HNW Essentials ?

[Mattias G]

The Rita/Bone Owl tape is a favorite here also but i must admit that i can´t agree at all the music you describe on Bone Awl. I haven´t played it for awhile but the last time i listened to it the Bone Owl songs were songs and very punk and straightforward like they use to sound. Their recordings are rough sounding for sure but on my copy you can hear actual songs that is easy to head banging to, like a good hardcore song not "blown out static walls with some barely audible lyrics, Guitars riffs that sound more like pulsating crunches, and faint movement (the drums I assume) that you can barely hear snapping away in the background like a loop".
So i just wonder if maybe my your copy is sounding wrong? Wierd!

You know I actually thought of this when I received my cassette a few years ago but I don't know, a lot of people on my forums ( http://philiastench.freeforums.org/ ) have always agreed with me and the reviews I have read like those on Metal-Archives, Outerspace Game LAN, NWN!, etc. say the exact same thing, i.e.:

"The artists alternate tracks on this split but that hardly makes a difference because one sound and one sound only dominates the duration of the record: harsh, fairly low-frequency white noise with a slight rhythmic modulation that's barely perceptible."

You can hear the songs perfectly on this years release, "Sunless Xyggos" which is all of those songs re-done instrumentally so you can actually hear them. Or maybe you just got really lucky and got a clearer version of the cassette. But I'm listening to my copy right now and it is definitely static walls with the occasional buried cymbal crash or quick lead, rarely, peaking through the static.

Maybe they put out two different versions of it? It would be very strange if some bad dubbed tapes made that big change in the sound. This is a mystery!

[RyanWreck]

The Rita/Bone Owl tape is a favorite here also but i must admit that i can´t agree at all the music you describe on Bone Awl. I haven´t played it for awhile but the last time i listened to it the Bone Owl songs were songs and very punk and straightforward like they use to sound. Their recordings are rough sounding for sure but on my copy you can hear actual songs that is easy to head banging to, like a good hardcore song not "blown out static walls with some barely audible lyrics, Guitars riffs that sound more like pulsating crunches, and faint movement (the drums I assume) that you can barely hear snapping away in the background like a loop".
So i just wonder if maybe my your copy is sounding wrong? Wierd!

You know I actually thought of this when I received my cassette a few years ago but I don't know, a lot of people on my forums ( http://philiastench.freeforums.org/ ) have always agreed with me and the reviews I have read like those on Metal-Archives, Outerspace Game LAN, NWN!, etc. say the exact same thing, i.e.:

"The artists alternate tracks on this split but that hardly makes a difference because one sound and one sound only dominates the duration of the record: harsh, fairly low-frequency white noise with a slight rhythmic modulation that's barely perceptible."

You can hear the songs perfectly on this years release, "Sunless Xyggos" which is all of those songs re-done instrumentally so you can actually hear them. Or maybe you just got really lucky and got a clearer version of the cassette. But I'm listening to my copy right now and it is definitely static walls with the occasional buried cymbal crash or quick lead, rarely, peaking through the static.

Maybe they put out two different versions of it? It would be very strange if some bad dubbed tapes made that big change in the sound. This is a mystery!

That would be strange because I am almost certain that they never re-pressed, but it is still possible to lose source material and have to make second generation tapes. Maybe Mr. Rita could give us an answer?

I know everyone has a different opinion on that tape so maybe its 100% subjective. Myself and others hear buried walls, you and others hear that American hardcore hoe-down sound that Bone Awl are masters at.

[kettu]

my moneys on a poopy  dub. I took out mine and had a listen and the metal sounds sounds fine and audible.

wallz is not really my thing. things ive liked: vomirs track on some split and rita what else....the bulk of my experience comes from clicking the myspace link when someone points out this is my hnw project and indeed the line in sound is an absolut turnoff. if the project is based on borrowing mr sams concept I would hope it would also include the in your faceness of the noise and not just the theme.


E D I T : dead body love was good 2.  the wall word is something weird. a lot of the hnw myspace stuff ive heard is more like the first layer of paint and certainly not the whole thing.

[Zeno Marx]

nevermind

[FreakAnimalFinland]

I did up a pretty solid 'selected playlist' for the end of my HNW article in AS LOUD AS POSSIBLE which is out this weekend if you want to check that out.
two separate top ten lists:
classic/1990s
contemporary/2000+

As loud as possible #1 came out last friday, and grabbed my copy while in London. This article The Rita is talking about, is pretty decent article. I think genre allows and has, tried to make more links and more referencepoints during the time that article was waiting to be published. Starting point of glorification of cruchy mid 90's americanoise is very much audible from many bands, but most definitely there has been also shifts of focus?
Artwork of article has been seen before, but the full page offset printed actionman photo with very detailed choise of clothing & tools, is something I appreciate more, than idea of computer generated fuzz (for example).

Like Max said, I think Urashima LP's are good. Not all perfect by the musical standards, but when you approach the "subgenre" as form of art, and the packaging & aesthetic is strong part of it, I do prefer the black vinyl, black covers with silver silkscreens etc. with slightly erotic & violent overtones.


I know I've been as loud adversary against "HNW" as anyone (heh), but eventually it's more up to thinking why would subgenre be bad or good? When there is word for anything, from tiniest difference. When small rocks turns to sand and transforms to dust? Why make difference if difference is so small? Well, it might not be useful. Why your girlfriend is insulted when you tell the dress is pretty nice, and you should be infact calling it "skirt". And you think whatever females wear, is perfectly fine to call "dress" even if there's millions of variations and terms for them.  Why you can't just take "beer" in bar, but have to select stout, ale, lager, whatever...   You can order beer of course, but the devotees look at you like some clueless jerk. Did you come here just to get wasted, or appreciate good beer?? You can of course file everything as "noise", or even as "music", but if in other music styles, even mere pace of drumming will define whether you are doing tango, waltz, polka etc, why problem that details defining directions within the noise?

