Fuji Mum - An Eye For an Eye Will Turn the Whole World Blind

Artist Fuji Mum
Year 2010
Label None
Genre(s) Power Electronics...

One of the positive points about Noise and Power Electronics would be that almost anyone can have a go. You don’t necessarily need to know how to play an instrument or have a massive bank roll behind you to afford gear all you need is passion. One of the negative points about Noise and Power Electronics is that almost anyone can have a go. Despite popular belief there can be such a thing as bad noise. As a fan of noise I find it offensive when someone throws any bit of shit out there and expects it to be accepted just because it’s "experimental". Fuji Mum adopts this approach by serving up four tracks of nothing but feedback and vocals.

Whitehouse made power electronics using distorted synth and hateful vocals, even later on when they began to wander into the realms of self-parody they still had a good solid sound and were amusing. Most Power Electronics is built around synth and specifically high end. Fuji Mum is made up of one dude waving a microphone in front of an amp and shouting every so often. Everything has been bounced directly without any mixing or even consideration for composition. The four tracks here are exactly the same thing, microphone and amp feedback and some forced vocals. The overall sound is totally flat and reeks of doing one take and deciding that’s enough. The thirteen minutes here seem to stretch ever onward. This release is punishing in all the wrong ways.

This review isn't very well formed, I appreciate, but there's not much to work with. As I mentioned the compositional elements of the release ammount to recording feedback and shouting (Read: mumbling) vocals at the same time. Feedback is an important element of noise, no doubt, but it's usually much more than simple feedback recorded through a microphone. Some of the best Harsh Noise works are primarily feedback based, however the feedback is treated and run through effects to make it a part of an overall whole. There's nothing quite as interesting here.

The four tracks presented by Fuji Mum here just give off the impression that minimal effort was expelled in the planning (if there was any) and recording stages. It's an insult to ever other recording artist that actually puts effort in to their works. It comes across as someone who wants to feel like they are part of something, that they have created something, and chosing the easiest route to do that. In this case a musical genre that's based around DIY and often lack of structure. I'm wracking my brains trying to think of a piece of constructive criticism or even a positive point that I can include. I'm falling short on both fronts. These four tracks don't deserve your time or attention, and until this project shows that it actually has some artistic merit I advise you to avoid.

Dim Dusk Moving Gloom - Articles of Faith

Artist Dim Dusk Moving Gloom
Year 2010
Label Datahex
Genre Psychedelic Noise, Drone

I'm not overly fond of netlabels. I feel I should get that out of the way. For every great netlabel, and there are a few, there's about one hundred others that put out releases by the likes of RedSK and Breakdancing Ronald Reagan. Netlabels more so than anything else seem to lack quality control, even the major noise net label Smell the Stench has "put out" stuff by some less than favourable "artists". I know explaining a bias doesn't excuse it but hopefully airing that won't allow it to tain this review.

Dim Dusk Moving Gloom is one of many projects of Justin Mark Lloyd, playing a fucked up mix of Psychedelic Noise, Droning sound scapes and the odd harsh element thrown in. He also heads up the Rainbow Bridge label when he's not record with his plethora of projects. This release, Articles of Faith, finds it's home on Datahex records, a relatively recent netlabel. Looking over their releases is a bit of a mixed bag, though not terrible, with the exception of my excessive recoil upon noticing BRR appearing on one of their compilations. I must say in favour of both Dim Dusk Moving Gloom and Datahex that Articles of Faith is doing a lot to redefine how I look at netlabels.

The release opens with an almost R&B flavoured beat, sounding like a distortion of the opening beat to Amazing (Kanye West). Hints of static creeping around the side. Slight stuttering on some of the beats lends a Chopped and Screwed feel to the piece. The beat is soon overtaken by wailing high end and a crunchy, bassy layer of static. Vocals charge headlong into the mix, drenched in reverb and delivered in an almost Power Electronics style.

The next track is a 17 minute droning dirge. Crumbly walls of bass move at a glacial pace with a well integrated use of religious samples. The matter of fact, mildly upbeat samples is juxtaposed with the static and shrieks low in the mix. Both the music and the sample taken on new meaning when put together, meaning that isn't inherent (Not that I want to discuss the potential of Eisenstein's montage theory in relation to music). Soon high end skree pushes into the piece, the sample still going on in the background, fighting for position and breaking through so only a few seconds here and there are audible. The track does begin to overstay it's welcome at around the 14 minute mark, created as it is around the one sample. Also worthy of note is a high end whine noteable at the beginning of the track which is often found when using a computer programme to artificially slow a piece, whether this is the cause or not it is still distracting.

