Last Rights, Skinny Puppy's final album before a five-year hiatus, and their second to last overall, is a hailstorm of electro-distortion ten years ahead of its time. Even while industrial pop stars like Nine Inch Nails and Ministry were strutting their way across the charts and media outlets trumpeting the industrial revolution, Dave Ogilvie and cEvin Key's ambitious production talents reached what is easily a technical peak (and, arguably, an artistic peak). "Inquisition" is the pinnacle, a heart-stopping single whose production contributed just as much to the air of menace as Ogre's vocals. Skinny Puppy even attempts a ballad on "Killing Game," with surprising success. Though the dense production occasionally masks Ogre's vocals and songwriting, Last Rights is a sonic masterpiece that undoubtedly influenced sound manipulators from Autechre to White Zombie. ~ John Bush