Chaos Invocation - In Bloodline With the Snake

"Chaos Invocation is a German horde that are here to make a breakthrough in the Black Metal scene. With their debut album “In Bloodline With the Snake” the band leaps over thousands of bands when it comes to the quality of their music.

Featuring 11 tracks of total occult destruction, this German band blows all the weaklings on the scene and positions themselves with the likes of Watain, Gorgoroth and similar bands.“In Bloodline With the Snake” is a very well written album that flows like rivers of blood. There are no dull moments or boring songs; you are in for a complete aural assault that is not necessarily extremely brutal. The band’s music while aggressive is very melodic with its necessary changes in pace to faster paced sections.

Chaos Invocation excels at writing simple yet powerful Black Metal songs, something even though it sounds trivial, it’s the main problem with many of the younger Black Metal bands on the scene. The vocals alternate from traditional screams of pain to some clean backing vocals that add a very haunting feeling to the music. The tremolo picking riffs featured through this release are pretty standard but they are arranged very effectively to create some mean Black Metal songs.

Drumming is relentless through this release and the tempo changes are very well written since they make each song flow naturally between ‘slow’ and fast section. The bass guitar line is very present in this release (track 5 for example), and it sounds great when combined with the whirlwind melodies of this album

Overall I must say I’m extremely impressed with this band’s first effort, and I can only foresee good things in the future for this band. “Is Bloodline With the Snake” is probably one of the top 20 Black Metal albums this year, and if you knew how many albums I’ve heard this year, you will be shocked that it made it this high up on my list."

TC

A little break from all the PE posts.

Whitehouse Partial Discography

As requested (FLAC).

Asceticists

Bird Seed

Great White Death

Peter Kurten

New Britain

Bunker & Gorngoltz - Ashes

"The Iron Birth of the new archetype pervaded before edge by memory about "good" times.Ashes in our blood is degenerated... sickness, hunger. Too late.Black as Hell BUNKER's work is a fury in burning captivity. 4 pulsing heavy electronics bullets.In vision of endless murder... defect tape... controled bile.GORNGOLTZ is asphyxiating gas noise... cut the vein... mass kill like cattle.3 deep cuts. The secret burning pages of the terrible will"

Ahs

Deadwood - 8 19

"Six tracks at 50 minutes is very ambitious, in fact, apart from the final 4 minute number, the rest of the album has tracks at ten minutes or more.

“Antabus” is actually a very twisted and enjoyable piece, its noise, but it’s low in the mix as to not deafen you, and the layers of static and chaotic noise are overshadowed by very disgusting spoken vocals, a real black metal element carrying over from Blodulv, and adding a nice shade of character to the album. Did I mention there’s wonderful necrotic screams too? Just take a Grey Wolves style track and slap vocals like Xasthur over the top of it (but more finely tuned and established), and this is just the foundation of what you can expect here.

“8 19” carries a lot of ambient aesthetics, “Crushing On” is a quieter ambient track, with echoes of the Black Ambient terror that wouldn’t be out of miss on an Amaka Hahina cd.

The title track takes us back to the roots, with more black noise, and the only words I can really use to describe this are fucking enjoyable. This will appeal to most fans of Black Metal, and perhaps even open the floodgates to a new collective genre to focus energies on.I honestly didn’t expect to like this, I expected to hear about two minutes of static hisses and loud guitar belches before getting bored and sitting in the corner, whimpering, but my mind has just been turned around. The Black Metal vocals really add a huge, necessary element to the album, and it is very likely to become a favourite."

DW

Bizarre Uproar - 4raajahalvaus

"New material from Finnish harsh noise artist, who has been active for 10 years!!! Include new BU solo recordings from spring 2002 and BASTARD NOISE and GRUNT doing songs using Bizarre Uproar's raw noise materials! From dynamic harsh noise to brutal walls of static and extreme electronics with angry vocals."

4

Thorofon - Final Movement / Bloodheat

"Reissue of the Final Movement & Bloodheat LP + 10" set with an additional unreleased track."