Next up is a short 2 minute number, bassy noise fliterring between channels, panned perfectly. Slowly starting to get lost in oncoming waves of psychedelic static.

Sundowning is a thirty minute piece that begins slowly and creeps it's way up to a static onslaught. Slowly gathering elements as it progresses, the rumble and crumble of bass is especially prevalent in this track (and the release as a whole) but unfortunately seems to ebb away when the white noise begins. This leaves the track feeling hollow, as it's left with nothing but high end for a while. Like thunder the bass suddenly returns to make a blistering cocktail not far removed from some of the less vocal heavy Masonna 7''s. As the assault collapses into itself the sounds of dying electronics rise to the front, the entire tracks sounding like a spaceship entering a meteor storm and just as it manages to get free all electronics die, slowly.

The final track on Articles of Faith is Prosthetic Relief which mixes the bassier noise with a slowly ebbing drone. This track almost functions the same way as the final song on a psy-trance album. More chilled out and relaxing, bringing you back to earth after the trip you've just been dragged on.

Articles of Faith isn't without fault, certain tracks can feel slightly overlong. Besides this the quality is brilliant however, you can tell that every element is well crafted and put together with utmost care. As I mentioned earlier Dim Dusk Moving Gloom and Datahex have managed to make me rethink (certain) netlabels. That's got to be worth something.

Divorce Party - EP

Artist Divorce Party
Label Self Released
Year 2010
Genre(s) Noise Rock

An interesting little ditty here from Michigan based Noise Rock entity Divorce Party. A two song single clocking in at just under five minutes. Presenting Noise Rock of the more blown out, intense variety.

The first track Doo Dop Top is fast, angry and ever so rewarding. Sounding like some of the classic Noise Rock bands in structure but bringing their own flare to the proceedings. Worth of note is the melodic chanting that forces it's way above the dissonant guitar and thunder drumming.

The second, and unfortunately, final track Tweedy Two Two offers blown out guitar, rudimentary drumming (verging on industrial sounding at points) and obscured vocals. On repeated listens melody begins to rise out of the cacophony and the vocals become more and more apparent.

A million different bands lurk just outside my grasp, suggesting they have influenced Divorce Party. The fact that I can't reach out and grab any do a lot to show just how well the band sculpt their own sound. The genre Noise Rock has been co-opted recently by sub-par bands making sub-par music, Wavves for example. Divorce Party don't sacrifice the rock side of things for the noise. Both elements are present and come together. The whole is greater than the sum of their parts. Defiantly one to watch.

Absurd/Pantheon - Split 2002

Artist Absurd/Pantheon
Label Nebelfee Klangwerke
Year 2002
Genre(s) Symphonic Black Metal, NSBM

There are a lot of problems with the NSBM scene. Even when ignoring the outright stupidity of your average Neo-Nazi follower. Possibly one of the worst issues with the bands in the “scene” would be the valuation of aesthetic and ideal over talent. I want to get something out of the way here, early in their career Absurd were atrocious, barely competent and excessively childish. Pantheon aren’t much better. Unfortunately this split release gathers up some early Absurd tracks and Pantheon’s first LP.

Absurd deal out some standard “punky” black metal. Their collection of tracks ranges from the early “children playing evil” phase right up to some more competent and well-formed material. It’s always interesting to hear a band improve and grow; the only problem is that it’s usually a more rewarding experience if you’ve an interest in the band. This release mixes the different “periods” of Absurd up in the track order, as such there’s a sudden tonal switch from the enjoyable, if not somewhat bland, Böse to the terribly misguided mixture of silly raw vocals and hilariously misguided clean vocals on Der Grosse Tod. Triumph of Death shows a childish Absurd with hideously inane lyrics.

