Empty Vessel – Ruin Value (Digital/CD Album – Dunkelheir Produktionen)
Some promotion arrives generously late, but with this debut album by the Australian solo project Empty Vessel, I felt it was more than necessary to give it some attention anyway. Tom Wojcicki is an artist unknown to most, who released the album “Ruin Value” in the spring of 2025, an opus consisting of eight tracks.
What I hear here defies all imagination: an absolute masterpiece in which the artist blends Industrial, Cinematic, and Ritual elements in a remarkably refined manner. He creates a tormented atmosphere of overwhelming sounds, with percussion effects that reverberate like drones. That overwhelming quality, in particular, is almost indescribable. Rarely have I encountered an artist capable of creating sounds as intense, present, and tormented as those of Empty Vessel. The tracks can be repetitive at times, but because of their sheer intensity, you are truly blown away. Before you know it, you are trapped in a sonic web of terrifying and illusory images. The album is a succession of insane tracks, meaning that you discover one highlight after another.
If you are a fan of the genres mentioned above and are not yet familiar with Empty Vessel, I would simply recommend buying this album without listening to it beforehand. An absolute masterpiece, and it will not be easy to follow this up with an equally powerful successor. (Rating:9).
Listen to “Scattered Pieces Of Her”:
About Empty Vessel
Empty Vessel is the solo industrial and power electronics project of Australian artist Tom Wojcicki. “Ruin Value” was released on 14 April 2025 through the German label Dunkelheit Produktionen as a hand-numbered CD limited to 200 copies with a 4-page booklet, plus a digital edition, under catalog number DP179CD. The album runs eight tracks, opening with “Scattered Pieces Of Her” and closing with “Zero Fetish”. Empty Vessel has also recorded under the names Droid Sector, Broken Fingers, Glass Barbeque, Aurora Seven and Cockroach Diocese. “Ruin Value” is Empty Vessel’s first release to be reviewed on Side-Line.
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I have been working for over 30 years with Side-line as the main reviewer. My taste is eclectic, uncoventional and I prefer to look for the pearls, even if the bands are completely unknown, thus staying loyal to the Side-Line philosophy of nurturing new talents.
