PLAYLIST with COMMENTS/REVIEWS

[eyestrain]

Muslimgauze - Hand of Fatima 1999 - title track is mesmerizing.

Always found Jebel Tariq to be incredibly similar to this stylistically. My favorite of the two also, but only marginally. Very similar samples used. It's got that dub-heavy bass, spasmodic hand drums, raw chanting. This one has a lot more focus on flute (whatever the proper name of the instrument is...I don't know). Contains one of the best covers/inserts of any Muslimgauze I've ever seen. Also agree that "Hand of Fatima" is a killer track.

I'll definitely be checking out Penumbra's Anoraks going off of your enthusiasm about it. I've found a lot of great new music through your descriptions, Zeno.

Really want to get this :Zoviet*France:/Fossil Aerosol Mining Project Patina Pooling DLP through Soleilmoon, but unless it gets released without the unnecessary metal cover, that'll never happen. With postal costs standing where they do in 2014, why even make this kinda stuff?

[Zeno Marx]

Muslimgauze - Hand of Fatima 1999 - title track is mesmerizing.

Always found Jebel Tariq to be incredibly similar to this stylistically. My favorite of the two also, but only marginally. Very similar samples used. It's got that dub-heavy bass, spasmodic hand drums, raw chanting. This one has a lot more focus on flute (whatever the proper name of the instrument is...I don't know). Contains one of the best covers/inserts of any Muslimgauze I've ever seen. Also agree that "Hand of Fatima" is a killer track.

I will definitely give that a go.  I'm wary of anything post-1998 because of how truly awful it can be.  I need strong recommendations to move beyond there.  I'd prefer to leave my fascination intact, and with each dogshit release I hear, a little gets whittled away.

Really want to get this :Zoviet*France:/Fossil Aerosol Mining Project Patina Pooling DLP through Soleilmoon, but unless it gets released without the unnecessary metal cover, that'll never happen. With postal costs standing where they do in 2014, why even make this kinda stuff?

I didn't know about this, so thank you.  This seems to be Soleilmoon's doing.  They overpriced the last album as well ($50+ for a 2LP and $30+ for a CD).  They do this when they know they have a built-in, fanatical audience that will buy at any price.  It's gross.  It's a Steven Stapleton type mindset, and as a longtime fan and buyer, I really don't appreciate it at all.

[anomalie]

Theologian - Some Things Have To Be Endured (Crucial Blast)

As much as I like Theologian/NTT - I can't get into this one.
Don't like the tracks and how they are mixed/mastered. Artwork is good.
Anyone got the same experience?
Should have thought more about it before ordering.

Navicon Torture Technologies ‎– The Arrow And The Wound (Eibon Records)

Has been a while. Love it.

Shifted ‎– Under A Single Banner (Bed Of Nails)
Positive Centre ‎– In Silent Series (Our Circula Sound) ‎

Techno with a dark edge. Needs to be played loud. Nice stuff.

Emptyset ‎– Recur (Raster-Noton)

Anyone heard this one?
This album is mainly a effect. It's awesome. Blast it through your speakers and get surprised.
Highly recommended!

[eyestrain]

Theologian - Some Things Have To Be Endured (Crucial Blast)

As much as I like Theologian/NTT - I can't get into this one.
Don't like the tracks and how they are mixed/mastered. Artwork is good.
Anyone got the same experience?
Should have thought more about it before ordering.

I would have to agree. Disappointed with this work. Not moved by the art either, personally. But maybe that's just because all his albums are Photoshop butcherings with genitalia. Redundant.

I think Leech's best work as Theologian came out within the first year of the project. Also feel like Navicon Torture Technologies' best works came out right at the end of the project. So whatever you wanna call that gray area - I think he shined best there. His recent inclusion of beats in Theologian... man, I am so sick of hearing this in everything everywhere.

[NEHPF]

Zog Machine ‎– Death To The Under Man (tape, VX Nerve Disintegration)
Really bad artwork and a name that is very hard to take seriously. Why would a right wing project name itself Zog Machine is beyond me. But it's pretty nice tape. Very crude. Nice thin lo-fi sound. Basically just some noise and vocals going on.

Will Over Matter ‎– Aino Kassinen / Ultra (tape, Haamu Records)
I can't get over how GOOD these couple short WOM tapes are. Industrial "beats", some psychedelic phaser action, rudimentary synth sounds. Doesn't sound like much on paper but he is just some kind of alchemist with these sounds.

Tearoom Trade ‎– Tearoom Trade (tape, Danvers State Recordings)
First track with strange vocals was the high point. Rest of it I didn't like that much. Too many parts with cheesy keyboard drones backing the vocals. Nice to have complete lyrics on insert though.

