TEENAGE NUREMBERG (RRR/Pure CD, 1995) - Easiest way of getting hold of a representative sample of original 82/83 material. Difficult listening: pure noise music done a long time before noise music became a genre. Shortwave radio, primitive delay and distortion effects, some ranting and incoherent vocals about 'National Socialism' on the live title track. Strange outro sampling John Lennon and amusing segment showing how unimpressed his schoolmates were with the project.
HORN OF THE GOAT (Freek CD, 1995) - Co-credited to Merzbow but I believe this should be considered purely as a CE album (the only 1990s output) as Masami Akita's input was minimal - members of Ramleh seem to have had more to do with it. Varied collection of samples, electronics and drones all with an alien and unfriendly vibe, well mixed with a professional feel to it. Reference points include the Moors Murders, wartime sex slavery, Leonard Lake, Sally Mann. Very downbeat record.
NOBODY'S UGLY - (No Fun LP, 2007) Two long soundscape pieces which according to the listener's mood can be either transcendent or set the nerves on edge. Black Cotton Wool on side one works better - that title is a reference from Gitta Sereny's 'Cries Unheard'. William Bennett is credited as 'producer' and some of these sounds were later reused on the first Cut Hands album.
CROWD PLEASER (Hand To Mouth LP, 2009) - I would recommend this above all others, one of my favourite records of the last decade. Side two is a piece similar to the previous album but side one has five sections of individual 'songs' done with help from Mattin - ultra powerful rushes of noise violence over which quite distressing lyrics are bellowed in a very angry voice. I noticed some input taken from the memoirs of alcoholic UK footballer Paul Gascoigne, and from Deborah Spungen's famous book about her daughter, but this is mostly a personal and autobiographical kind of performance poetry in a similar style to his tracks with late era Whitehouse. Crazy, aggressive and very intense material.
SEX PIG - USA LIVE (Artecnico/Gift CD, 2013) - New Japanese release with an edited version of a 2008 show which featured Mark Solotroff helping out. Title is from a vigilante flyer sent to Peter Sotos's mother in the 1980s. Rushes of drunken and squalid noise with a rowdy sounding crowd who have to be told to step backwards "or Daddy won't continue" in classic heavy metal show style. Crowd Pleaser and late Whitehouse lyric shards which sound especially strange when performed acappella over a howling audience. A lot of atmosphere in this recording, you can almost smell the alcohol ODs, the increasingly unsavoury conversations, the next day's regrets.