“Subhuman scum you must fear me
it's time to say goodbye
you have no reason to exist
it's time for you to die”

Combine this with the vocals being far too prominent in the mix and the rather generic playing style and the song becomes more of an amusing “how not to record black metal” display. Speaking on what to avoid when recording black metal, every band should listen to Colours of Autumn then promptly make sure they never create something so terrible. Annoying, misplaced clean vocals that sound like a Vaudeville performer juxtaposed with hideous “harsh” vocals that sound like a teenager trying too hard to sound aggressive do not a good song make. Death from the Forest suffers even more problems, the vocals are too fast causing them to sound strained and forced, not to mention the same juvenile lyrical content that plagues the majority of these tracks,

“I am demonic, I am so evil"

Son of Endless Night

Absurd wouldn’t be a terrible band if not for the vocals. Their musical content is enjoyable, if not clichéd. There certainly isn’t any new ground being broken. Absurd seem to be the primary band within the NSBM scene, whilst their newer material certainly shows improvement the question remains how a band that can record such sub-par, uninspired drivel could ever assume that mantle.

Pantheon create a mix of slightly more symphonic and rawer styles. Keyboard passage are liberally scattered throughout their contribution (Re-issue of their first EP) that really don’t gel with the guitar. Also worthy of note is the horrendous drum sound, cymbals that sound like a toy kit and a bass drum that sounds like cardboard. The one instrument that holds any merit is the guitar. Monolithos incorporates infectiously catchy riffs to get the song stuck in your head, unfortunately it’s hard to focus on when the bell of the cymbal is hit and it sounds like someone banging pots and pans together. This is a quality that carries through the entire half hour that Pantheon present. The good elements of the music are far overpowered by the alienating sections. The bass is also a matter of issue for me, occasionally in Det Rase Elig Hygiensk Kanon the bass will rise above the fray, play a few notes out of tune and then sink back into the mess, offering nothing but managing to detract from the whole. Pantheon vocals are on the whole more listenable and actually fit with this music, that’s not to say the lyrics are any better. The opening to The Atavism Into Ginnungagap features melodic repetition of “Heil, Sieg Heil” which sounds more like a teenager attempting to shock than it does a legitimate lyric. The best way I could think to describe Pantheon based on this release would have to be sloppy. The symphonic elements sound cheesy and the music sounds slightly competent at best.

There’s not much of value on this split. I suppose if you’re into the whole NS scene you’ll probably buy it anyway. One thing I’ve learned from NSBM fans is that the value ideal/aesthetic over ability (That said though, Xasthur sells so maybe it applies to all black metal). Whilst I don’t agree with the ideals of bands like Forest or Ad Hominem I can appreciate their music. Even the more symphonic side of things is covered by bands like Kristallnacht, Pantheon don’t do anything you can’t hear (better) elsewhere. Of course it’s always possible this review is just part of some ZOG conspiracy.

Barf Thoth - Peep Roky

Artist Barf Thoth
Label Fag Tapes
Year 2007?
Genre(s) Drone, Experimental Noise

Barf Thoth is yet another project of Fag Tapes label head Heath Moerland (Sick Llama et al.) Focussing on vocal based noise and drone compositions. Peep Roky is described by the label as:

“The elevator lights went out and the only other dude in there w/ me kept complaining about the silence. said at his crib 13 televisions and radios would be on all the time, 25/8, all set to different stations. he busted me this tape.”

It’s easy to dismiss label description in the noise scene, just have a quick gander at any number of hyperbolic love fests applied to Generic Skaters Release #17,054. For once though I can’t help but feel the label description has perfectly captured the essence of the tape I hold in my hands.

Peep Roky serves up two ten minute(ish) cuts of bubbly drone, corrupted speech and hazy atmospheres. Side A invokes oppressive atmospheres as treated speech crackles away, audible en yet completely obscured. Slowly others voices begin to build into the piece, lurking in the background. As the label descriptor points out it feels like a million different news reports, some rolling backwards, some moving too fast, all rolled into one. Like a panic attack in an electronics store when you’ve left your Xanax at home! The most impressive part of the A Side is the minimal use of electronics, the entire track is driven by the vocal samples and gathers most of its atmosphere from them. The electronics are primarily used to set the mood, oppressive, dank and creepy. Side B has a stronger focus on electronically generated noise. Crunchy drones rise beyond the vocal murk, percussive elements become part of the fray. As if every single TV and radio suddenly fell between stations, rough outlines of shows breaking through the static churn.

Apologies for the shit cover scan, I don’t have a working camera/scanner right now and it’s the best quality image available on the web. Let me just assure you that the packaging is indeed fantastic, sprayed tapes and a collaged cover.

