PLAYLIST with COMMENTS/REVIEWS

Balor/SS1535 · February 04, 2025, 06:49:49 PM

Quote from: Baglady on February 04, 2025, 04:42:43 PMKIYOSHI MIZUTANI - Cemetery LP (Ferns 2024, orig. Ulcer House 1991)
I chuckled - in a positive way! - when Ferns reissued Mizutani's Inferiors Betrayal as a DLP a couple of years ago. There's just no obvious audience for this guy. Too weird for most regular noise heads, too dated for today's arts n farts crowd. So to put out a thing like that, and barely promote it, I guess Ferns just want it to be out there for those who really need it? Noble!
Then this came out in April last year. Finally picked it up a few days ago, and I'm just as thrilled with this one. Fragmented in a dreamlike bizarre manner. Acoustic crackling, sawing and hammering, a car burning off somewhere, sampled voice fragmented, short radio snippets, outdated programmed percussion, the odd synth stab etc. Again and again I ask "why this sound? it makes no sense", which is usually the case with dreams as well. These odd elements and objects right in the center and completely out of place. At times, these four tracks balance on that threshold between the bizarre and the nightmarish, but that's where it stays, a restraint I appreciate. It never goes full on noise or nightmare.
Mizutani doesn't sound quite like anybody else (which is why he fits wo well on Ferns, who houses a bunch of other true originals!), but a few names do come to mind who treads similar dream countries where things often stop making sense, such as Ultra, Francois Douris (the RRR LP at least), P16 D4, certain older John Duncan stuff. It's a sonic space few newer artists care to thread - and perhaps all for the better, but still - which I guess might come across as almost cringy today for it's sonic qualities. The old sytnh sound, the theatrics, the percussion... I gladly go there now and again though. The Undying comp from 1989 on Freedom In A Vacuum summarizes that whole thing so well, as does a good chunk of the less raved about artists on Journey Into Pain for example. Just weird, old, almost pretentious racket without an obvious audience (at least today). Great LP!

Also, I had completely missed that Ferns recently reissued yet another old Mizutani thing, but on CD this time, Actual Infinity / 2 Variations from 1991. Instant buy, obviously.

This sounds really great, and I have been meaning to check it out since someone first mentioned it here around the time of the release. I like early duo-Merzbow, so this sounds quite good.

Krigsverk · February 06, 2025, 06:32:04 PM

Richard Ramirez - Tracking Device CD (Freak Animal)

Not sure what to add to the previous review really... my fave Ramirez release. Such a varied and intricate album, totally blown away. "Eyes Slowly Adjusting to the Darkness" is a great example of tension, controlled distorted sounds and just a feeling of dread. Been on repeat all week.

Bizarre Uproar - Teurasjäte/Propaganda Bizarre -Blood and shite 2006-2007 DCD(Ominous Recordings)

Not much to add here either, peak-BU material. A real treat if you are into this shit. And I mean shit. There is lots of it on display.

cr · February 06, 2025, 09:28:04 PM

Quote from: Krigsverk on February 06, 2025, 06:32:04 PMBizarre Uproar - Teurasjäte/Propaganda Bizarre -Blood and shite 2006-2007 DCD(Ominous Recordings)

Not much to add here either, peak-BU material. A real treat if you are into this shit. And I mean shit. There is lots of it on display.

Is this "new" one? Haven't found it on Ominous yet.

k.p.g · February 06, 2025, 10:37:10 PM

Spykes - Mouth Wash (American Tapes)

A mug goin' in 2000s style - what more can you ask for? ... I guess I could say that over the course of delving into more of the ever-expanding world of one John Olson, a common criticism I've heard is "you've heard one, you've heard 'em all." Not saying it is entirely false; I mean you do enough edition of 3 type releases, there is going to be plenty of similar sounding jams across. However, I will note that the shift from his previous project, D.L. Savings T.X. to Spykes is extremely noticeable early on. The electronics have become far spacier, and it is apparent that Olson has a much better understanding of what zones his rigs can go to. The emphasis on guitar is pretty noticeable here too, which is an element I think has been dropped for a long while now. Most importantly to those who are turned off from the "jazz" end of things (i.e. a horn in noise), the inclusion of reeds here is not as overly apparent as it would go on to become. Not a lot of "horn with a delay on it," much more "horn adding a piercing high tone atop this noisy assault."

Pretty great tape overall. Gotta be thankful for YouTube guys like Active Abuse taking the time to upload this hard to find material from his collection.

Krigsverk · February 07, 2025, 09:12:12 AM

Quote from: cr on February 06, 2025, 09:28:04 PM
Quote from: Krigsverk on February 06, 2025, 06:32:04 PMBizarre Uproar - Teurasjäte/Propaganda Bizarre -Blood and shite 2006-2007 DCD(Ominous Recordings)

Not much to add here either, peak-BU material. A real treat if you are into this shit. And I mean shit. There is lots of it on display.

