Minamata * Cyclator (cd+dvd 2009)
In april 2007 I saw Minamata at the Tesco festival in Antwerp. Over two years later, this show is released on DVD (just like the Galerie Schallschutz show about two months ago) together with the “Cyclator” album (both as cd and in videos). Minamata has been around since 1984 with a gap between 1991 and 2007. This French project takes its name from the Japanese city where just after WWII a chemical plant discharged their wastewater in open water, causing the fish that the inhabitants of the city ate to be polluted with chemicals and thus the Minamata disease appeared. Minamata has been telling this story for 25 years. During the show in Antwerpen we saw traditional Japanese music alternated with extreme noise. The album/videoclips and the noise parts of the show are a bit too noisy for me, but I like a project with a message and the original mix between two very different kinds of music in the live footage.
Links: Minamata
I gambled and lost… Usually when I run into a band that I don’t know that could be interesting, I see if the band has a Myspace or another way to listen to their music. I guess I couldn’t find any, so I just went for the description “11 tracks of densely layered power electronics / industrial / noise”. Well, FITH makes the kind of noise that I try to avoid: the chaotic, unstructured, high pitched, earcracking kind. The sound is quite dark at times, not totally unlike 
For their hundreth release The Old Europa Café label has released a 7-cd compilation with a track of each band and project they have been involved in during the years. However looking around the internet it seems like the bands are featured alphabetically, this is not the case, the cds are ordered somewhat thematically / according to style. “Somewhat” I say, since it is not completely that there are industrial and folk cds, there is some overlap. That is only for the better, the compiler of the cds has a rather good ear for things. In the beginning I had the idea that there are alternally more industrial and more folky cds, but this is not entirely true. The compilation opens with a cd with mostly not too extreme noise, a nice cd. Then follows a cd with more (neo)folky music, but not the too typical sounds of a compilation that I reviewed a few days ago. Then we have cds with power electronics and the extreme, chaotic style that isn’t mine, but also more old industrial things, strange experimental soundscape music and more of an old neofolk cd that I find awfull (Ain Soph, that sort of bands). Having heard the whole thing, my temporary conclusion is that the first cds are the most interesting and towards the end are some cds that I will probably never play. I think that four out of seven cds are enough of my taste to put in the player every now and then, so the “price/quality balance” is not that bad.
A compilation dedicated to North Korea with a whole range of interesting bands to be found on it. Putting the cd on I am very pleased to hear that Turbund Sturmwerk didn’t loose their touch afterall. Their latest tracks were not too great, but their “Reunification” is pretty damn good. It opens very loud with a bit of a Firsst Law sound and after a noisy middle Turbund falls back in known patterns, but overall I am happy with this wonderfull track. Lovers of harsch noise can enjoy themselves with Operation Cleansweep, Con-Dom and Genocide Organ. The track that Militia contributed is quite nice, but when we skip on to Ex.Order we hear another wonderfull “ambient noise” track with a great dark sound. The Grey Wolves tear our ears to shreds with their power electronics and to close off Anenzephalia put together a quite typical track with minimal noise and screamed vocals; not their best material, but not boring either. Overall “Juche” is mostly a compilation for people who like the harder side of electronic music and who had to wait for their favourite projects to finally release something new. “Juche” has a nice A5 package, produced in North Korea and is limited to a mere 15.000.000 copies, so hurry up!
I have never been very fond of this project. This classic power electronics project makes too much power electronics for me. An extreme sound with earcracking noises, screamed vocals and too little structure for my liking. I would have liked to see them in Antwerpen a few months back, but I could not go to the Luchtbal the second day of the festival. At that festival the “Remember” vinyl set and shirts were available, the 2cd followed a little later. I decided to get a copy, because I have known GO for about as long as they are around, but I didn’t have anything of them. Knowing their sound, I bought this cd more for archival reasons than to play. “Remember” is filled with live recordings from 1989 (when the band started) to 2000 and have been reworked by Jérôme Nougaillon (Propergol/Hermetique) for this release. Here and there you will find a more industrial and rhythmical track, but most of the cds are filled with the most brutal kind of music imaginable. Since the band is not only extreme in sound, but also in lyrics and artwork, there is a nice text of Richard Stevenson who tells a bit of art and provocation.
I didn’t really know Institution D.O.L. I thought that they were one of these old power electronics projects and never tried to hear some of their music. A while ago this project would play somewhere around. I haven’t been there, but I did listen to some of the music on their Myspace and the like and figured I might try an album some time. Tesco describes the album as “noise pop” and since I happen to enjoy the Haus Arafna, November Növelet, Thorofon, etc. development in industrial music, I ordered Institution D.O.L.’s latest album. “Weakniks” for a large part lives up to my expectations of before, since it contains extreme noise terror with screamed vocals and little structure, but there is also more ‘ambient noise’, loud industrial and other extreme sounds. These harsch tracks are interchanged with ambient, danceble tracks and even real songs . One of two tracks may remind a bit of Haus Arafna, but for the most part, Institution D.O.L. have a style of their own which varries from power electronics to “noise pop” and strange experiments.
In 2005 Harlow MacFarlane surprised with with an amazing noise demo. He managed to create a threatening sound that suggests an extreme noise outburst. The sound reminded me of Propergol. Sistrenatus was soon picked up by Cold Spring. The noise outburst that doesn’t come on the demo can be found in the second half of the debut cd (the first half is the demo) where Sistrenatus shows us his violent side and the total made a wonderfull album. Later Sistrenatus came in contact with Propergol / Hermetique who was interested in a release, “Wrought Iron Railings” is the result. When I put the eagerly awaiting cd in my player, my ears were damaged by a massive wall of power electronics that made me express a few curses. Also the next few tracks contain the extreme side of Sistrenatus and for a while I feared that the whole cd would sound like this. Fortunately in the second half Harlow displays the sound that I prefer, dark and noisy soundscapes with a threatening atmosphere, so it seems that this new album is “Division One” turned around. The first (short) extreme tracks are not bad, but when the experimentation and atmosphere comes in, this is where (for me) the strength of the project is to be found and again this sound is executed well. “Wrought Iron Railings” may again be a bit short (42 minutes), but it sure is another great album of musical extremity.
Steinklang again offers a cheap compilation with tracks of their own and befriended releases. III is not as II a double cd. The first half of the cd is filled with industrial, dark ambient and a violent noise track of Dissecting Table, the second cd with neofolk and other folky sounds. Just as with the previous two issues of the compilation there are some very good tracks here and especially bands that were new to me, so that is always nice.
After the magnificent demo (2005) that contains the first tracks of this debut cd, I have eagerly awaited this album. The demo tracks are very dark and noisy with a threatening sound that suggests the coming a violent power-electronic outburst, but which never comes. The other tracks have a slightly different style. V and VI are more ambient noise tracks, while VII is a noise track with a marchdrum. The violent eruption finally does come at the end and VIII is a real power electronics track and IX a more martial and slightly bombastic noise track. More violence is anounced for the second album “Wrought Iron Railings” that will be released on the Propergol label Hermetique later this year. “Division One” is an instant classic in the power electronics field with great atmospheres, structured violence and wonderfully built-up tracks that will definately appeal to lovers of Propergol. One minor point is the length: 37 minutes…