Blush Response, the project of Berlin-based Miami-raised Cuban-American electronic musician Joey Gonzalez,
harked back to the industrial dance of
Front 242 and Front Line Assembly
in the electronic songs of We Are Replicants (2010), notably in
Square and Deeper and Deeper although the existential angst of Eternity referenced dark-punk of the late 1970s.
Tension Strategies (2013) introduced slightly harder riffs and beats
(a` la Nine Inch Nails) in songs like
America and Delusional.
The songs of
Desire Machines (2014) feel too derivative and amateurish, and most of the album, expect for Lovers, feel like inferior leftover material from the previous albums.
Night of the Machines (2015) documents a live performance.
Suddenly, Gonzalez revealed a much more ambitious and interesting persona
with the two lengthy instrumentals of
Rebirthed in the Sprawl (2016).
The slowly evolving shrill-industrial drones of
Rebirthed In The Sprawl I begin to pulsate while sinister voices echo in the background, and
military drums open
Rebirthed In The Sprawl II, which quickly turn
into a cacophony of synth noise which turns into a hammering railway sound which turns into a syncopated dance beat; a seamless and engaging musical journey.
Unmade In The Ether I (14:59)
Unmade In The Ether Ii (14:10)
Having abandoned the song format and opted for the instrumental format,
Gonzalez started crafting more experimental music.
Reshaper (Ant-Zen, 2016) runs the gamut from the
convoluted beats and harsh dissonance of Reshaper
to the more linear thumping of Fractured.
Unfortunately, Infinite Density (Sonic Groove, 2017) retreated into
the boring techno of Infinite Density and Infinite Dread.
Fissures In The Megastructure (Schematic Music, 2019) is a work that
seems to be looking for a balance of dancefloor appeal and avantgarde status.
The neurotic Compound Dynamic Particles is followed by the
childish Worshipping The Cybernetic Godhead
and the straight techno throb of
Convert Hostile Elements Into Willing Servants and
Post Truth,
and drowned by the usual amount of filler.
The ten-minute Reward Childlike Surrender With Permanent Euphoria
embodies the compromise, a mildly intriguing mix of ambient, industrial and techno.
Gonzalez has become a mature digital composer on Void In (Megastructure, 2020), devoted to
abstract industrial mayhems like Void In and Physics as a Weapon
despite the usual temptations of hard techno like Chiralium and the usual amount of filler.
seven-song mini-album Void Out (Megastructure, 2020)
Exodus (2020)
sample packs Matter Recombinant (2020), performed on vintage electronic instruments, Pulse-code Manipulation (2020), techno on vintage keyboards,
Blush Response's discography also includes countless EPs, singles like The Drift (2014), remixes, live albums, collaborations, and archival compilations like Exodus, Scanate, etc.
