Dead Eye Terrorist - The Extinction of Ego

Dead Eye Terrorist is (another project) by the same person who brought you the horrific and action-driven album Destructive Maelstrom by Circuit Corrupter. The Extinction of Ego by Dead Eye Terrorist is a limited cassette released by Spanish Marbre Negre. The cover artwork is absolutely exquisite! I love the morbid and extreme picturesque collage work within, and to top it there is also an intriguing and cool-looking sticker inside! 26 minutes journey into destructive and dextrous harsh noise, with eerie surreal moments here and there. All the tracks on the A-side of the cassette are called Ego Death 1 to 10, and a long single track on the B-side is called Degeneration. Another thing worth mentioning, this cassette has also been released on the label Phage Tapes (at the same time) in the U.S! The album has been mastered by the great Grant Richarson ( Gnawed ) 

The first track on the A-side starts with one of my all-time favorite actors. If I am correct, I have heard and seen the source of the recording from some film award in Germany. Where the (always) mad Klaus Kinski gets up front to make some sort of speech, which slowly turns into an intense performance. He is then dragged away from the scene by security guards, offcourse. I don´t understand what he is talking about, but it is something about Jesus Christ. The recording then stops and turns into a bone-narrowing beast of punishing sound. It all happens VERY quickly, a quick journey into the sound of cosmic harsh noise! Something is screaming, twitching, scraping its infectious claws at you. 

The second track continues the onslaught without a single chance to take a quick breather. Almost feels like getting sucked into a black hole, the ears of the listener already feel like they are getting spaghettified here!.

The third track gets back to the action, with some hyper-ultra cyberpunk violence. The sound of someone´s brain getting fried in cyberspace, that is what this sounds like. Lots of sounds so far! 

The fourth track rumbles and flattens the listener to a bloody splattered pancake, with lots of nasty things happening!

All the ten tracks could have been squashed into a single track, but cutting it all up into 10 tracks is far more fun. Gives the whole thing a kind of grindcore touch? There are some interesting sounds in there which make it more unique, retro and spacy sci-fi sounds and hidden vocals in there (I think!).

We turn the tape and continue with Degeneration on the B-side. Different style than the former short-tracks. A slow and constant wall of white and pink noise slowly built up, which then slowly degenerates into a multi-layered nightmare of sound. There is soo much going on that it´s hard to comprehend, as I said earlier... there is NO time for a breather. This machine runs and runs, and does not stop. Relentless brutalism beyond human understanding!

Think I have said this before, that Spain is slowly becoming the new place for extreme noise, not Japan! And Dead Eye Terrorist is clearly one of them, besides such cult acts like Soma, [Gyakusatsu], and Tube Tentacles! This is one tape that will be remembered!

Bandcamp (label Marbre Negre):

https://marbrenegre.bandcamp.com/album/the-extinction-of-ego

Bandcamp (label Phage Tapes):

https://phagetapes.bandcamp.com/album/the-extinction-of-ego

      

  

   

    

 Krappok - Kritschat

Beginning to truly dig the releases from Grubenwehr Freiburg, a label actually based in Leipzig Germany... offcourse! This is the second time I get to review stuff from this exciting label. A record label which sort of... builds bridges between the world of noise-music and the avant-garde. 

This one is an act called Krappok. Not 100% sure what language Krappok is, but upon closer examination of the information within the booklet itself, this release is almost entirely based on the worlds of... well crabs. And well... crabs almost sounds like Krappok? Well, the true source behind the act's name actually comes from a German Horrorschocker comic book! The title of the album is in German and from Anthony Burgess´s fantasy-language of his ´A Clockwork Orange´, and it means to screech. 

Another piece of information is that the release has ALSO been released as a highly limited thing! Which includes recordings with the Haters and Jugendwerkhof! Check the beauty out in the Bandcamp link below, it looks absolutely amazing! 

An extra piece of info here as well! All the recordings are processed crab noises, field recordings, and a cello! A tiny 20 minutes CD thing with 9 tracks on it... what can go wrong?!   

The first track on the album is called Mandible (Jaw of the crab) and the second track is called Anamerie. Starts with underwater insectoid noises with a slow, dry, and crawling sound of a cello in the background. Strangely pleasant for some reason. Crabs like to chat apparently. I also notice that there is the sound of watery waves? The whole bloody thing actually makes you feel like crab! Lots of watery waves (the tide), the sandy beach, the wind, and all that. It´s a well-made surreal soundscape, with a kind of recognizable and naive attitude. Lots of charms and I love the two first tracks!

