I Own Some Records

Hey everyone.  You might remember a few months back I was talking about my band, Grampa.  Well we finally finished mixing and all the other fun stuff for our first album.  We have a bandcamp page where it’s available for download.  Also I have it on micro SD cards which is limited to 14 copies; if you want one email me.  I haven’t decided if I want to do a tape release yet or not.  

Grampa play a mix of dark ambient/drone/noise/other weird stuff.  Every track has different instrumentation ranging from banjo to throat singing to homemade oscillators.  Check it out!

Grampa - download here!

It’s pay what you want, but don’t feel bad if you pay nothing! I just want people to hear it, we worked hard on the record.  If you download it, give me feedback!

thanks!

-Log. 

Andrew King & Brown Sierra - “The Kraken” (Dais Records 2010)

I seriously feel like Dais Records can do no wrong.  Well I take that back, the Awen record they put out is pretty awful, I’m not gonna lie.  This record is not however.  Dais is the kind of label that I buy everything they put out, because I have only been disappointed once, but the majority of the acts on there I’ve never heard of before.  

To be honest I skipped this record when it came out, but when their last batch of preorders went up they had copies of this listed, so I picked one up.  Having no knowledge of the performers prior to hearing this, I had no idea what to expect.  Apparently Andrew King was in Sol Invictus (a band I admit have never heard before but seen their name around for years) and Brown Sierra are a noise band that sound like a less intense Bastard Noise.  So this 12” sees the two acts combine and create something totally unique and interesting.  The titular track is my favorite, its almost like soft power electronics; gentle buzzing and hiss from Brown Sierra while Andrew King reads a poem about the Kraken from the 1800’s.  It’s quite an interesting concept of blending modern sounds with centuries old text (and I know Prurient does this too, but he mostly screams the words which is not the way the texts would have been read when they were written).  

The B side (this is an EP by the way, I forgot to mention that) has Andrew King singing about an old British military victory, which I am to lazy to look at the linear notes to say what they are, over gentle and quiet electronics that have been cut down and remixed to the absoute minimum amount of sound.  This is probably one of the most interesting and exciting noise records I own.  I can’t recommend it enough. 

-Log. 

Chelsea Wolfe - “Ἀποκάλυψις” (Pendu Sound Recordings 2012)

So I had to see what all the hype was about.  I missed out on the initial release of this record, so I was pretty psyched to see that this got repressed recently.  Musically this is a slow, moody, dark trip down folk lane.  There are bits of psychedelia here and there, mostly back masked guitars and odd vocal inflections, but for the most part nothing to special.  Maybe this is a record I would have to listen to a bunch of times, but as I’m spinning it now, I am at full attention and not in a bad mood, so there is no outside influence causing a bias.  I would like someone to explain to me what I am missing. Truly.

The only track that really is awesome is “Pale On Pale”  it has a nice, quiet/loud, rise and fall kind of dynamic with haunting vocal melodies and a bit of shrieking at the end.  I really like this track a lot, but honestly its not enough for me to be like “THIS RECORD IS AMAZING I HEARD OF THEM BEFORE ANYONE ELSE DID!”  Though this leads me to believe that her (their?) other album might be a bit more like this, and I now plan on seeking that out.  Otherwise my say is to pass on this album.  

-Log. 

Kevin Drumm - “Sheer Hellish Miasma” (2010)

After a long day of listening to records and coughing my lungs out, this is the perfect way to cap off my night.  ”Pure Hellish Miasma” is one of those albums that just works.  It easily invades your psyche and doesn’t let go.  Even though this is two LPs I was craving more and more.  

Contained in these grooves are 6 epic tracks of searing noise, warm sheets of fuzz, psychedelic repetitive electronic buzzing, canyon like drones, sparse synthetic ambience, and other pretentious descriptions of sound.  

Really all I can say is this record is like the soundtrack to a dream about flying a space cruiser through deserted lands that may or may not be inhabited by robots. Or mutants.  Thats what I see.  I’m tired alright? 

-Log. 

The Residents - “Eskimo” (Ralph Records 1985)

I don’t even know where to start with this record.  If you don’t know about The Residents, get with it.  I’m not gonna describe them to you, do your own research.  

So this record tells of tales of the Eskimo, exploring their folklore and creating a soundtrack to go with it.  There are linear notes included with the record and you are supposed to read along as you listen.  I can’t imagine listening to this record without the linear notes (though I’m doing just that as I write this).  

The tracks follow a walrus hunt, childbirth, summoning Gods, etc. All the sounds are created by humans with ancient synthesizers and native instruments built by The Residents.  This record is insane.  It’s dark ambient record (if I was to use a nowadays genrefecation) and noise, and early electronic music, but seriously there is no way to describe this accurately music wise. If you are expecting some toe tapping brilliance look elsewhere. I must say though this record is amazing, especially for the time it was recorded in 1979.  Track yourself down a copy. Or don’t. I don’t fucking care.

-Log. 

Sylvester Anfang - “II” (Aurora Borealis 2010)

Man I really don’t feel like writing a review right now, but I really felt like sharing this incredible album with the world.  A friend described Sylvester Anfang as folk/black metal (NOT folk-metal) but this is pretty far from that.  It’s like a blend of psychedelic rock and kraut rock (two genres that kind of overlap) with lots of strange electronics and an overall evil mood.  The mood is probably the only black metal thing about this record.  That and the art; lots of naked chicks and skulls and anti-religious iconography.  There are lots of droning repetitive grooves that I’m just getting lost in as I listen to it.  So incredible.  Also the vocals are sparse but they remind me of Les Claypool for some reason.  Great shit. 