“... the fact that we no longer accept their system makes them nervous... and that’s exactly what we want!”. "With this reflection on the last events which took place in Genoa against World Globalization, begins the new release of THOROFON.Basically “Final Movement” is centred in a radical protest about the different actions happened during the confrontations between the anti-globalization movement (from all over the world) and an outstanding number of oppressive policemen attacking everybody with no mercy. This matter was known around the world through mass-media and now everything turn into silence, but the fight must continue... and THOROFON offers us the way through a decadent ‘soundtrack’ inspired and dedicated to all the victims that lost their lives in that great struggle against the system of control, corruption and greed!!!. This global manifestation is the axis of all the music and lyrics included in “Final Movement”, a new album that shows the higher status reached by THOROFON.Their prolific career in power electronics scene began some years ago when they released their first album “Maximum Punishment Solutions” and the single titled “Littleton”, followed recently by a live recording “We kicked the audience”, where A. Knilpert (main member of THOROFON) joined by his friends Genevieve Pasquier, J Gospodard and Mr. Mmishii compiled some great moments of different live actions in Germany during 1996 – 2000. 

This LP (only available in vinyl format, in an edition limited to 700 copies), as well as the previous live recordings tape, have been released through their own label U.M.B. (United Manipulation Broadcasting) in collaboration with RITALIN AKTIF, although previously they were thinking in a State Art release, the label that have published their previous works until now. The nine tracks included show us a new musical path oriented to renovate some elements of industrial style, more harsh and clear electronics (even minimal) but without losing the agressive side of the compositions nor their musical strength. The voice processing with different effects like delay, distortion, flange invites us to a total enjoyment of the music and of an oppressive ambient mixing powerful and furious moments as if the vocals/lyrics were in a superior level.“Final Movement” contains some amazing and convulsive tracks in both sides, like “Underground rising” with hypnotic and repetitive sequences and loud speeches, “Anti Savak” reminding previous ‘power electronics’ compositions, “Riotdictator” (also included in “We kicked the audience” live tape) one of the more rhythmic and powerful tracks of the album, not only concerning the musical elements but also because of its crashing lyrics, great song!!!.On the other hand, we can find some interesting and new compositions linked to a minimal industrial tendency like “Inkorporation”, using metallic percusions, “Blue Box Syndrome”, excellent track with analogic rhythm box and the amazing female voice of Genevieve Pasquier, who have collaborated with THOROFON in their previous live tape in an extra track (a different studio version of “Americalends”, recorded in 2.001, from “Littleton” 7”/EP). “Digital Human Kontrol” and “Extinguished bodies” also combine minimal electronics sounds and rhythms with another characteristic industrial sounds, even including noise treatments, mainly in the last mentioned track. “Bloody Way to total Ecstasy” and “New heroes” complete this second album of THOROFON, a worthwhile long playing record despite that it has been released four years after the first one."

Though the download link has only the "Final Movement" title I can assure you it has both Final Movement and Bloodheat.

Hi

Force Publique Congo - Population Loss in the Rubber-Rich Equatorial Colonies

"Another shadowy project from Dominick Fernow’s Hospital Productions base, Force Publique Congo explores the more industrial facet of the US noise genre, digging into the deep recesses most never dare to reach. Through a dense wall of white noise and submerged vocals, we can almost make out fragments of rhythms, which over the record become more and more audible until it takes an about turn, settling on a sort of post-Pan Sonic noise/beats assault. Sawtooth waves and shuffling drum machine patterns cut through the ice-bath static and hoarse screams giving the political message an almost Muslimgauze-like resonance. There is something stark and affecting about ‘Population Loss…’ and the more you listen, the more you can dig out from the gloomy fug of synthesized apocalyptic destruction. Fans of Demdike Stare should look closely, while ‘Population Loss…’ is a noisier option, it shows a similar engagement with the rhythmic and tonal occult. Huge recommendation."

FB

Bizarre Uproar - Bunker Sessions

"Raw organic feedback and squalling metal percussion combine for an uncompromising live document. Finnish stalwart Bizarre Uproar grace Housepig with our hardest release to date (and probably ever!) Stuttering punishment recorded in a now-defunct undergroud bunker. Eight songs in one unstoppable onslaught, cut into 99 tracks for instant shuffle-remixing action!"

