That topic will catch his solo and his plethora of noise projects (Black leather Jesus, Werewolf Jerusalem and any of his HN/HNW monikers):
Any thoughts for one of the legendary american noisicians?
Any favourite albums of his solo or/and his numerous project(s) album(s) of yours?
What would you advise to a newbie to start with?
avoid this one like the plague.
I don't have a lot of his stuff, some is good some is ok, I did see him in London a while back as Werewolf Jerusalem and he was amazing live.
I was listening to his split 12" with Black Scorpio Underground last night and liked it, I have reviewed a coiple of things over the years and liked what I heard.
got to know his solo work with the impressive "I keep my stuff inside"... then madly falled in love with BLACK LEATHER JESUS... the slaughter prod boxset wrapped in leather and chains was brilliant...
RR and BLJ are the first noise releases I ever listened to. I listen to very little noise overall, unless you count noisy drone and black metal, then I listen to quite a bit probably. Anyways, I return to either BLJ or Dilloway almost exclusively if looking to zone out to some static. Ramirez is a legend rightfully.
say BLJ earlier this year in LA and they rocked. even had a moshpit encore.
I do not have a lot of his stuff but i remember hearing BLJ on that Freak Animal comp that came with the magazine, somehow it made an impression on me and i played that track a lot.
IMHO TRUE
"tracking device" is a fucking masterpiece. saw BLJ live in houston at their.... 20th anniversary show, i think? close to a dozen people on stage with richard leading them all. quite incredible.
I'm very proud of all Ramirez & BLJ stuff I have released. Each release has been somewhat "curated". Dropping weaker stuff, asking for more material, etc.. Or re-issues what has been done out of best small edition releases I have heard.
They are all different from eachother.
BLJ Trocar has eerie droning quality below harsh noise surface
RR Tracking Device is more power electronics/industrial type of material - not like "I keep my stuff inside" or split with Alchemy of the 20th Century. In a way, structured and forceful, but different from those two.
BLJ united states of... is just good loud multilayered harsh noise
BLJ "Torture Machinist" my all time favorite, 5 piece line-up churning textured and dense noise, with a lot of detail. What it lacks on sheer brutality and over-the-top flat distortion, it wins with abundance of subtle details.
It's all sold out, so not really promoting my own stuff here, hah... It's unfortunate that RR's more "ambitious" works like Tracking Device, I keep My stuff inside and split with Alchemy of the 20th Century hardly is remembered while the yet another radio-through-distortion works is. Not saying it's bad, but as sound artist, he has ability and skill to go beyond the easy noise.
I'd really recommend Deconstructed Hand Device!!
An Innocent Young Throat Cutter is about the most brutal HNW this happy camper has ever heard.
Anal Drill, at least the 90s material, the few tapes/compilation tracks I've heard, is extremely tasty harsh noise, a sort of proto-HNW sound to be filed alongside the likes of OVMN or Dead Body Love. Some of the best material I've heard from Richard, under any guise/band/alias....
https://www.discogs.com/Slave-Labour-Vol-I-And-II/master/195523
I've been lusting after this release for ages....
The recent reissue of "Burned Into The World's Memory" on New Forces is excellent.
Quote from: FreakAnimalFinland on September 06, 2013, 09:59:44 AM
It's unfortunate that RR's more "ambitious" works like Tracking Device, I keep My stuff inside and split with Alchemy of the 20th Century hardly is remembered while the yet another radio-through-distortion works is. Not saying it's bad, but as sound artist, he has ability and skill to go beyond the easy noise.
The Alchemy split material was requested because of how much I enjoyed I Keep My Stuff Inside. Three tracks were submitted for the split. Two were used. Would like to know where the other track was used, if at all.
"I Keep My Stuff Inside" is likely my favorite of RR solo works. not only for the nostalgia of being 16 and getting an LP that was padlocked shut and using bolt cutters for the first time (i remember thinking: yes! this is industrial music!) , but all this time later still the compositional intent and sound work holds up as focused and solid. cold, industrial, and a more unusual set of sounds (from the RR i've heard at least) make it stand out. ok, maybe a tiny bit much flanger for me - but hey, that shit wasn't played out yet when this was recorded!
On the flip side of the sound palette, "Male" CS on Truculent Recordings (released about 7 years later) is also a fav despite totally minimal, stream-of-conciousness feel... mostly metal, feedback and voice, this is primitive stuff - but personally i connect with the movements on a cerebral level, making it a tape i'd never get rid of, i play it about once every other year.
Ninth Massacre collection box on Trash Ritual is awesome, total endless filth - i've missed almost all his 90s work except for some downloads but this collection is so awesome i can only hope to keep hearing more and more, somehow.
Werewolf Jerusalem's Confessions Of A Sex Maniac is up there, if not the most frequently listened individual noise release.
I recently got a CD version of the BLJ/RR split Scrapyard and it's great, very good material from both. One thing that I was thinking that I've read Ramirez say he doesn't like synth noise but the siren sound on Male Nudity Among American Wreckage sounds very much like a synth? Or it could also be mixer feedback maybe..
Very much waiting to hear the tape reissue on New Forces.
Just heard Fatgirl and wanted to rave about it!! Very dense (more than layered) droning harsh noise, bloody great. Reading this thread it occurs to me to suggest Electric Bar With Chairs by 265 Bowery to those enjoying I Keep My Stuff On The Inside.