Hailing from New Zealand, Truth have been producing for a couple of years and after a couple of decent 12”'s they have brought out this album of weighty delight.  This one is mainly for the darker heads out there but the overall sound  does take in plenty of influences.  The main emphasis here is on big drums, filthy bass and a soundscape of eerie and cinematic samples.  It's not just what the albums about by any means but very much the strong points are when they're on this tip.  
If I break the album down into it's separate parts this should become clearer.

 'Burglar' kicks off proceedings full of menace and brooding bass stabs.  Wailing sirens sweep through the mix to add the the impending sense of dread and it carries on pretty much in that vein the whole way through with some good variation and breakdowns into epic stepping territory.  'Dead silence'  opens with a haunting little vocal and horror show piano until a reese-like  stab drops and the percussion filled break takes over.  It's pure half-stepping mode with this track, ideal mixing fodder although plenty of variation means it keeps you listening with interest and the dancefloor rockin'.   

From that we go into 'Don't explain', the title highlighting the beautiful sample used that rolls over the piano lilt.  There's still plenty of powerful drums and bass but this one's a little bit more laid back, probably about as chilled as it's gonna get with these guys because towards the middle more blaring hollow synth sweeps ups the energy without ruining the mood initially set up.  'Juno' is the most recent single released by Truth and sits just about right at this point in the album.

A doom laden intro sweeps up into the drop which delivers some kind of dark electrical bass and synth combo which then in turn mutates into some epic swirling bass mash-up.  You can tell why this is single material as it's full of horrible energy that by the end of tune may make you want to go out and find the nearest rave.  I'm also liking the grime influence with the  tracks, these fellas obviously take the best from that scene without aping it in an unconvincing manner as some producers from outside the UK sometimes do.

 
Title track 'Puppets' cracks through next, brooding samples, half-step rhythm allowing a huge sub workout that may very likely melt your face off in a club.  Nothing at this point in the album, although feeling like familiar territory, is formulaic.  As soon as you think you know where you're at with it some surprises are bound to follow. That's what I would say takes this album a little above the normal 'dark' style albums out there.  These guys obviously have plenty they want to try and squeeze in and do their damn best to achieve it. 

I rate that they've convincingly nailed their own sound   and although it can be a little more satisfactorily pinned to the 'dark dubstep' genre wall than some albums of late it's not a borrowed sound by any means.
'Master of the Stars' is a perfect example of this because just as you think you know where they're going you get a little jolt with some little melodic influences or on the other hand maybe a filthy bass or synth stab that completely throws you.  It's basically a lot of fun!

'Undercurrent' is the collab with Ben verse and can also be found on the recent single.  Again, rather moody, this track relies on some solid drum patterns and a bizarre rolling sub that seems to spin through the track like some out of control comet.  A healthy dose of darked out strings and  a spaced out vocal helps, I guess with the idea of being pulled down under the water of some insane sea.  It's good for mixing and will again get heads movin on the dancefloor provided they like the idea of drowing in bass.  
'Terror Planet VIP' drops in next with a cup of tea and a towel with a epic soundscape of ethnic style flute and sitar touches before ripping into the pure meat of the main rhythm. Careful though, it can slice you right open with the synth and bass sweeps like a pair of finely honed shears.   Another thing, and it's probably just because of the large amount of water sounds in the previous track but this beat does feel like soilid concrete in comparison! It's a good contrast anyway.

 'Legion' is my favourite track so far, a gorgeous vocal intro  slams itself full force into a cruel rave alarm mashing reesey goodness with a bowel tearing sub.  I'm just loving the contrasts again within the track.  A huge vocal build up has to deliver a nonce bashing bassline in this day and age with this type of music and Truth don't let you down in that respect.  It's also a bonus that there's just the right amount of this track and it doesn't get too repetitive.  Instead 'Invaded' sweeps in with some glitched out samples and  more weighty bass bins fodder.  Quite simple synth-lines are apparent again in a nod to their grime influences.  

After that 'Lab Rat' immerses you in another epic soundscape, here I think the Mala influences can be heard, indicating that a forthcoming release for Deep Medi is understandable and the deeper side of Truth coming out here I rate.  The raw synths and more DnB influenced basslines are held back for this one to let the drums ride forth over a set of sounds I can only really describe as middle-eastern. It's a headphone track for when you're travelling some unknownd territory or perhaps just on the commute to work where the grimy landscape outside that bus window can be momentarily displaced. Enjoy it while it lasts!

'More dangerous' then snaps you out of that meditative tune and slaps you with more simplistic bass drops that, although fun, feel a little uncomfortable directly sitting next to the pevious track.  I'm also not quite feeling the annoying melody on this one which again has an eastern tinge but feels somewhat false after the beauty on show in 'Lab Rat'.  There's also some random dogs barking, which I assume set off the alarms that are also present in this track. Again.  
It's the only low-point in the album for me so far as the amusingly titled 'Wicked Vibe Broccoli' injects some bouncy vibes with great percussive flourishes, 8-bit blips and a relentless wobble that's just the right side of cheese.
These guys blatantly have a lot of material they've gathered together and as the album draws to an end 'Indigo Mood' drifts in with a huge emphasis on dub.  Echoing samples drift about, a guitar lick here, another really nice indian vocal there.  You get the feeling this is leading us up to the end somehow, it doesn't impose itself too much, it's just a nice little stepper that takes you up to the end tune and very pleasant.
'The Fatman' then brings back some of that impending dread felt earlier on in the album, grimy rave stabs and a warm sub are present, with the dub feel also present but surprisingly this, as an end track for the album, doesn't do quite as much as I'd expected it might.

Overall then, 'Puppets' is an album brimming with quality tunes.  There's a good range of styles in there as well.  It rarely feels repetitive as we all know dance music albums can.  On many of the tracks the change-ups of rhythm or little bursts of inspiration really help them stand out from the standard half-stepper outfits out there.  My only quibble would be that the last few tracks feel as though they could either have been left out or perhaps been put towards the middle?  I think maybe because of the expectations raised by most of the album I expected it to culminate in something that topped those tracks but instead it chooses to gradually glide back towards chilling sounding but  standard dubstep fare.  

Either way, for the immense 2 thirds of 'Puppets' it's definelty worth checking.  When Truth are on form they kill it, stone dead with electrical bass and massive cinematic sound layers.  As they've said in interviews they wanted something people could listen to in the club but also just as easily anywhere else.  The variety that's on show here for the most-part has therefore been achieved and if you're into more than just filth there's plenty of reason to get this album.