BUBS

Redrot - Drunk On Cadaverine

As with most noise records it's noisy, screeching, and painful. Unlike others, however, this isn't all obnoxious and intrusive, but rather mellow in its assault with repetitive rhythmic thumps set against a static background ("Fouled") or hypnotic feedback with unintelligible noises coming in and out . Plus it's a short EP. 

Schizophrenia noise 

Force Publique Congo - Civil War Follows Colonization Investment 1-4

"Cindered Noise and discomforting synth textures from a new artist to Hospital Productions' roster. Collecting the four volume tape series, 'Civil War Follows Colonization Investment 1-4' is a blistered mixture of brutalised distortion and vocals dealing with the horrors endured by The Democratic Republic of The Congo at the hands of Belgian colonisers and the civil war they continued to stoke in order for multinational corporations to take control of their abundant resources (yep, we've just clocked Adam Curtis' 'All Watched Over By Machines Of Loving Grace'). Politics aside, aesthetically this is viscerally evocative stuff, swarming with mosquito clouds of needling noise and blank-eyed drones for the most part, but including some exceptional moments of relative clarity with the sickly bass on 'Double King' and 'The Duke Obsessed By Progress' reminding of Mattin's work on the recent Consumer Electronics side, but mixed with petrified field recordings and acousmatic source material which you perhaps wouldn't want to know the provenance of. It's not for all, but it's certainly one of the most compelling strains of noise we've been faced with in some time."

1-4

Thorofon - Littleton

Truth be told I think this is quite accessible to those looking trying to get into Thorofon's catalog and Power Electronics. Loud and abrasive, but only on some and not too the point of being near unlistenable to the untrained ear. A taste of what's to come from Thorofon.

VINYL FLAC

Sickness - I Have Become the Disease That Made Me

"This is a series III (loud) release from Ground Fault, which the label categorizes as "extreme, harsh, noise, power electronic". Admittedly I've not heard much of Sickness' material over the years, though I am of course familiar with the name. Based on the work presented herein, I must say that Sickness has come quite a long way from his earlier compositions that I had been exposed to. In my opinion, this is harsh noise taken to a new level on several counts. For one thing, it doesn't just sound like a thick wall of distorted nonsense. In fact, the compositions are what I personally would consider minimal to some degree, but strictly in regards to the fact that the layering within the work isn't so "busy". There is a great level of detail, and every texture, every minute detail has room to breathe. Nothing feels lost in the shuffle. Secondly, these pieces are in a constant state of motion, and in a manner that is unpredictable. While one second your ears might suffer under some piercing feedback, the next you're assaulted with a barrage of stereo panning, then an unexpected rhythmic loop will begin churning forth almost out of nowhere, before things thin out and quiet down for a sort period of time (perhaps introducing the occasional sample). There's also a lot of work going on with the mix and the way things are arranged as far as fast changeups in atmosphere, fucked up left/right speaker manipulation that sort of messes with you in headphones, etc. I really like the tracks that use samples, it's probably just because it's my nature to look for something more in harsh noise, but even if for a brief time (such as in "Confessions of a Parasite" or "Psychopathia"), I think a well handled sample or two can really make a difference or add some sort of direction to a piece. It's stated in the liner notes that "Fracture Line (CD Loop Panic)" is a track that "should be played as a loop. It contains sub bass frequencies designed to affect the body on a physical level. It should be played at a high level. Some systems may be unable to handle the output." Apparently my system is one such system that can't handle the output of the frequencies, but the track is a standout nonetheless. I think that some of what I've already said speaks to the level of quality present here as far as the recording goes. Everything is superbly "clean" as far as the mixing is concerned, and I'm not quite sure I've ever heard such an obvious level of detail on a harsh noise CD before. I've heard clarity, but something about this seems to go above and beyond. Perhaps it's just the way I'm listening to it, I don't know, maybe this CD caught me on a good day... but it sounds fucking great. "Bloodletting" is a remix of an older compilation track called "Bloodhunger" and is not quite as bright and vibrant in the high-end department as the other tracks, it's muffled and suffocatingly thick to a degree, which I would assume that might be intentional since everything else seems fairly thought out? As with all Ground Fault releases the layout is simple and follows the same format of using blank white space with clean text and some black/gray textures and imagery of stone. The inner spread has an image of an x-ray with a small thanks list, and the back of the booklet has the tracklist/information and a description of the three different levels of the Ground Fault series of releases. Nothing overly exciting, but it is in keeping with the frighteningly consistent appearance and design of the label's work. All of those people out there who bitch and moan and accuse me of being biased against harsh noise, or claim that I don't know or appreciate anything about the genre, should pick this disc up and learn a few lessons in how things should be handled. Because this is one release of sheer harsh noise that I can easily classify as thoughtful and intelligent, and you won't hear such a compliment come out of my mouth very often."

