when i got into the hardcore scene in the mid 90s, "manga corps" on IST was just released and it made everyone's charts, in those charming xeroxed paper fanzines from around the world. it had also one of the first tracks i heard by mr. guillaume, first wave, together with "seven" on the now infamous biomechanik compilation by manu le malin.
of course i had known "the meltdown" earlier, from my techno and ravey days, as it was a big hit in that scene then. the next introduction deeper into the works of the man was via pcp, with release like "negative burn" or "renegade legion". "gates of heaven" still holds a dear place in my memory, with this absolutely out of space, alien intro with a hint of odd marching beats.
when i went to my first big indoor hardcore rave - "operation nordcore II" in the hamburg markthalle - of course dr. macabre played and his big kicks, sawtooths and other sounds left a lasting mark on me.
what showed me the whole spectrum of his works then was the release of the paranoid archives. all the killers, all the sonic exploration in one place, in perfect sound quality.
so what defines the sound of monsieur macabre? it's maybe a bad thing most people pin him to hardcore or techno, as his work goes vastly beyond the limitations of these genre. we have tracks like "hiroshima", that starts as an electronic ambient work, only to break down into a mad array of beats and distortion a few minutes later. or the already mentioned "first wave" that with its sounds jacks you to a surreal sonic trip.
we often find a very strong synth and melody work in his works. he is one of the only artists in "hardcore" where, to me, the melodies don't feel just as a gimmick, another channel to add to the sequenced sounds, but would work as a standalone thing too.
maybe the renegade legionnaire is best described as an electronic experimenteer in the strong history of this music in france.
from acid to techno, to gabber and ambient, his works spans the widest field of sound. oh yeah and one more thing. he does *killer* bassdrums.
the music he did in later years and nowadays should not be forgotten either; it's often wide different from his roots, but again a very unique style, spacey experimental and bizarre. kicking, rushing, astonishing sounds.
Info: https://www.discogs.com/artist/39143-Dr-Macabre
Showcase: https://www.mixcloud.com/low_entropy/tribute-to-dr-macabre-mix/
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