I know the answer, since it's what is/has been my logic when opposing HNW. That as part of experimental music, when you choose to remain follower of something that others created, and choose to insert zero amount of your own creativity, it may become pointless. It has no other role that follower / participation within "scene". Even if being "ok", due faceless copycat reality, there is zero reason to listen to it, if it shows material done virtually with gear & method copies from originators and in form of "easy side project" rather than something what was thought out, researched and results of experiments. I would see that there are endless amount of texture, grain, pressure, atmosphere, source, inspiration, theme, topic, and so on, to be used within context of "HNW", so it just remains to be done properly with talent.

[XE]

Not my cup of tea really but VOMIR CD on AtWarW/FalseNoise is great. Listened it w/pretty decent car hi-fi while driving on motorway. Loud void. If some small details would have been there it would have been perfect experience like on 5 min. some female screams then on 15 minutes more etc. THAT would be something.

[RyanWreck]

I forgot to mention both of the Flowerday tapes. Personally I like "Snuff Victim" better: "Violent harsh noise walls created with nails and tapes, by R.E. Fontainebleau." It works well. But "Girl On Film" is nice too but it isn't strictly "wall" through-out its entirety. I think both are still available through Cathartic Process.

[FreakAnimalFinland]

I think Flowerday "snuff victim" was total boredom. I didn't find any value in it, beyond very well made job behalf of label in technical side. But packaging & overall quality didn't save the fact, that there wasn't anything interesting soundwise. It would be easy to see appeal on lowest interests of sex& violence, but as far as sound goes, I could list instantly countless better ones.

[A.R.GH]

Essentials?
The rita, Vomir, Werewolf Jerusalem

newer projcets I really like:
HASH, I dreamt of her beautiful tentacles, Stress, Mossy Pussy, etc.


music fans: "noise is lazy, anyone can do it"
pe/noise fans"HNW is lazy, anyone can do it"
what's next? i don care , to be honest...really

[Ashley Choke]

Judging from the three pages of response it becomes pretty clear to me that my impression of what is classified as wall noise is pretty wrong....

I asked the question in the first place since I made recordings that I thought might be classified as wall noise. Now it's clear to me that they probably wont. And since I'm satisfied with them anyway it doesn't make mu difference I guess

But cheers for response

[Infirmary]

Funny you mention Infirmary because I heard the LP and absolutely despised it. Totally shallow onelayered line-in recording. I was always under the impression that HNW had to do with large field/room recording type stuff. Not flat electronic 4tracker sound??

Am I completely off or are there as with much else different approaches to the HNW sound?

Cool, first negative feedback I've heard about that LP. 

Yes, it is one-layered because we recorded it live in segments.
We had a full room of gear set up at the time and a 3 foot wide 70's era mixer everything was feeding into, sheet metal and electronics everywhere.  It was full-blast electronic and vocal freakouts while under the influence of psychedelic mushrooms and negative energies, we had a bad trip while recording this record.

It was recorded on a Tascam 488, and there was no digital mastering done. So the LP is completely analog, cassette analog to be more specific.

I do stuff with the HNW scene, but am not looking to be labeled as a HNW artist because most of my stuff is non-stationary and I also do ambient, drone, and doom all within the same project.

You can hear lossless files of  different Infirmary material here to catch my drift: http://soundcloud.com/infirmary

I'm also an audio engineer who masters for vinyl and cd frequently, so if it's left raw and dirty it's because I wanted it to be raw and dirty. I also like recording with old open-air cassette recorders.

Infirmary is not a HNW project, only a few of my works fit that category with no gray area.

A more accurate description would be a doom-obsessed eclectic and literally schizophrenic noise artist.

I heard the LP and absolutely despised it.

Why did you despise it? Because it didn't fit the genre you wanted it to?

I was always under the impression that HNW had to do with large field/room recording type stuff.

That sounds more like electro-acoustic or ambient music than wall noise which is more obsessed with tape and distortion, not that I care about what genre my project is thrown into.
If I were going to make something more digitally than yes, a large stereo field can be achieved with the click of a mouse.

http://harshnoisehell.blogspot.com/ 
myspace.com/therealmysterypill

[Andrew McIntosh]

I really liked the sound of "Dark Energy..." but have to say the samples of "Dilate The Eyes" and "From Hell It Came" really do fit the stereotype of HNW; crackly, mainly static, up-front, etc.

[Zeno Marx]

Phroq has a web release that is probably as simple as chewing gum and sticking it underneath a desk, but I couldn't care less.  The texture is so sublime that I can listen to it endlessly.  Unfortunately, Phroq claims they didn't save the .wav files, so all we have are some lousy MP3s.  That material is very much in the monolithic style.

[Haare]

good idea is to make a buddha machine with the static noise.  take care of all your HNW needs

Here you go:


What irks me is about HNW is the "we're obsessed with Gialli"-trend. Fine, I like Argento etc. too but everyone doesn't have to start a HNW project about it...

I think our LAFMS London-crew's collective idea about a Bud Spencer/Terence Hill-themed HNW project would be worth doing...I'd call it Flatfoot.

[Infirmary]

I really liked the sound of "Dark Energy..." but have to say the samples of "Dilate The Eyes" and "From Hell It Came" really do fit the stereotype of HNW; crackly, mainly static, up-front, etc.

Well that's because they were supposed to, thank you.

Check out Gomeisa, and what Vomir has been doing lately.
also Griz+zlor... essential
And don't neglect Is- Pressure Vessel