SDMM

Körperwelten - Avatars Of Rape And Rage

 

"Körperwelten is the result of the common efforts between Nordvargr and Leech. Being one of the unmatched masters of dark ambient, Henrik Björkk (known from Pouppée Fabrikk, MZ412; Folkstrom Nordvargr etc) doesn’t need any further introduction, but less people are maybe familiar with the American Leech. This digipak reveals some hot and gore s/m cartoons illustrating the interior of this album. Does it say something about the music of Körperwelten? Well, the album starts with the tormenting “The Sun Destroyers” opening the first part of this album entitled “Part 1 – Rape”. This first part contains 3 tracks, which for the two first ones are like mixed in each other, creating this way a progression in the sounds and oppressive atmospheres. Körperwelten sounds obscure and with the illustrations and title of this first part in mind, it only accentuates the degree of torment. Next comes “Part 2 – Rage” where we get a kind of climax on the “Kidney Stone Of Wisdom”-piece. This track is a brilliant composition for the lovers of freaky ambient sensations. I can’t affirm that the highest degree of rage appears at the apotheosis of this song where heavy screams bring the listener in complete stupor, but this part is the most essential one from the album. Next comes the last piece entitled “Breed For Me” which sounds more like industrial-noise. Henrik Björkk seems to be very creative the few past months and after the brilliant “Pyrrhula” album of Nordvargr he here accomplished a new chef d’oeuvre together with Leech!"

K

Bastard Noise - Ancient and Unknown Brutality

"Finally it`s done. It took long time till this release was born. We`re proud to have the mighty Bastard Noise onboard. This CD contains only sold out, very hard to find and 7!!!!! unreleased tracks. Tons of DAT Tapes were scanned to find the right stuff."

Anth

The Rita - The Rack

"All new release from this noise innovator and creator of the HNW genre. This is a definitive moment for this important artist, and as such, will be the second release in our Dark Icons Series. Two pieces, each more than twenty minutes, finds The Rita exploring sound sourced from knives and nylon respectively, with variations of theme crossing over into both pieces. 5x5" square on heavy black matte paper, designed by Joe Beres, placed in slim plastic sleeves."

 

Nylon/Knives

Winters In Osaka - Mutual Collapse

 "The sound on Mutual Collapse is hard to pinpoint and define, largely because of the subtle differences in sound on each track. There’s a hodgepodge of different influences conjoined into one mammoth album of intensity, from the obvious elements of harsh noise to the anger of power electronics but also integrating bits and pieces from other genres like the more musical yet still heavy grindcore (and it’s no wonder – there’s no end to the grindcore guests on this release) and doom metal stylings. Winters in Osaka bring this all together over forty minutes of brooding atmosphere and cacophonous howls, and with tracks like “Toll”, it’s no wonder the group decided the word collapse would be the defining moment for the album.

As opening tracks go, “Voyeur Pt. 1″ stands as a high point to begin with. A feedback-laced scramble of electronics and background growls that seem straight from a pig farm, there’s a lot going on in this cut and it introduces the listener to a varied Winters in Osaka – and unlike a lot of other groups with multiple members, it certainly does seem like there’s a complex weaving of everyone’s ideas together. The track is rather short, and we jump right to “Baby Pop” with a slamming bass rhythm behind static hiss and a dominant, foregrounded vocal performance that reminds of what Bastard Noise has been doing of late. In between the rhythm is a stilted sample of distorted singing, which gives the track a great chugging beat that I really dug, and I almost wished it lasted a bit longer.

