Eric Alexandrakis pours out his harrowing experience with cancer on his new single Pain. This track is not for the faint of heart, but it definitely hits the spot for those who are going through a similar struggle. A songwriter from a young age, Alexandrakis has always been in tune with his emotions, which certainly shows with how vivid and transparent he is with this new track. The fact that it was made live spontaneously on a 16-track recorder with no computer or any fancy tricks is a testament to his mastery of the craft and his tools.
Pain starts with a nervous thumping that slowly ramps up in intensity. Sawing synths and a distorted riff come in and all hell starts to break loose. The rhythm of the whole mix takes on a heavy labored breathing as the energy starts to build up. A short blues-rock guitar riff comes in as a recurring theme but soon gets swallowed up by trippy electronic noises that weave in and out of shape until the last concluding bellow. The variety of sounds Eric uses is dizzying but it doesn’t take away from the overall story. Everything as expected from a two-time grammy award nominee. Eric Alexandrakis manages to take a long-exposure shot of suffering and crystallizes it into sonic form. The result is sincere and absolutely nasty.