Nekrophile Rekords & related, appreciation!

[FreakAnimalFinland]

I was spending evening with friend and mentioned appreciation to Zero Kama 2xCD re-issue, and he didn't know it. I wondered, doesn't everybody know Nekrophile Rekords? But then I though, why should they? It's not like there would be many topics out there or abundance of available releases anyways. So... if someone missed this label, be sure to check out something!

Austrian cassette label run by Michael DeWitt from 1983 to 1987 as part of his Church of 2CR11. Specializing in occult/ritual industrial music (self-described as "Martial Music for the New Aeon"), Nekrophile Rekords released eight cassettes and some printed materials. Though scheduled in 1984, the following two releases were never realized:
The Secret Eye Of L.A.Y.L.A.H. video tape
Coming To Now - Closer To Silence cassette

Five of the titles were reissued on cassette and then on CD by Nekrophile via Staalplaat in the early 1990s

And I wasn't around when label was, but got the Staalplaat re-issue CD's, which I feel could be in need of another re-issue? Check out discogs for Korpses Katatonik - Sensitive Liberated Autistiks CD RE-issue, and you find prices asked are like 50-200,- each! What a faggotry for cd packaged as elegantly as RRR's Pure discs!
LAShTAL - Thoum Aesh Neith CD isn't much better prices either.

Good cheap way to start checking out stuff would be the above mentioned Zero Kama "Live In Arnhem & The Goatherd And The Beast" 2xCD. The best tradition of 80's percussive ritual industrial and also unless you're vinyl fanatic, you can skip the Zero Kama 10" since it's included in this double CD. Also one track of Post-Mortem is included, which was Allerseelen side project for one time field recording.

[Ashmonger]

I've heard some stuff from Zero Kama and Korpses Katatonik in mp3 and it's good stuff indeed.
I like the fact that The Secret Eye Of L.A.Y.L.A.H. was nearly fully recorded with bone instruments.
I'm not too certain about the status of all the stuff, but it seems indeed not too easy to find it for a reasonable prices.

[Jaakko V.]

If I had to choose one "magical ritual music" album that'd be The Secret Eye of L.A.Y.L.A.H.. Visceral stuff. From entirely different sphere than 99,99% of the cheesy and artificial "ritual ambient" aesthetics. I wonder what DeWitt is up to nowadays. I think he was lately involved with visual arts? He seems to have removed his website...

[FreakAnimalFinland]

And forgot to mention, that 2xCD set includes also english language radio interview as bonus. Short, but nice.

[jc]

i also have the zero karma 2xcd and think it was a worthwhile purchase. malignant has it for 18ppd which is as good a price you'll find for something that athanor put out.

[RG]

Can someone say a bit about the live material on that 2CD? On the description at Malignant it says they use guitars and bass?

Just went back to Malignant to read the description again and now it's gone. They must have had only one or two copies left and someone here got it, hah.

[FreakAnimalFinland]

They don't use that much synth in live material. It's more about vocals, percession, drones... Like tibetan ritual music meets Test Dept percussion, meets more esoteric atmosphere and occasional screaming & yelling. If "bass" and "guitar" as words make you hesitate, it's not like there would be some "rock" elements. No. You won't really having "playing" there.

[tiny_tove]

that was a guilty pleasure back in the age.
one of the most obscure project at the time, and the fact they were using human bones as instruments made them sound more macabre than they actually were.
re-listening them now, after many years, and knowing that in Tibet bones are not seen as anything too weird, probably lost some bite.
But I still enjoy them.

[Jaakko V.]

Michael Zos DeWitt - Interview for Hagazussa @ okto.tv (January 2012)

Check it out, you may be surprised.

[Steve]

EVERYTHING IS ESSENTIAL.

[totalblack]

One of my FAVORITE labels ever. I was fortunate enough to find copies of:

VA - The Beast 666
LAShTAL - Thoum Aesh
Zos Kia / Coil - Transparent
VA - The Archangels Of Sex Rule The Destruction Of The Regime

several years ago in a lot of industrial tapes that were dropped off at a record store in Montreal that I frequented, price was $30 each but my friend that worked there sold me them for $10, and I picked up about 15 other things at the same time. The visual presentation on all of these releases, as well as the material has made them some of my favorite recordings in my collection. Probably under appreciated even for this label is the LAShTAL cassette, the material on it is phenomenal ritual \ dark ambient. Their only recordings but also is done using bones so I suspect it's some of the same people behind Zero Kama \ this label. I will eventually go for picking up the other 4 tapes that the label did but I'm not in a position to purchase 4 tapes that cost $50-100 each at the present. One of the only labels I am concerned about completing the discography however.