I talked about “Toll” a bit before – it’s a track full of sound, with samples of vocals and screaming backgrounds and an oscillating tone that keeps the whole thing roiling like frothy water. There’s no end to where each sound is coming from and it’s really difficult to pinpoint exactly what’s happening in the whole thing, except that it sounds like it’s falling apart all at once and you can’t help but encourage it to collapse in on itself. “Waterweight” falls short of the other tracks, a ticking clock of sound that takes too long to build – the xylophone-like ticks mimic a clock that kept reminding me the track was still going, and compared to the short and concise exercise of the previous three tracks, “Waterweight” becomes overdrawn.
It is “Mutual Collapse” where the grindcore sensibilities tend to dictate, throat-ripping vocals amidst fast-paced drum blasts and swirling instrumental lines. The track never forms a truly structured song, but there’s certainly a feeling that somewhere beneath the layerings of electronics is a good grind/crust punk song that’s been tortured into a miasma of pulsating noise. The same is true for “Voyeur Pt. 2″, which feels more similar to the previous song than its counterpart “Voyeur Pt. 1″; Winters in Osaka use static and bass to give the track a ripshit fast feel coupled with monstrous vocals, and it’s part of the charm of Mutual Collapse that again this “song” feels ready to melt away at any given time. The last track, “Stairwell”, is another slow build, but unlike “Waterweight” it feels like it’s definitely going to climax at any given time, a doomy gloom to its plodding pace.

Mutual Collapse melds all of these signature sounds together, and though it would seem like the end result might be an unfocused mess, Winters in Osaka have structured the album into a fine weave of seamlessly integrated noise. Rhythmic, yes – but it’s also chaotic, ready to cave in at any time. That it doesn’t is no sleight to the album title, but instead it prolongs that feeling through each listen – almost breaking, but never quite."

JP

Evenings - A Dream Without

It seems rather odd to me that there is little amount of noise and PE records on here for someone who revels in it. So for the next twenty or so posts I'm just going to post some belligerent filth. Unfortunately, though, I assume most who are familiar with those respective genres will probably already know the artists and albums I'll be posting, but hopefully I can post up a gem or two. Starting with Evenings. A quote on quote "textured dark noise. A slow crackle and burn." Enjoy.

 Cassette flac one more

Choi Joonyong, Hong Chulki, Sachiko M, Otomo Yoshihide - Sweet Cuts, Distant Curve

"The releases by Balloon & Needle from Seoul, Korea always look nice without being too fancy or over the top, like some others sometimes do. The releases often, but not exclusively includes the work of Choi Joonyong (CD players) and Hong Chulki (turntable, electronics), who team up with Sachiko M (sinewaves) and Otomo Yoshihide (turntable, guitar) in this concert recording of 2006, when M and Yoshihide visited Seoul. If the work of the Japanese part of this CD is in anyway familiar with you, then you know what to expect. Sachiko M's sinewaves are the very bottom, or foundation if you want of the music. Things buzz in the front, in the back, below, and above, high and low, but they buzz. On top of that the three men add their own blend of cracks and cuts, from the media players at hand—what the guitar is unclear, but no doubt he fits into this in a clever way - either sounding like a sinewave or like another crack or hiss. This is a work that is great, but but but it's also something that we heard before, mostly in the work of the Japanese two involved here. That perhaps makes things less of a surprise, but the total concentration involved by all four players requires full concentration on the side of the listener. Only then it will reveal its true beauty."

SCDC

Palace of Worms - Lifting The Veil

"Lifting the Veil is an execution in raw, piously orthodox black metal. An undeniable air of elite swagger backed up by riffs and oscillations that sound as vital and cacophonous as Norway circa 1991. The atmosphere lurches simultaneously into territories of vice, degradation and pure driving power. Like the angular riff work of Wrest set to a boundlessly more insidious upbringing. There is an admirable sense of direction tugging at the dissonant atonality of this recording: an awkward incongruity that would probably fail in the hands of so many other musicians.

