almost whispered, singing to screaming that would drive a person with lesser vocal strength to their knees.

It’s a syringe of dark emotion that gets injected directly into your ears and leaves you wanting more. You can experience these devasting effects right from the opening track, “The Awakening”, featuring Camilla Giannelli.

But it’s not just about the songs, as admirable as they are – especially the instrumental standout “Echoes from The Past”, the funky, driven “Red (As Blood)” and the closer, “Breath” – but the sounds, effects, and the overall atmosphere are spectacular.

You can tell that a lot of thought and care went into putting the right sound, at the right speaker, at the right time. It was certainly done by artists and not opportunists. And the multiple instrumental layering is very impressive too; there is a melodic separation that is very distinct, coming through loud and clear.

This recording is seminal because it is groundbreaking, terribly beautiful and completely influential. “RED” is more than just an EP, it’s an experience. Let Natural Born Killers & Randomized take you on a journey of morbid curiosity, self-discovery, macabre intrigue and musical brilliance, all packed into one EP. It’s a recording that rewards repeat listening to gather all the instrument sounds and textures.