Boyd Rice & Z’EV - “Untitled” (Cold Spring Records 2008)

Bought this at the same garage sale I got the BSBC stuff about 2 months ago. I really want to hear this. One day.

Mutant Ape - “Erotic Yorkshire” (Ecstatic Peace! 2009)

Sometimes its hard to describe noise and noise music without sounding like a pretentious fuck head.  At least it is for me.  Every time I go back and read one of my noise reviews I get douche chills.  I’m sure this will be more of the same.

Mutant Ape is the noise project of George Proctor (Sump, White Metal, runs Turgid Animal Records UK, probably more projects I’m forgetting), he’s a dude I’d like to call myself a fan of.  Mutant Ape had been around for a while, so it’s actually surprising that this is the first time I’d heard them [EDIT: just kidding, I actually have a split 7” of theirs too; though I couldn’t tell you what it sounds like].  But this record is a noise record that will appeal to all of the noise-minded.  Their is fucked up spoken word tracks, really loud heavy harsh noise tracks, dark ambient Bastard Noise-esque tracks, and even good ole’ slow burning quiet/loud tracks.  

I’m really digging this though.  I haven’t heard a noise record this intriguing in a long time.  Most of the time its like, “oh cool a 79 minute CD with two tracks on it that don’t go anywhere. my favorite.”  This record sounds fully realized and thought out before hand, usually the main thing that sets apart good noise from bad noise.  Not to say totally just winging it equals bad noise either.  I don’t know what I’m trying to say, it’s past my bedtime. This record kills though.  It’s totally satisfying my ears right now.  

Also the cover art is awesome. 

-Log.  

The Gerogerigegege - “Night” (Ant-Zen 1993)

This is probably the strangest record in my collection.  Not only does it look amazing (look at that color!) but contained within it’s grooves is a recording of a man pooping after a “1, 2, 3, 4!” count off.  A lovely release. 

-Log. 

Orgasm Denial/Torturing Nurse - “Real Noise: From Cannibalism To Karaoke” (Noisoke Records/Shasha Records 2011)

Orgasm Denial and Torturing Nurse are both pretty prolific noise artists hailing from the far way land (from me at least, I live upstate NY [upstate meaning 1 hour upstate from NYC]) of China.  This 7 inch is sort of a dream combo for me, mostly because both artists are so sick.  I’ve even had that pleasure of doing a split cassette with Orgasm Denial with my Wolverine Carcass project.  

The record itself looks sooooooo awesome.  The artwork is spectacular.  As for the “tunes” Orgasm Denial bring 5 or so minutes of his signature thrash and burn noise style.  Lots of skree and other such noise violence.  Good stuff.  It must be mentioned however, that this record is a lathe cut by the mysterious Peter King out of New Zealand.  Having had experience with getting lathes cut by him, I know the limitations of the medium.  On this record they show quite clearly, as any low end is just not on the record.  I know OD’s sound and it is a much fuller range of frequencies and the bottom end is just gone on this record.  I don’t know why I’m saying this, because the record is limited to 30 copies so you are never going to get one anyway.  Maybe I’m just saying that getting lathes cut by Peter King is a waste of money because they sound awful.  Anyway, onward with the review!

Torturing Nurse’s side is interesting.  To me it sounds like a tribute to The Gerogerigegege, namely their “Life Documents” 7 inch.  On that platter it’s the sounds of someone jerking off while listening to dance music.  TN’s track on this 7” is the sounds of people fucking while a constant drum machine is playing.  Not what I was expecting from Torturing Nurse, normally they are total noise destruction, but whatever, still and interesting record.

I said earlier this is limited to 30 copies, so don’t even bother trying to get yourself a copy. I don’t even know how I got one.  Well I do, but it wasn’t easy. Well, it actually was easy, it just cost me a lot of dough (28 euro! GOTDAMN!).  

All in all a solid little platter.

-Log.

PS: Since this is a lathe its SUPER DUPER clear! It’s seriously nearly invisible! So I did my best to take a pic of it. 

Black Boned Angel - “Verdun” (Riot Season 2009)

Holy fuck these guys are heavy.  I honestly didn’t know what to expect from them, for some reason I thought they would be more of a Blue Sabbath Black Cheer kinda sound, but i was wrong, just straight vocal-less DOOM that slowly fades into a sound collage of war sounds.  So heavy.  I could listen to stuff like this for hours, and usually do. 

Aluk Todolo - “Finsternis” (Public Guilt 2010)

Any words I come up with won’t do any justice to how incredible this album is.  While this band gets lumped in the black metal subgenre, they start there and use that as a diving board into realms of much more depth.  Or something.  

This album is hypnotic, using repetitive drum beats, and swirling guitars that are buried in reverb and delay, over and over until you are completely lost in the moment.  By the time you realize it you are in another world.  I seriously think this could be the soundtrack to being abducted by aliens.  While the instruments are man made, they create such a disturbing ambience that also grasps at you and takes you in.  None of this probably makes any sense.  I think thats what Aluk Todolo wants to happen.  

-Log.