Palace of Worms comes highly recommended to anyone who has at some point found refuge in the recordings of other San Franciscan black metal monuments (Leviathan, Draugar, Necrite, etc). Lifting The Veil steps up the ante, assembling an audial horror surpassing last years The Forgotten. Coupling abject disgust for humankind with an aura that seeks to glorify the insignificance and vacuous nature of existence, Palace of Worms can clearly deliver. Balan does well to balance his angular, pissed-off approach to melody with the more atmospheric passages that expand from the dark recesses of sound. As if his campaign of hate and extermination finds absolution in the very insignificance the every-day-man peddles. A kind of inverted Schopenhauer.

Lifting the Veil is packed with the twists, turns and ideas a premature Wrest couldn’t quite pull off. This is about as engaging as modern day orthodoxy gets: undaunted by experiments in sound, moments of crystalline composure that take numerous listens to fully appreciate and absolute driving, eye-rolling sections of undiluted black metal swagger that leave you empowered but bitterly engaged. Post rock, psych and almost DSO like injections of fervour meld seamlessly to create a truly inspired opus. Just give the attached track a listen."

 Cassette Flac

His Name Is Alive - Someday My Blues Will Cover the Earth

 "Over the years, His Name Is Alive's sound has spanned everything from musique concrète-tinged soundscapes to ethereal pop, gospel, and Hendrix-channeling guitar pyrotechnics. In a less-talented group, these stylistic shifts would seem unfocused, but with His Name Is Alive, constant change is their style. So it's not unusual that Someday My Blues Will Cover the Earth is another departure, but it is a bit surprising that the group -- which features Warn Defever, Lovetta Pippen, and Flashpapr's Fred Thomas this time around -- picks one style and sticks to it for the whole album. It's still more surprising that the style is smooth urban ballads -- in a way, it's His Name Is Alive's most startling change since they lightened and brightened their music on Mouth by Mouth. However, it's not necessarily a step forward for the group; with their similar beats and tempos, songs like "One Year" and "Our Last Affair" are the musical equivalent of treading water. The album's best moments come near the beginning, when the concept of His Name Is Alive doing sleek urban pop like "Nothing Special" still seems fresh. The slinky, sexy "Happy Blues" and "Write My Name in the Groove" -- which sounds like a dreamy, distant cousin of TLC's "Waterfalls" -- also make the album momentarily convincing. But overall, it sounds too spare and restrained, especially when compared to artists like Aaliyah, Alicia Keys, and the aforementioned TLC, whose work expands the boundaries of urban music in much the same way that His Name Is Alive redefines experimental pop. Someday My Blues... isn't a bad album: It showcases Pippen's remarkable voice and offers a bit of variety too with the smoky "Solitude" and "Karin's Blues." But compared to the rest of their work, it's His Name is Alive's least satisfying effort since Livonia; with any luck, their next experiment will be more successful."

CALF

Rene Hell - The Terminal Symphony + Hilton

 "Over the last 2 years Rene Hell has emerged as one of the most distinctive characters from a wave of neo-Kosmische and synth noise operators. Since his debut album for Type, 'Porcelain Opera', his restless talent has been diverted into cassettes for Night People and Agents Of Chaos, a brilliant 7" track for Kraak and sterling collaborations with Daren Ho's Driphouse as Cuticle and Mandelbrot & Skyy, all displaying an artist confidently in his creative stride. 'The Terminal Symphony' is a bold evolution of his sound, reframing analogue synth and drum machine experiments with a more concise, obsessively structured and complex form of minimalism, making each sound count rather than allowing them to become lost in the glut of meandering, often flabby drone compositions that bulk out the genre. It's an efficient aesthetic in the lineage of the original North Rhine sound of E.M.A.K, Kraftwerk, Conny Plank and co, also sharing much in common with Emeralds' most recent move towards brief, song-like structuring, but still with that demented twinge of wickedly jarring harmonies and a taste for visceral synth textures and noise. This is all heard in the malleable chrome shapes of opener 'Chamber Forte', through the glassy geometrics of 'Cello Suite No.3' or the ecstatic modern classicism of 'Juliard Op', but when the intensity subsides the subtleties of closers 'Detuned Clarinet' and 'Adagio For String Portrait' beautifully contrast with melancholy and understated, but arresting, finesse"

TS FLAC 
Hilton