AMEK-MAJ – AMEK-MAJ
Text by Mikko Polus
I am sure many reading this have heard the artist’s untitled CD that Freak Animal published in 2023, but do note that despite the lack of title this isn’t some reissue but a wholly new recording. This album was published in November 2024 by Hiisi Productions as a CD in a quite strikingly colored digisleeve. I think the publishing edition was just 100 copies, but it should still be available from the label as well as some distributors. Or so I hope!
Some albums are fairly easy to describe and praise. For example blurbs like “massive detailed crunch”, “wall of distortion” or “very intense cut-up” coupled with a statement such as “hits like a brick” already gives you a pretty good idea of an album’s style and quality. Then there are other albums which are more sneakily or obscurely good, and elude simple descriptions. They might not knock you out right at first, but instead you have to get to know them a bit before they reveal their impact.
Describing this album and Amek-Maj in general as broken (harsh) noise would be somewhat accurate, but it’d also give a too vague and one-dimensional view of it. I think the most characteristic feature of Amek-Maj recordings has been the grittiness, tactility and indeed brokenness of their crunch, and them often having a good amount of low-end. They’re not really violent as such but they’re certainly rough and feel very hand-made, and within and around the roughness there’s some things you wouldn’t expect to hear. It might be some out-of-context sample of urban situations, even some pop/hiphop-snippet, or perhaps something odd and unrecognizeable that you wouldn’t expect yet it makes perfect sense that it’s there.
The above is of course a brute simplification, as one other feature of the project’s recordings is that pretty much all of them are something different from the rest. There’s some very minimalistic and calm material, parts mainly focused on field recordings, and then there’s way faster and especially rougher harsh noise often featuring metallic objects self-crafted for the purpose. These aspects often coexist and are delivered in a way that doesn’t fit some specific sub-sub-genre. So, it shouldn’t be a surprise that this album is again something very different from what’s been heard from the artist before. While some of the project’s recordings come across to me as carrying an unspecified urban and reclusive atmosphere, this album feels more earthy. There’s more open space to hear, and more air for the sounds to fly off into.
I think some recordings by the also Finnish noise project Skärgård were described along the lines of “fucking about with tools in your garden shed”, and in some fairness this album’s opener could be described similarly. Deeply and loudly ringing unspecified objects, some certainly metal, some likely wooden with a softer thunking sound. Some plain harsh noise distortion with what sounds like hitting heavy springs. Things being thrown around and collapsing together while distorted metal rings. The second track’s heavy usage of what seems like water in a large container enhances these “summer cottage” vibes, but it being mixed with heavily blown-out wailing of something that might be a human voice but likely is not breaks this image of hearing some specific physical space or location.
This mixture continues throughout the album. It moves from clearer sounds of physical objects and spaces to entirely abstract and gritty harsh noise with ease. This also means that the listener has to work to follow the album, as it rarely stays still for long but instead keeps on moving and mutating at its own self-dictated pace – yet you keep feeling like you’re about to grasp it. It’s challenging, surprising and captivating. It’s also certainly not the easiest nor most immediately hitting and rewarding Amek-Maj recording so far in sound nor style, so I’m very curious to see how the album will develop in future listening. More trekking remains to be done.
Sample on YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oUdSxBlRf4Q
Label’s website: https://hiisiproductions.blogspot.com
The album was recorded in various sessions outdoors, in a shed, at a workshop, and indoors at home. Maybe this variance explains how the album’s sound has a lot of sense of space, but it’s difficult to make out what or where that space actually is. Of course the mastering by Sami Enso (your “partner in crime” in YANA) helped tie it all together, but still: was it difficult to create an unified album out of such very diverse recordings?
Well firstly the unmastered version isn’t that different from the final version. To my understanding Sami slightly adjusted the volume levels, ran it through a cassette, mixer and some pedals, and blew holy smoke on it. I believe the main reason for the album’s overall sound is that each song is made from just one sound track. Like I always do it. I don’t do any layering, everything in the songs is as it was captured when recording. I had hours of material that I went over in focused listening to see what resonated for myself. Listening to the final version, I thought that this won’t be to everyone’s taste. But you’ve got to do what you feel is right.
