ASTRO / Thorn Bug - The Other World
and this World
The label Grubenwehr Freiburg is out with something else, something different, and something new. A split between Japanoise ASTRO and another project called Thorn Bug. ASTRO is the work of Hiroshi Hasegawa, who is mostly known for the project called C.C.C.C. A highly influential veteran figure in the world of Japanoise. We also reviewed another album with ASTRO, which was released on Abhorrent Creation Tapes, described as electro-acoustic brutal ambient. Thorn Bug is a project with Raul Starcz. He started the project in 2021 with numerous releases on various labels, described as something in between melancholic harsh electronics and raw black noise.
Now this release is a massive thing... mainly because of various editions and artistic creation that goes with it. To start with, I have the "standard" tape edition. A decorative blood-splattered white tape, with a red card containing info bout the art, etc. There is also the special edition with a pouch, a plastic spoon, deathheads, etc, which is offcourse... sold out. You can also buy the poster, which is signed by the artist. U can choose the poster as being rolled, folded, black/white rolled, or black/white folded.
The album contains 4 tracks with Thorn Bug and 1 long track with ASTRO. 38 minutes in total.
The first track with Thorn Bug on the A-side is called FAR-reprise. I was expecting an in-your-face noise treat, but we are met here with a murky, haunting, and mellow piano-soundtrack/ambient piece. A very beautiful and engulfing one! The piano keys have been pitched down, so the piano keys almost sound like moody guitar strings.
The second track, Everything Feels Like Nothing At All is where all the fun starts. Directly into traditional harsh-noise territory. It grinds, it drills, it chops, explodes, cuts, and is stretched... a haywire robotic dentist making a mess in your mouth, blood spurts, and the brain melts through pain and too much nitric oxide. Does it feel like nothing at all? Not really, it´s littery n chaotic entity expanding through your speakers.
The third track, A Loss of Meaning, has a charming bass-driven rhythmic beginning, but it all sadly ends up in the grinding machine as well. It gets the same aggressive noise-treatment as in track 2.
The fourth track starts with a quick typing on the phone dial, and this sound also gets the same ride through the same harsh-noise machinery, a minor touch on something with sounds a bit like 8-bit sounds, maybe?. Other than that, it grinds, drills, chops, explodes, cuts, etc, etc. Noticing a lot of finger dexterity on the knops.
We flip the cassette and continue with Astro on the B-side. The track is called The Other World and This World. A screaming distortion starts the track, with some additional layers of psychedelic sounds to accompany it. Not sure, I think there is a fluid-like high-pitched sound which sounds like... when u gently push the play button on your walkman and u get that sound. I do like the kind of cosmic and psychedelic touch to this... it is harsh noise, but with an otherworldly mood attached to it. We also get to hear the engine of a tractor, ready to explode! Some people are chattering/talking in the mix as well. Different sounds on your speakers as well. Later on, the sound tunes down to a more gentle sound. A lot of cosmic bleep sounds that sound like a fast and old modem. The way the track ends, very nice! Won´t spoil the end, offcourse!
And this is all we can get out of Thorn Bug and Astro. My favorite on this, I would say, is Astro. In my book, it sounds like a thorough idea that has been accomplished from the start to the end. At times, harsh noise tends to rely (sometimes) on one thing... which is how much chaotic noise and how quick u can create it in the time which has been given. I do think that Thorn Bug is in that category, where Astro (on the other hand) is more curious and creative in exploring different moods and sounds. But offcourse it's all a matter of taste! Thorn Bug is a traditional no-bull-shit harsh noise thing (for those who just want pure harsh noise), while Astro is more abstract and out-there.
Bandcamp (label):
Bandcamp (Thorn Bug):
Bandcamp (Astro):