Joy Division • Closer • 2xCD
The band renowned for the tragic loss of their enigmatic and mysterious frontman. This, their second and final studio album (give or take compilations, etc) sees them at quite possibly their most miserable. The genius, personal and often all too true lyrics mixed with the pounding simplicity of the instruments is timeless. After their success of Unknown Pleasures, the band were able to experiment with new equipment (including more of an emphasis on synthesizers than previous efforts) and recording techniques, expanding their musical palette.
Closer is a masterpiece. One that grows on you. Simply powerful and emotional music. It may not hit home as hard or be as full on as their debut, but its subtle approach marks a clear line between the two records, and yet all the same connections and similarities can be recognised – for example a nice mix of slower tracks (Decades – without a doubt one of their most melancholy efforts) to more upbeat ones (A Means To An End) and of course all of the traits that made Joy Division who they were. If a band sounds at least slightly different on every record they create, progressing as they go, then they are doing something right. What makes Joy Division so great? The pure honesty? The unique doom laden guitar tones and hard drums? The sincerity? The groundbreaking negativity and hurt within the music? The listener can decide. Despite how seething and gloomy Joy Division were, there is always a ray of beauty to be found within their music if you search for it.
Alongside Unknown Pleasures and Still, this album is treated to a full remaster in a double digipak with a booklet containing photos and interviews alongside an additional disc with a live recording. It features a full set of plenty of classics (although only one track from Unknown Pleasures!). It is well known that Ian Curtis' performances vs. studio recordings are full of more energy regarding how he uses his voice, and at times the music is faster, louder, stronger, and show a completely different perspective to the calmer studio versions. The other side of the coin. The recording is good quality for what sounds like a single microphone audience recording.
It is interesting to note that a lot of highly influential bands from the late 1970s / early 1980s met an early end for one reason or another: Joy Division, Throbbing Gristle, Bauhaus... all of which happened in a heartbeat. A short existence yet one that leaves a profound impression. Sadly, this band will always be the mold for shit indie bands to be cast from. New Order recently released a compilation CD called Total – collecting another "best of" Joy Division and New Order. Flogging a dead horse does not cut it.
Joy Division • Love Will Tear Us Apart • 7"
The one song that everyone knows. It is a beautiful classic that ties the knot for the end of the band. The single is paired with the fast paced post-punk These Days and another version of the A-side snuck after it. A nice record shop find.
Sektor 304 • Soul Cleansing • CD
Bands like this get rarer and rarer. Sektor 304 seemingly came out of the blue and knocked most who have heard it off their feet since. All kinds of sound sources and methods are used to create dissonant industrial music. It is not noise. It is not power electronics. It is simply that: industrial music for the modern era. Oil drums, sheet metal, scathing vocals, drills, bass guitars, drum machines, synthesizers, broken glass and much more are all utilised and orchestrated in a way that evokes tribal-esque rhythms and unholy compositions of sound. All day could be spent name dropping a large amount of bands that Sektor 304 brings to mind, but why bother? However, if you were to do that, the majority of them would be either from or started in the 1980s; not bands and projects from today, which sets Sektor 304 apart from a lot of modern experimental music.
The only problem with this album is that some of the tracks seem to not really go anywhere and do so for an elongated period of time. The minimalism and slug-pace of some of the material requires patience to appreciate, but in all honesty the best approach to this album is to sit down and listen to it from beginning to end (and loud at that), absorbing everything.
Saying that, there is plenty of interesting variety on offer here and nothing gets particularly stale - some of it just drags on a bit without changing its course. But if some "hit" tracks were to be mentioned, the brutality and simplicity of the drilling bass guitar dirge and destructive percussion of opening track Body Hammer sticks out as a modern classic. More notable genius and simplicity can be found on The Beast, which evokes grinding guitar feedback, chilling atmospherics and industrial rhythm, and towards the end Death Mantra's punishing deliverance of chaotic brutal percussion and the deafening screech of war horns, making way for a vicious verse / chorus / verse structure, which descends into a nightmarish void of lost voices resonating within is all too satisfying. The production is tight and loud and as a whole the album flows well from beginning to end.
Soul Cleansing is scorching debut which hopefully is not a one-off. When and if they come back, it would great to see more evolution and less repetition in some of the tracks, but otherwise this is an essential and mandatory addition to the true industrial connoisseur's collection.
Cthulhu Youth • Cthulhu Youth • C14
Nasty powerviolence and noise from London. This is a reissue of their debut self titled EP. Plenty of downtuned fast and hard madness and crunchy massive riffs. A track or two sounds like it nods towards black metal a little, too. It all sounds really good on tape. Side B is filled with some feedback noise and microphone abuse which erupts into a scorching final track. This band seems to be onto something and can definitely go places if they take what they have and develop it further, but for now it is a rewarding listen.
Cthulhu Youth • Inflatable World For Weak Lungs / Water Retention Problems • C20
Their second EP does indeed show progress. The thrashy and hard elements are there to be able to make the conclusion that some of this, in terms of sound, is not that distant from some raw black metal. This time there are shorter and fast blasts of powerviolence based around some really heavy riffs. The band could have squeezed in a few more tracks during the four minutes of silence on Side A, though. Side B presents the best material here: Conceptual Coma Activism really hits home. It is simply disgusting, slow, sludgy and downright dissonant. The final track takes a similar turn to the self titled: this time with oscillator squelch and low end noise akin to Man Is The Bastard.
Both of these tapes come in nice screenprinted cardboard packaging with an insert. Sadly, the only way to see the tracklisting is to look online. These tapes are sold out now but a download can be purchased from Holy Roar.
Macronympha • Amplified Humans • CD
An essential cut of the masters of amplified steel and filth dubbed to tape! Industrial Recollections are doing a good job of reintroducing the nastier side of old noise tape culture to the CD format. Most Macro fans know what to expect: dry metal abuse, burning electronics pushed to the red, fast cuts between transitions and powerful loops. As for newcomers: the further one delves into the extensive history of their discography, the more satisfaction awaits. This is a noise project where it is usually easy to know what to expect, but very rarely do you get disappointed.
As a whole this is an excellent album consisting of two long sides of material – but there are some definite highlights, which are usually the unexpected moments that leer out of the carnage of layered scrap. The fast-cut style from one transition to another is the Macronympha trademark, where subtle moments explode into a mass of tape bass energy and audial heat. This may not be as full on as the raw purity of record such as Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania but it is still a necessary addition to your noise collection.