Is this "new" one? Haven't found it on Ominous yet.

Yes, drops next week! Highly recommended.

FreakAnimalFinland · February 07, 2025, 04:17:12 PM

Nærværet - Når Man Ser Inn I En Annens Hjerte LP
Satatuhatta
wonderfully lo-fi and wowing, fluttering, damaged reel-to-reel tape manipulation makes even quite musical elements turn into eerie atmosphere. Always liked Alter of Flies and this is one been on turntable multiple times a day for a while now and somehow just lures to re-listen again and again.

Mold - Secret Things Of The Outside World LP
Satatuhatta
Listened this from Bandcamp when I was out of town, and somehow it didn't strike instantly. When listening LP, totally opposite: Instant hit, and listened LP three times today and thinking it requires more. Excellent dirty and broken sounding noise!

PUTREFIER "Trace element syntax" CD
Pure/RRR
I remember first time I heard Putrefier, was DEDICATION 2 compilation CD. Really great CD too! It was so early on my noise joyrney, didn't even realize comp was partly old materials, partly new. There would be like mid 80's Japanese noise tape tracks thrown along Macro, CCCC, Putrefier and many more. Including also fine mix of tape-scene / industrial names and latest Japanese noise names. Don't remember exactly in what order I got next Putrefier works, but this CD was quite late in Pure series. I got them about in order of CDs coming out, and insert in this one already lists about 50 pure discs.
In new WCN interview, artist mentions this was originally sent to Praxis Dr Bearmann label for LP release, but label wanted to put out his 80's style material and therefore release never happened, but went to Pure series. When this came out, I thought it would be like "japanese noise". Sure, it is far from 80's Putrefier, but it is most definitely not "japanese noise" sounding. If you compare this in content of Pure series, this ain't Incapacitants, Masonna, Pain Jerk kind of thing, but you could rather lump in along crude and lo-fi harsh works of Prick Decay, Akala, Sudden Infant, Murder Corporation, and so on. It is not fast and sharp, more broken low-tech, at times even ultra primitivism of some sort. I know that I certainly admire this nowadays way more than I did back then. I was just today listening other noise, thinking how come it doesn't sound NOISY enough. This Putrefier is like true noise. Its not about fast assault, high tech edits, brutal hammering. Instead, all the sounds are pure damage and dirt. I like.

k.p.g · February 07, 2025, 09:18:13 PM

Community Mental Health - Untitled (American Tapes)

A heavy synth affair that sounds like machinery colliding back and forth throughout. At times, you enter some zones reminiscent of M.B.'s signature dread; other times are just oscillating sputters. At just 30 minutes, no sound ever tires too quickly. This one feels more like meditations on a few zones than just a "let's see where this takes us" style jam.

Penon · February 08, 2025, 02:20:52 PM

For anyone who is looking for new bands with classic PE sound, look no further than [Code/Neda]
"The Inner Enemy" album on Cloister has been a constant feature of my playlsit recently.
https://cloisterrecordingsus.bandcamp.com/album/the-inner-enemy

Fistfuck Masonanie · February 08, 2025, 05:23:12 PM

Grunt - Karike CD (Freak Animal)

Very "hands on", organic, and with a direct live feel. Harsh and straight to the point. Crisp and sharp frequencies with rustling junk metal. Pretty sure I even hear wooden boards clanking together buried in the mix. Maybe I didn't notice it on the earlier tracks, but track 7 sounds like concrete or stones grating against each other as well.

In some ways reminds me of the "noise tool shed" a la New Blockaders. I made that comparison with the Bizarre Uproar collab as well. Seems to be Grunt's most recent approach and sound palette which I'm enjoying. Again, very organic and the tracks feel like they were recorded as live takes.

Looking forward to additional spins to absorb this one.

The packaging is unique. I like the folding housing with the photography booklet. I'm a little worried about the wear and tear over time, but it looks great.

k.p.g · February 10, 2025, 05:06:49 PM

Mankind's Devastation/K9 Hemorrhoids - Split (Sickening Shit)
Mankind's Devastation/Kiehuva Neste - Music = Destroyed, but at What Cost? (Not on Label)

Spent my early morning exploring the earlier works of Mr. Isaac Horne, who I think has earned his reputation in extreme music circles more recently for his work with Sissy Spacek & Sulfuric Cautery. Mankind's Devastation precedes both those projects, but still has that signature disgust that Isaac brings throughout his work. While this can all be written off as simply gorenoise/goregrind/noisecore, it has a level of intensity that is entirely unique to the man behind it. His drumming is terrific, and I think he knows this, so more often than not, that is the main instrument in the mix. Whereas vocals or guitar or noise would take up that spot, it is drums here. IQ decreases with each blastbeat (and there are a lot of them). This is worth checking out for anyone who wants more modern gorenoise. And if you prefer drum machine over the real thing, he also is currently doing another great project called Malignant Hypothermia.