The third track Unrastniederungen (Restlessness) moves the album towards an ambient-based soundtrack moment. I love field recordings, and I love the sound of the roaring sea at some desolate beach. The quality of the field recordings is really excellent. Love the combination of microscopic underwater sounds being up front and then having the big roaring sea in the background.

The fourth track Scherenschlag (Scissor Stroke) wakes the listener up to a track that offers harsh noise being played on a cello. 

The fifth track Brandungszone (Surf Zone) offers the sound of stormy winds. Still, on the beach, I think, waiting for the right waves. The sound here is very minimal and enigmatic, you cannot help to open your ears!

The sixth track Zerkleinerung (Shredding) has a new sound element. Is it a melodic synth? Might be. Also, there is the sound of something hard on the cello, trying to wreck the strings.  

The rest of the album is in the same manner, and thank the gods for that!. I loved the start of the album, and I love the end of the album as well. Obscure conceptual avantgarde-culture meets noise through the world of crabs, anti-music for David Attenborough perhaps? I don´t know if he would actually like it, but I do! 

Bandcamp (label):

https://grubenwehrfreiburg.bandcamp.com/album/kritschat

       

   

 Crimes Against Flesh And Bone - Spasmo

Greek E.C.T. has released this tiny and brutal little piece of art. A tiny 3" CD-R housed inside some rice paper and the CD-R itself is on a handmade black cardboard, all with some cool prints and everything. Even the thick cardboard has a lovely sort of chemical smell to it! The artwork looks cool and decent in a retro/old-school sort of fashion, think back to the artwork of Con Dom or the Grey Wolves.  Anyways, I don´t know this act and this one is one of their newer releases. A Russian act that has been very active since 2022, releasing several albums and mini-albums in a short period of time. On labels such as Boiled Angel Records, My Little Fetish, Magma Pulse Records, etc. Don´t know any of these labels, but who cares?! We love the obscurity offcourse! The album itself is a very short one. 2 tracks, about 13 minutes and 22 seconds in total.

The first track is called Spasmo (like the album title) and it starts the thing with a sickening warbling sound, which slowly grinds into distortion. Additional background layers of moaning distorted old-school industrial sounds add up to the already depressing and sickening atmosphere. It does have a tendency to actually be over-distorted at times, but for some reason (unknown) it works to a certain degree. Brutal, primal, and highly primitive industrial noise. Much in the same style as early MB or Mauthausen Orchestra. There is a sample in the background of a woman screaming, could it be from the Possession art-house/horror flick with Sam Neil?

The second (and last) track Blood Covered Shrine Of Her Uterus adds more brutalism to the smörgasbord than the former track, which almost was based on a thing between ambient and noise. Here we are more in a sort of early power-electronics sound, with elements of atmospheric harsh noise. Incredibly raw and primitive, the artist has apparently a good knowledge to take the various advantages that this low-fi-approach offers. And he delivers it once again with the second track. 

In just...about 13 minutes, the release delivers what it is meant to deliver. Nothing short on anything, and not too much either. And after you have heard it the first time, you actually want to listen to the torment once again! For me, it might just be the fourth time! Highly infectious, highly sickening, and primal industrial moods from Russia, highly recommended!     

Discogs: 

https://www.discogs.com/release/25815664-Crimes-Against-Flesh-And-Bone-Spasmo

Bandcamp (band):

https://secondhandskin.bandcamp.com/album/spasmo

 Sokushinbutsu Project - The Yokai Codex

Finally! A new full-length album from the Italian-2man-act Sokushinbutso Project. This one is called The Yokai Codex, and it´s out on Industrial Ölocaust Recordings, out on pro-CD-R and cassette, limited offcourse. I have received the pro-CD-R version. A first glance reveals a simple jewel case with a white inner sleeve. Still, upon closer examination, you will notice the thick and beautifully textured paper of the inner sleeve and back cover as well. The album titled The Yokai Codex, once again revolves around a specific religious and spiritual concept. Let me copy-paste the information from the booklet itself:

The word yõkai is composed of two characters, of which the first, yõ, refers to something that attracts, enchants, and can bewitch. White the second, kai, has the meaning of apparition, mystery. The original meaning of Yõkai conveys a sense of mystery combined with fear, something that both attracts and terrifies.

