Review: “The Explicit//The Exploited” by Alfonso Conspiracy

“It’s an album of two halves—literally. I address trauma, play devil’s advocate, and tell my story all in one.” ~ Max James

Chanelling his personal anguish into cathartic artistic obsession with no one around him sharing his passion for alternative culture, Max James taught himself every instrument he wanted to use and started his own project in Alfonso Conspiracy. Forged in seclusion amid the industrial grit of Northern England, soaked in the immersive sonic darkness of both Gothic and horror culture and laced with themes of suffering, identity and inner conflict, his debut album is “The Explicit//The Exploited“…

…you don’t have to wait long for that horror culture to rear its ugly head with the creepy, distorted sounds of a music box sounding like something from the soundtrack to James Wan’s first Saw movie providing an unsettling introduction to “viral infection” before the illusion is shattered by some crushing, weighty riffs and powerful percussion. “Allow me introduce myself… I’m the invisible man” rings out as final chilling sample before the melancholia of “Chimpanzee” begins, a cut that has a Marilyn Manson styled vocal to it before a David Draiman like moment that pushes the envelope of Nu-Metal. All of that helps give the soundscape a nostalgic quality but there is so much more to it than that as James has some impressive unclean vocals with an American accent of his own and sets the cathartic vent off to an Industrial Metal soundscape. As if to confirm what you’ve just heard “Neglect//Harass//Silence” sounds like a demo from “The Golden Age of Grotesque” by the aforementioned Manson, the aching clean sung moments the polar opposite of the screamed parts that follow immediately thereafter. Chunky riffs give the whole thing a real attitude and there is even time for a demonic Deathcore style roar around a downtempo finale. All of that helps give the album instant appeal in familiarity while exposing the listener to a few things they may not have previously heard, making it something of an unintentional gateway record. There are plenty of nice surprises as well as “(pathogen)” is an arena sized sing-a-long with a few technical metal guitar flirtations, the breakdown with samples of the mid section another burst of heaviness to keep you on your toes. It has to be said that for a project in its relative infancy, the grasp of song writing and in particular slick transitions that James has is impressive. 90’s Industrial sounds bring “(transmit)” to life, reverb being used to give the impression of group vocals a nice touch and of the songs in the first half of the album and you can picture this one being remixed by legendary Leeds break-beat duo 601 somewhere down the line.

Simple but lethally effective, a few words speak volumes in an introspective lyrical narrative that speaks of mental anguish as “vi/ syntheticdzs” blends chemical beats with heavy guitars, the creepy first half making way for a powerful final third that hits like prize fighter. The breakdown takes a leaf from the book of Nu-Metalcore and the combination of the two styles is one which works incredibly well. Chilling 90’s style electronics give “Chameleon” that horror movie soundtrack vibe before the distorted down-tuned guitars once again wash away the pain with a flood of biblical proportions as if inspired by Motionless In White. There are even blast beats in the mix with the haunting synths to make the screams of “you are the chameleon!” that much more intense. Bursting a blood vessel, James roars his way through the lyric sheet of “WHORE” with the kind of disdain that tells you the pain is still raw and very real. A chaotic rant is a surprise vocal change up, the samples once again put to very good use before the cold industrial sounds of “deeper than that…” take hold. A song which is reminiscent in concept to “Closer” by Nine Inch Nails in that has a sultry Gothic Industrial vibe to it, this one feels a little of out place in the running order as it doesn’t fit with the lyrical narratives of the earlier tracks. Not that there is anything necessarily wrong with that and the absence of a heavier part is an interesting mood swing, especially with the power of the final cut “THE GREAT PLAGUE” which has a bit of everything, taking the Industrial tub thumping to a whole new level. If this record had come out in 1999 it would have put Alfonso Conspiracy on North American tours with the likes of Dope and in a time when Nu-Metal if resurgent one could certainly see that happening with the likes of Ded or The Browning now… [7.5/10]

Track Listing

1. viral infection
2. Chimpanzee
3. Neglect//Harass//Silence
4. (pathogen)
5. (transmit)
6. vi/ syntheticdzs
7. Chameleon
8. WHORE
9. deeper than that…
10. THE GREAT PLAGUE.

“The Explicit//The Exploited” by Alfonso Conspiracy is out 5th December 2025