Filthy Turd - The Witches Tit the Golden Dung

Artist Filthy Turd
Year 2010
Label Side-A Records
Genre(s) Harsh Noise, Sexy Noise

Filthy Turd is the English Noise/Power Electronics project of 'Filthy' Darren Wyngarde. Active since the early 2000s, with a puddle of releases on varying labels such as Hanson and Turgid Animal. Filthy Turd creates harsh soundscapes for sexual deviants. It's time to don the gimp mask and just into the stagnant waters of The Witches Tit The Golden Dung on Side-A.
Insane mumbling, clattering cymbals and dread inducing drones open the release. A slow build punctuated with the occasional burst of static. Almost like stumbling onto a ritual being held by that "town oddball" when walking home through the town centre. Quite unlike any Filthy Turd I've heard before but still just as menacing. Out of nowhere piercing feedback and distorted vocals cut through, absolutely punishing with occasional chanting carrying on. The vocals are low in the mix, almost to the point of inaudibility hidden as they are behind layered screams and static. When part of a lyrics does cut through the cacophony it creates intrigue. I found myself with my head right up at the speakers trying to decipher the lyrics. It didn't work, I also might have tinnitus. Still nothing ventured...

The releases lurches on, dripping bog water all over your carpet. The use of clean singing and chanting doesn't allow you to be at ease, like a house guest who's finished dinner but started to be incredibly nasty whist playing with his knife a tad too keenly, he could lurch forward and stab you at any moment. So to tension is created by Wyngarde, the alternation between all out sonic attacks and the calmer (but no more peaceful) chanting tracks. Worthy of note is the harmonica (??) that shows up midway through the release, creating a far more musical (yet still lacking melody) proceedings. Given the absurdity of the placement it's somewhat surrealistic and in a way quite funny. It lasts for all of 20 seconds before we're flung back into the audio equivalent of a burst sewage main in a psychoward. The percussion begins to sound as if it were played on burnt out car husks adding to the atmosphere.

Whilst Filthy Turd is primarily Harsh Noise there are definatly some Power Electronics elements to his sound and aesthetic. The use of high end on The Witches Tit... is very close in style to White Heterosexuals. Compared to all out Power Electronics thought, the same hyper-sexualised content is there, it's just conveyed in a far more captivating fashion. I advise everyone to pick this up, pour a glass of vino, close the curtains, look out the kleenex and wank yourself silly.

Now if you'll excuse me, I need a shower.

Swans - My Father....

Artist Swans
Year 2010
Label Young God Records
Genre(s) Post-Rock

This album was always going to be polarising. The very announcement of a reformation without Jarboe started some sort of proto-backlash towards the venture. Nine months on from the first announcement and finally My Father Will Guide me Up a Rope to the Sky is pushed out for the baying audience. Swans are back, but is the album any good?

Maybe saying Swans are back is slightly bold… If I picked up a goose and proclaimed it a swans perhaps it could fool people upon a cursory glance, but closer inspection will reveal that it may look the same, possibly smell the same and even have a similar make up, but it ain’t no Swan. I have no problem with Angels of Light, in fact if pressed as I’ve grown older I might say some of the Angels of Light work resonates more with me. My Father Will Guide Me up a Rope to the Sky suffers the same problem that I had with certain earlier Angels…. Works, after hearing Gira’s touching and powerful acoustic demos the songs don’t feel right being worked into full band mode. The best example I can muse on would be My Sister Said (From: I am Singing to you From my Room & Sing Other People respectively) which lost the majority of its power when rerecorded with a full band.

Far be it from me to tell Gira how to manage his projects but I can’t help feel that as he has grown older that his music has evolved past a very over the top expression of emotion into a more mature and formed emotive output, Swans still holds a place in my heart but the time has passed. Why resurrect a band to play essentially the same music you’re already doing in another project? Maybe I’m just cynical…

My Father… isn’t a bad album, not by a long shot. I do feel it pales in comparison to the more effecting solo demos on I Am Not Insane and I don’t know how well it fits in the Swans canon. Maybe I’m just subconsciously rebelling against growing old. Was it David Fincher that said “Nihilism is a really sexy idea when you’re in your twenties…”? Maybe I’m just not as extreme as I used to be. It’s not really important, you’ll either have this album or you won’t, this review is worthless…. Good old nihilism.