[Vermin Marvin]

Corephallism "Speaking in tongues/These scars will last life time" "3 (LA/Apop)
freebie with some order but cant get enough for it.
2 tracks. 7.30 blending well together with droney,drilling but still warm cracling synth voices keeping very dangerous and sad atmosphere and end`s for crying as so many things in life..Human Larvae is closest that comes to mind maybe.
Need to hunt split "10 with Gnaw their Tongues somewhere..and dig up my Twodeadsluts onegoodfuck records meanwhile since it`s project of 1/3 from that band too.

[FreakAnimalFinland]

PROOF OF SHOOTING "untitled" tape
Collapsed Hole
I guess b-side is re-release of track from Freedom compilation (1998) and what about A-side? Rough noise with nice textures. While I can't go into much detail on this one, what exactly makes it different from vast amounts of USA harsh noise, there is something there. Loud and brutal, but nice textures and perhaps also this late 90's pre-computer era also adds the good feel to it. Packaging in handmade cover also good.

Diaphragm " Six Month Horizons/Alucinor" tape
Collapsed Hole
All the time I was listening this tape, I was under impression I was listening Diagram: A. But when writing these comments, was checking the title of release and noticed.. Diaphr.. what? No wonder this sounded so unlike any Diagram:A works I have! Which one is better, who knows? But this was very nice! Some hit & miss moments, but I think it basically belongs to the style of release.

C-50 tape filled with mix of quiet and loud. Cover says "Released 2015; recorded years ago - delayed solely due to label incompetence. Apologies to all". I guess what he means is 2014, though? Edition of merely 50 numbered copies, but I guess that's about right for small profile noise works? Alucinor session stuff is probably better. You can find the stuff from soundcloud too, but I think tape just is better. All the clarity and somewhat digital sound what you can feel while listening from file, is hammered to nicely compressed loudness and tasty saturation and littered with grainy texture of overblown tape. Besides moments of noise, there is plenty of experimental digital manipulation, extensive reverbs, sort of gloomy ambience, field recordings, etc. But as said: get the tape. Even if dubbing is never very loud. Barely gets even red signals, its transforms all sounds to much more noisier. Many times it appears almost as if this was driven through some sort of overdrive all together unlike the file. Obviously matter of taste, but to me Much better than file!
https://soundcloud.com/diaphragm

JOEL DANIELSSON "The Death Of The Grey Wolf / Resurrection Of The King" tape
Lust Vessel
So, this swedish artists has now... his contribution to Hour of the Wolf CD (freak animal) and now this tape on Lust Vessel? I somehow remember there would be something else, but maybe just remember wrong.. At least before these noise releases one could see SHADOWS OF A DECAYING SUN exhibition book in collaboration with Martin Bladh.. Still one copy found at Freak Animal distro for someone looking for little handmade objects...
Anyways, really good tape. It's all about tape hiss, hand made raw sounds assembled into loose structures made out of most of all tape loops. He did stuff under moniker "Coniunction". Some stuff can be found at https://soundcloud.com/coniunction and its not very far what he did later under his own name. If you like what you hear there, you will like Danielssons work on Hour of the Wolf and this tape. Perhaps very much the kind of stuff you could have expected to emerge from Sweden at certain moment, but well... 

[eyestrain]

JOEL DANIELSSON "The Death Of The Grey Wolf / Resurrection Of The King" tape
Lust Vessel
So, this swedish artists has now... his contribution to Hour of the Wolf CD (freak animal) and now this tape on Lust Vessel? I somehow remember there would be something else, but maybe just remember wrong.. At least before these noise releases one could see SHADOWS OF A DECAYING SUN exhibition book in collaboration with Martin Bladh.. Still one copy found at Freak Animal distro for someone looking for little handmade objects...
Anyways, really good tape. It's all about tape hiss, hand made raw sounds assembled into loose structures made out of most of all tape loops. He did stuff under moniker "Coniunction". Some stuff can be found at https://soundcloud.com/coniunction and its not very far what he did later under his own name. If you like what you hear there, you will like Danielssons work on Hour of the Wolf and this tape. Perhaps very much the kind of stuff you could have expected to emerge from Sweden at certain moment, but well... 

Love this tape! He had released "A Study For Transcendental Communication" as Victor Eremita on Black Horizons. Maybe that's what you are thinking of? Also a great tape!

[FreakAnimalFinland]

GUNK "Dust" tape
Gunk#1
Tape of finnish cellar junk from 2012. It's sort of lo-fi version of what they have done on LP's. Packaged in regular tape box, with xeroxed transparent film as J-card. More tape hiss, less aggressive junk than recent second album. But 4 guys in some cellar, carving sounds from physical objects. Occasionally this could pass as some of those rougher ritual noise things, where someone in sewers is using screeching bows and other objects. But no. Nice tape. Not a classic, but nice.