Gore.

k.p.g · February 10, 2025, 07:20:42 PM

Ahlzagailzehguh - Memory and Hearing (Hospital Productions)

Tackling into this longform behemoth right before I take a lunch break. Over time, I have not been as interested in cut-up noise as I once was. This record is currently working some magic to my ears though. The heavier emphasis on silence than previous releases by this artist that I have heard makes for a generally better pacing for a record of this nature. There are moments where you wonder if a track ended. Is there any sound? I think so, but it is nearly inaudible in the mix. It shows great restraint from the artist to take sounds he probably thought were pretty good and bury them down like that. Harsh blasts feel earned when they come in. If I could pump my fist, I would.

There was clearly a lot of love and care put into this one, just given the size of the sound palette being presented. I am not sure how many artists would have the patience to make something similar.

DBL · February 11, 2025, 12:30:44 AM

Quote from: k.p.g on February 10, 2025, 05:06:49 PMMankind's Devastation/K9 Hemorrhoids - Split (Sickening Shit)
Mankind's Devastation/Kiehuva Neste - Music = Destroyed, but at What Cost? (Not on Label)

Spent my early morning exploring the earlier works of Mr. Isaac Horne, who I think has earned his reputation in extreme music circles more recently for his work with Sissy Spacek & Sulfuric Cautery. Mankind's Devastation precedes both those projects, but still has that signature disgust that Isaac brings throughout his work. While this can all be written off as simply gorenoise/goregrind/noisecore, it has a level of intensity that is entirely unique to the man behind it. His drumming is terrific, and I think he knows this, so more often than not, that is the main instrument in the mix. Whereas vocals or guitar or noise would take up that spot, it is drums here. IQ decreases with each blastbeat (and there are a lot of them). This is worth checking out for anyone who wants more modern gorenoise. And if you prefer drum machine over the real thing, he also is currently doing another great project called Malignant Hypothermia.

Gore.

I've got that Kiehuva Neste split and it's indeed worth checking out. I'm not even sure if it has more happening than pitch-shifted gurgles and the manic drumming, but it's such a short recording that it works fine as it is. Surprisingly intense stuff. I haven't heard other releases from Mankind's Devastation yet but hopefully will eventually. The couple releases I've got from Sulfuric Cautery are really good too, equally drum-driven but it's noisy goregrind / noisegrind instead of noisecore or gorenoise. If one wants to nitpick, ha! Kiehuva Neste is more of an "unspecified underground obscurity" type of thing. Sometimes cheap electro, sometimes gorenoise, sometimes both. I just recently got its split CD-R with Ecological Malfunction as a trade bonus but haven't played it yet.

This came out a few years ago already, but you might want to read this interview Isaac Horne gave to Procrastinate Web Zine. It crosses over to his zine work and many other things too.

Apes Clog Snag · February 11, 2025, 11:57:11 AM

Some pages ago there was discussion about that PBK/Hands To/AMK collaboration so when I stumbled into Verfall, another Hands To/PBK collaboration on bandcamp, I had to give it a listen. A lot easier listen than the disjointed PURE disc. I would guess location recordings by Hands To mixed and processed by PBK. Like the similarly titled tracks on System-Music-End the tape also is reverberating murky organic drones that sometimes are given a chance to be pretty with glimmering ambience. So, very good stuff. Will return to this and perhaps will give other 80s PBK releases some new changes also. I do have that Impulsy Stetoskopy double feature of early tapes in my shelf that I have barely listened through.

k.p.g · February 11, 2025, 03:00:00 PM

Quote from: DBL on February 11, 2025, 12:30:44 AMI haven't heard other releases from Mankind's Devastation yet but hopefully will eventually. The couple releases I've got from Sulfuric Cautery are really good too, equally drum-driven but it's noisy goregrind / noisegrind instead of noisecore or gorenoise.

On Mankind's Devastation - the split with Sewer System is very good! Think it is still streaming on YouTube as well.

On Sulfuric Cautery - yes, they are definitely NOT noise, as every bit of blasting has a layout and structure to it (although you possibly would not be able to tell with how low the guitar is mixed sometimes). I have had the pleasure to play with them twice now, and both sets were radically different. It seems like they end up playing whatever batch of new recordings they are tooling with at the time, and then move onto the next thing as soon as they are done in the studio. Pretty great stuff.

k.p.g · February 11, 2025, 03:19:16 PM

Mistletoe - Gestas & Dismas (Small Mercies)

It's a cold morning, and it calls for a cold soundtrack. I had seen John briefly yesterday, and he handed me a different Mistletoe disc, which inspired me to revisit this one. When it comes to death industrial/PE/synth-driven, none really do it better in the modern age than Mr. Pyle. It is simple in approach, with not much movement from track start to end. One idea is presented, and it basically hangs on... but god damn, are the ideas good. Not too far off from early Swans or Flipper in that regard. I also know it has been some time since I revisited this disc, as I completely forgot there were vocals on this too. Menacing. Good morning. Who wants to sell me a copy of this disc?