HAL HUTCHINSON

[FreakAnimalFinland]

Was finally listening to HAL HUTCHINSON "Dedicated To Damage" CD. Postponed it only because it is most of all material I have heard. This compiles some of his works of metal-junk recordings. Taste Of Iron 1 & 2 are originally from tape released by Freak Animal. Now that there isn't my own agenda to promote here, I can perhaps worship level of this material without feeling like self promoting prick. When I first heard material, there was no question about it that it would be released. What it lacks in compositional level (basically slowly moving metal junk noise just goes on and on....), it wins with texture and mix. No effects. No flat digital thinness. It sounds all loud, slightly saturated, mixed into tasty "unnatural" wide-stereo. All in all, it is the stuff what anyone could conclude this is "easy to do", but in reality, very few do it. It shows skill and taste most of all. To recognize what types of metal objects create interesting sound. It isn't probably about what objects look nasty. Chains, oil barrels, whatever. But what are sonically interesting. Totally Ugly and Dead Weight are also stuff quite many should know before. Stein compilation and split tape with Mania. Both provide suitable addition to Taste Of Iron works. Easiest the weakest part of CD is previously unreleased track "fubar", which is the closest to "normal metal junk noise". Appearing to focus more on aggressively smashing stuff, instead of careful attention whether this throwing or hitting piece of metal actually sounds that good. It's not bad per se, but seems that it remained originally unreleased for a reason. It simply doesn't stand as high as 4 other tracks of CD.
CD sound must be mastered a bit. There is more force and pressure than on original tapes? Or maybe it just sounds like it. Rip of old tape can be listened here, but CD sounds louder.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a4Qxg7aG6po

MUTILATED SLUT "Acid Attack" tape
Terror
Label says: Recorded in 2009 by Hal Hutchinson. This release consists of one 46 minute track, offering sounds of corroded metal slashing human flesh, vitriolic & diseased feedback,field recordings of violent & tormented suffering in industrial hellholes, with all manner of other fucked up & infected horror recorded to 4 track tape & drenched in acid with the intention to disfigure, maim, torture and kill.
Listened this couple times and it is nice kind of return to "back to basics" harsh noise. That we don't have C-10. And not really anything nice. But neither doing it the easiest possible way of flat hwn repetition. Just good old fashioned harsh noise attack how they used to be when you got full length tape back in 90's. As one-off (?) side project, it's hard to claim this would have utmost merit beyond just being satisfactory for harsh heads out there! Couple times listening, and don't remember much, beyond that it was good to listen to.

ZYKLON SS material I have been praising before in playlist topic at least. Man has shown clear skills to be one of very noteworthly noisicians of today.

[Andrew McIntosh]

MUTILATED SLUT "Acid Attack" tape
Just good old fashioned harsh noise attack how they used to be when you got full length tape back in 90's.

Exactly! It seemed then that no one gave a fuck about the kind of self congratulatory bollocks people like to advertise their releases with nowdays. It's a superb release of over-the-top Harsh fucking Noise using every scum element necessary at exactly the right length. Because there are many times when you need to just sit down, shut fucking up and swallow enormous lengths of Harsh Noise.

But Hal has always been a back-to-basics man. His approach, from the start, has been to get in touch, be friendly, offer his Noise, and try to work with you. He's an old school networker and Noisemonger. That's why he's rightly earned the respect of the rest of us around the world. Material I've heard from him hasn't "tried". It just did. Sometimes I liked it, sometimes I didn't. But Hal never "tried".

The only complaint I've every had was his declaration that a lot of his "factory of metal sound" material was a failure. Not that I didn't understand. A lot of that material wasn't physically mind blasting. But it didn't have to be. It was still good. The lp on Unrest, and his collaboration with Mr Shift on "Full Weight Of The Opposition", are fucking highlights on how to do metal junk Noise right. Other Hutchinson material was just plain good. No need to blow minds, no need to enter canons, just plain good. Well, I still listen to it.

[tiny_tove]

totally agree.
I started developing an obsession with him last year and I still have to find a single thing that disappoints me.
Very intense, multi faced and skilled.

[deathcamp]

and his collaboration with Mr Shift on "Full Weight Of The Opposition", are fucking highlights

Indeed, this vinyl collaboration is just awesome!
Didn't know the relation with Zyklon SS. So I have to pick this one.

[Cranial Blast]

One tape by Hal Hutchinson I listen to very often and by often meaning maybe every year that goes by since I've had this time, which was roughly back in 2017-2018 I want to say. Industrial Development (Locked Loops) tape. I can never enough of that tape! There is a very distinct and inspiring piece of industrial noise genius type of alchemy going on with that one! Among one of my favorite HH tapes, if not my favorite.