V/A CIVIC OCCULT BIOLOGY tape
Hospital Productions
Withdrawal Method, Covered In Sand, Laureate, Ahlzagailzehguh, Terrorism and Exploring Jezebel on this. Not sure exactly what each band is. Lots of side projects of someone. Not all of this tape is phenomenal or even that good, but it has good stuff. Ahlzagailzehguh might not be at his best here, but always delivers, nevertheless! Perhaps best stuff on compilation is project called: Terrorism. I see two tapes are done, one Hospital and Tour De Garde. One could think maybe this is either label boss secret side project or their collaboration? At least it sounds like mr. Fernow, if you ask me. And if it is, I wonder why not put it under Prurient as vocals, raw noises and being noise, but not the typical "pedal harsh noise", but something else..  work very well into that direction where Prurient has been. Exploring Jezebel is Fernow, and with beats and electronics, what could as well be under later days Prurient. Slow tempo, simple pulsating beat and high pitched electronic signals on top. But I guess many are happy to do low profile "secret" side projects when their main bands have too big discographies and too many expectations and attention, hah...

[sterilization]

Terrorism is a dude named Arthur Rizsk who plays in some terrible metal core band and also runs Solomon's Gate studio.

[FreakAnimalFinland]

Cheers for info. This track was among highlights on tape for me.

[sterilization]

Agreed. I really enjoyed the noisecore style of the first cassette on hospital, but I might like the experimental style featured on the comp even more so. I have not yet heard the tape on tour de garde, but I hope it's more in line with the comp material.
I heard a rumor that he is also one half of endless humiliation along with Robert jurgenson of air conditioning, though I cannot say for certain.

[blackoperations]

have no fear! 'jebel tariq' is totally along the lines 'hand of fatima' which is possibly my favourite muslimgauze. similar instrumentation, drum patterns, bass, etc. certainly both of these would be in my top 5 favourite muslimgauze. the best track for me on 'hand of fatima' is the 2nd 'mint tea with gaddafi' - booming bass line and the whole thing just rolls like a constant loop with glitchy interruptions. absolutely love it.

Muslimgauze - Hand of Fatima 1999 - title track is mesmerizing.

Always found Jebel Tariq to be incredibly similar to this stylistically. My favorite of the two also, but only marginally. Very similar samples used. It's got that dub-heavy bass, spasmodic hand drums, raw chanting. This one has a lot more focus on flute (whatever the proper name of the instrument is...I don't know). Contains one of the best covers/inserts of any Muslimgauze I've ever seen. Also agree that "Hand of Fatima" is a killer track.

I will definitely give that a go.  I'm wary of anything post-1998 because of how truly awful it can be.  I need strong recommendations to move beyond there.  I'd prefer to leave my fascination intact, and with each dogshit release I hear, a little gets whittled away.

[Dr Alex]

John Wiese - Circle Snare cd (long long time this cd was on my shelf but I never listen to it until 2 days ago. This is amazing mixture of quiet noise and harsh (let's call it) cut-ups. Quite unusual for my ears but I like it. Anyone can spread more words about this?)
[FUCK no fun for putting cd in the plastic sleeves. Every goddamn cds from no fun that have is damaged because that fucking plastic sleeve!]

Viodre - Interpol Alchemi cd (same thing with John Wiese cd but this more common with my "musical taste". Now I know why Dom F. and other people glorify this album so much. Brilliant! p.s.best way to listen this during early morning with coffee. Do nothing except drinking coffee and listening)

V.A. - Hard Panning cd (I wasn't so much in cut-ups before I discover Kubota and Endo, of course. Sergi sent me this in his last package it's blown me away. Highlights are mentioned artists and unknown artist on the end of cd. Definitely a must have compilation!)

[Zeno Marx]

Zoviet France online edits:

"E18" 7:48 (2011) - sounds like the beginning of Kraftwerk's "Ruckzuck" crossed with a Konono N°1 edit - that description is better than the track actually is - OK, but not great.

"A Duck in the Tree 2013-11-23 this edition consists entirely of unreleased alternative versions and unused recordings from the album sessions 'The Tables are Turning' album" 59:44 - a little rough, and though edits, I expected it to flow more evenly - worth having and hearing - the type of manipulations you would expect to hear from them at this stage.
http://zovietfrance.podbean.com/e/a-duck-in-a-tree-2013-11-23-twice-turned/

"Live at Incubate, Poppodium 013, Tilburg 18.09.11 [SoundCloud release]" 59:00 - a high VBR bit rate - more of their contemporary manipulations, but more cohesive - at times, it felt like a very polished Hands To recording, which makes sense because, in ways, they do run parallel - in the final ten minutes, it also felt like the wartime field recordings you find on the Arsenije Jovanovic/Ivana Stefanovic split CD - a very nice listen and probably deserved an official release, but when considering their performances, that might often be the case, so who's going to make that call?