Did you give the mastering artist any guidelines on how to work on the record?
I think I answered this above. So, no! I have full trust in Sami’s vision. He sent me this version and it was easy for me to approve it. Warm thanks to Sami once again!
As Amek-Maj recordings usually do, the album sounds both like a logical continuation to your earlier discography while also sounding like something I couldn’t have expected to hear. The same comment could be expanded to the visual side too: partially familiar, yet simultaneously very different and surprising. Did you intentionally do some things differently from before with this recording, for example by using some different gear or methods to make or capture the sound?
I think it’s mainly affected by the different locations I recorded in. But compiling the source recordings is done at home. So I start to play through the stuff caught on the recorder. I know beforehand what clips might work together. The equipment I used were mainly the same I’ve used before too. There was no more planning than that involved in all of this. It’s again a some kind of view of my internal world.
Were all these recordings pre-planned or did you do some spontaneous sound-crafting as well? I know you do and use some field recordings as well, so I wouldn’t be surprised if you often have a recorder at hand just in case something interesting comes up.
Pre-planned in the sense that if I know I might capture a potentially interesting sound at some location, I go and record enough to capture the sound I wanted to. Unless it turns out the sound doesn’t work like I assumed. And because I don’t have continuous access to some recording place or a possibility to rule out some possible outside interference, I do this quite spontaneously too. I do a lot of other things in my life feeling first too, and they lead where they lead.
This might be a super dull simplification, but in my opinion Amek-Maj’s works often sound somewhat reclusive. It feels they present a very private view of their maker and his mindset, and that they would’ve been recorded in similarly contained spaces. The open air you can hear on parts of this album makes it feel quite different in comparison. Was there some difference in both the physical spaces and your mental headspace between this album and your earlier works? More summer vacation vibes instead of urban reclusion?
Not a dull question at all. I think I answered this earlier as well as I could, too. I think the publishing format made the most difference, knowing it’d be a CD. No need to think about sides A and B. And that there’s no need or rush to get something published fast. At least for the time being, this’ll be the final Amek-Maj full-length album. If the creator wills it so. And I guess the creator is me in this context.
I’m not sure if you’ve heard it, but on the A-side of Cloama’s Death Certificate 7″ there’s a percussive sound that at least sounds like hitting a large plastic water barrel. I’m hearing a quite similar sound on this album. Was it a water barrel or something else? By the way, if you don’t have that 7″, it’s worth getting already for that A-side track.
I haven’t heard it. I mean, it could be a barrel… I don’t remember that much about the album even though it’s not an old one. One hockey influencer used to say often, I mean within the same minute, that let’s go forwards!
Similarly how the album sounds hand-made, that’s also how the covers look like. Very strikingly colored DIY paintings are mixed together with cut and torn photos of crime scenes, rocky textures and some other things. It’s quite a contrast if put side-to-side with your previous CD that Freak Animal put out. I could’ve asked the same thing about the album’s sound as well, but: what was the feel or end result you were going for with this artwork, and was it difficult to make the parts match together?
There was nothing more to this either. If you throw yourself into it and trust what you do, the result will be what it will be. It seems this time it was a success as it arose questions in you at least. In full honesty I don’t know or get the album any better than anyone else who’s heard it.
For finns – or anyone who can attend: KEIKKAA! 21-22.2.25
21.2.25, n. Klo 18:00-
Villähde (Paikkana Pyrylä. Villähteentie 333.), “Lahti” – Paikallisbussilla lähes ovelle.
Haudat, Jazzhand, Kitu, Mogao, Moozzhead, Rotat, Umpio
Ei ilmoittautumista. Osallistumismaksu 15€. Tervetuloa
22.2.25
päivällä leffateatterissa Genesis P. Orridge dokkarin näytös, illalla keikkaa. Infot:
https://special-interests.net/forum/index.php?topic=13703.0
