Cube X is a Polish project from Katowice, founded in 2012 by Jakub Szczepański. After a longer hiatus, it has returned with a new full-length album, “Simulation,” which runs for 75 minutes and includes 18 tracks. From the very beginning, this one-man project has operated within the aesthetics of dark electronic music, and the latest release clearly moves toward a more dancefloor- and club-oriented sound.
Listen to a review in English here
“Simulation” is primarily rooted in Dark Electro and Aggrotech, with elements of hardstyle and heavier industrial influences. Although the project’s Bandcamp page references EBM, in practice the album leans much more strongly toward the aggressive, modern form of Aggrotech rather than the classic traits of Electronic Body Music. This is fast-paced, brutal music designed with the dancefloor in mind, yet structured well enough to remain engaging in a home listening setting.
One of the album’s greatest strengths is its coherence. Despite its considerable length, the material never becomes tiring and maintains attention from start to finish, which is especially notable at a time when fewer artists choose to release long-form albums instead of singles or shorter EPs. “Simulation” demonstrates that a well-planned, consistent record can still function effectively as a complete, self-contained work.
Among the highlights is the opening track “Alien Rage,” which immediately establishes the intensity of the entire release. “Annihilator” also stands out as one of the most melodic tracks on the album, built around strong synthesizer lines and dark leads—dominated, of course, by the unmistakable “supersaw” sound known from Roland synthesizers and popular in trance music, here placed within a much more brutal context. Another notable track is “Blood and Terror,” a densely atmospheric piece that could easily fit on a release by C-Lekktor or similar aggrotech projects (such as X-RX or Nachtmahr).
Instrumental tracks also play an important role on the album, allowing greater focus on musical structure and melodic content. “Breaking the Code” is one of the most interesting examples of this approach, while “Welcome to the Future” is arguably the heaviest moment of the entire release. “You Get What You Deserve” also stands out, incorporating samples from a very well-known film. Tracks featuring vocals—“I Am on My Way” and “Warzone”—move closer to a dark hardstyle aesthetic, with the latter in particular sounding like Scooter on steroids.
Most of the compositions are fast-paced, usually above 120 BPM and often significantly higher. There are no slower, ambient, or clearly mid-tempo moments, which means that a certain limitation of the album may be the relatively low variation in tempo and mood between tracks. At the same time, this stylistic consistency is precisely what gives the material a clear identity and allows it to function effectively as a club-oriented whole.
The closing track, “Till I Die,” delivers a more dramatic and melodic finale. It is one of those moments that shows Cube X is not limited to rhythmic aggression but is also capable of building tension and emotional weight. As a result, the ending leaves a strong impression and provides a fitting conclusion to the album’s overall narrative.
Production remains a significant strength of “Simulation.” This type of music can appear deceptively easy to produce, especially due to heavily processed vocals and the programmed nature of its sounds, but in reality it requires a high level of control over clarity, energy, and mix cohesion. In Cube X’s case, it is clear that a great deal of work has gone into the material: the album sounds professional, consistent, and genuinely rewarding when experienced in full.
“Simulation” is particularly recommended for listeners of projects such as X-RX, C-Lekktor, Hocico, Combichrist, Nachtmahr, or Xotox, as well as for those interested in terror EBM, power noise, and rhythmic noise. It is a strong, polished, and great-sounding release for anyone seeking dark, aggressive electronic music with a distinctly danceable character.