In this case, we are talking about the million sorts of gods and spirits in Japan. Living in both nature, objects, and even residing in your own home. Supernatural beings both attract and terrify and the presence of this being (has to this day) been interpreted differently in every period of Japanese history. In our modern times, we only need to look at the world of Pokemon or the world of Hayao Miyazaki (My Friend Totoro, Spirited Away, etc). 6 tracks, and is about 60 minutes in total length. 

Another note worth mentioning is that each track represents locations where these entities live. 

The first track is called Wilds. This is where you´ll find the wild and undomesticated kind of spirits. A flanged and grinding radio static with some subtle ritualistic dark-ambient soundscapes in the background. Occasionally the sound of a thundering death-industrial drum marks its presence here and there, and is there a sort of low-fi synth in there? At times...heavily distorted sounds burst through the "empty" vacuum. A lovely sort of ghostly presence in the recordings sounds like something is pushing itself out of the speakers. Sort of reminds me of some of the early recordings with Cluster.

The second track is called Water, and yes...Japan is surrounded by water and islands. So offcourse a lot of spirits are linked with water. A distant metallic ritualistic drum, the rising sound of gentle white noise, and a cool low sound of a looped bassline. Further on there are some high-pitched psychedelic sounds which enhance the mood further. A kind of gentle track in the beginning, but becomes slightly more intense in the process. Water is basically everything, it can give life and it can take life.  It attracts and terrifies at the same time. 

The third track Countryside goes completely into another style of sound. A sort of slow and looped drone/desert-rock kind of guitar play starts the track. Lots of distorted industrial sounds pop mysteriously in and out of focus, while a frightening soundscape builds up in the background. I kind of think of the gnomes of Northern Europe, supernatural beings in the countryside. If you respect and help them, then they will help you to keep your farm running. And if u fxxx with them, then you are truly fxxxxx! I think it's the same with the Yõkai in the countryside. They can be the good guys or the bad guys. 

The fourth track Village And City starts with some monotone distorted machine sounds. More of a cold-sounding beginning than the former tracks, but I guess that is the intention when we are in the cities made by man. A high-pitched sort of metallic sound is there, which might represent the constant screaming sound/noise of the traffic. Later on, a bussing sound of grasshoppers is there, while a computerized robot-sound bleep eternally into the night. The extra factory sounds add up to the presence of the human city as well. Love the track, perfectly illustrates the conceptual idea.

The fifth track Home, is where things get a bit frightening. Why? Because at the place where we feel safe and at home, there is the sort of intimate Yõkai. In other words, we are never alone and never completely in control. A funny and strange humming sound with an Asian instrument playing traditional Asian folk music. Im not sure what the name of the instrument is, but I do think that that is a sort of violin-based instrument. On top of that, some really cool and highly evocative and psychedelic melodic soundscapes dominate the background. Highly comfortable and eerie at the same time. I get a kind of TG-feel here, reminds me of their track Persuasion (In a good way). Almost works like a homage to the track or just the best cover version/tribute to the track? Nevertheless, one of my favorite tracks on the album!

The last track EPILOGUE - Yõkai Street might just be the strangest and most challenging piece on the album. It´s a street called Kyoto Street, a sort of Twin Peaks kind of place. Not where you are in the spirit world or the other. Manic acid-jazz drumming, intense bussing insect sounds, otherworldly paranormal moods shamanistic aesthetics. The real trippy album, Are there any fans of early Nurse With Wound? Really great trippy track!.  

Another great album from Sokushinbutso Project. Not as dark and challenging as their first album, but certainly a more... trippy sort of album. You really shouldn't compare the two albums, since both albums share the same sort of curious and highly adventurous spirit and deliver conceptual ideas perfectly to the listener. As a reviewer, I love reviewing this act. The first thing is to research their idea, second is to listen. And I usually find out that what they do... actually matches the stuff I have researched about their chosen idea/theme. Stuff that makes u wonder, and opens your mind to other realities. And yes, we do need that in this computerized society in which we live. Do go out and buy this one, it's essential!

Official site (label):

https://cardinium.com/product/ior-tk-xxiv/?fbclid=IwAR0voH1qN4P-jkg8g9P1WFmExGVg28-hwUFpt6qZeZdytBRegbppnWDyCbc

Facebook (band):

https://www.facebook.com/SokushinbutsuProject

Discogs (label):

https://www.discogs.com/master/3098688-Sokushinbutsu-Project-The-Y%C5%8Dkai-Codex