Inner Demons #22
https://innerdemonsrecords.bandcamp.com/
Sick System – I Was. I Am. I
Will Be. (Homage to Rosa Luxemburg) – 2023 – CDr/Download – [IND151]
https://innerdemonsrecords.bandcamp.com/album/i-was-i-am-i-will-be-homage-to-rosa-luxemburg-ind151
https://www.discogs.com/artist/11482655-Sick-System
1. I
Was. I Am. I Will Be. (Homage to Rosa Luxemburg) 1.
2. I
Was. I Am. I Will Be. (Homage to Rosa Luxemburg) 2.
3. I
Was. I Am. I Will Be. (Homage to Rosa Luxemburg) 3.
Homage to Rosa Luxemburg begins
with a reading from Rosa Luxemburg’s writings delivered with a clear, concise
voice. The wall kicks in, I am immediately impressed by the shift from introduction
to sonic chaos. The wall blasts distortion over creaking, dragging sounds as drones
go off in the background. The feel of the wall is a rustic haunted with an aged
timbre that is emphasized through the continual creaking buried within the
distortion.
The second movement is higher
pitched, with faster movement and cuts through with sharper noise a lot. The main
sound becomes something that lies between the noise equivalent of a solo and
the sound trying to be vocal as it jitters its chaotic dialogue out. As part 2
progresses, it becomes choppier, faltering, allowing sounds to pause while the others
take prominence for a time.
A howling, wailing, distorted
blast becomes the 4th movement. I like the looped wail of the sound
that is added to this part, the distortion is subtle on this, the pain of the
sound is prominent here. Individual sounds drop back subtly to allow for the isolation
of particular (howling) sounds to emphasise the agonised aspects of the track. A
reading of Luxemburg’s writings ends the work.
There’s often a lot of online discussion
about good and bad harsh noise, with an emphasis on crap Bandcamp projects.
This is good Harsh Noise bolstered by the backing of an excellent label and a physical
release.
Infelix – Abyssal Despondency
– 5” CDr/Download – 2023 – [IND150F]
1. I.
Murmurs Ov The Tormented.
2. II.
The Stagnant Nausea Ov Existence.
3. III.
E_R_D.
4. IV.
Ecstasy ov Null.
5. V.
Stench ov Death.
6. VI.
Sepulchral Occupation.
7. VII.
Burdened by Ash.
8. VIII.
Endless Rotting Sky.
INFELIX has musical roots in
80s and 90s industrial music, blackened dystopian ambience, nightmarish death
industrial, depressive black metal, and doomed power electronics.
Philosophically INFELIX navigates depression, environmental collapse,
anti-capitalism, anti-fascism, animal rights, existential dread, cosmic
pessimism, misanthropy, and metaphysical nihilism. Quote from the Infelix
Bandcamp
I am familiar with the work of
Infelix from a previous Inner Demons batch. The project has been around since
1998. The creative mastermind behind the project is Jason M. Stevens who is
also does the project Lapsed.
Murmurs Ov the Tormented
begins the sounds moving through ambient landscapes, created by drones that
gently evolve via shifts of tone and mists of distortion. Thudding, roaring
distortion and vocals deep inside the mix resonate The Stagnant Nausea of
Existence – the sound is big.
E_R_D demonstrates
effective repetition and a noisier approach to the sound, this carries through
to Ecstasy ov Null the layering is impressive here, sounds weave through each
other and bounce off each other beautifully. Stench ov Death utilises
effective electronics that perk my interest further. The churning sound that
begins to dominate the sound is strong. Sepulchral Occupation is the
album in full stride, the beat is slow and acts like a pillar for the noise to
explode around slowly. I am often averse to beats in noise and take a lot of
persuading of their validity, here I am persuaded. The track gets deeper and
thicker as it goes on. Burdened by Ash is the perfect balance of noise,
melodic synth as if soundtracking something in a sci fi film. Endless
Rotting Sky allows some diseased drone to infect vocal samples and spread
the noise rot and a melodic, dramatic end.
The majestic, large sound
resonates across this album with its cinematic ambition. The Blackened Death
Industrial factor is there, the darkness of the tracks is also consistent
throughout the album.
Jettenbach – A Meditation on
Procrastination – CDr/Download – 2023 – [IND149]
https://innerdemonsrecords.bandcamp.com/album/a-meditation-on-procrastination-ind149
1. One
Simply Can’t Sustain This Level of Gear Acquisition. But I Might Get Another
Reverb.
2. I
Have Come to Accept That I Will never Have as Many Pedals as Dan and That’s OK.
This is one of those releases
that grips me immediately. It begins with a new age ambient feel on One
Simply Can’t Sustain…. The sound has consistent gradual shift and change,
within the grand scope of its landscape of sound. Jettenbach uses drones and
synthesiser sounds as the main sources to evoke a subtle darkness punctuated by
rays of light through synth key notes until it begins to glitch out and comes
to an end.
A synthesiser noise tries to take
off but it can’t, the sound is rephrased through pops and drones that slowly
evolve into the even bigger sound of I Have Come to Accept... There is also
a clearer air of suspense to this track with a feeling that the sounds are repeatedly
coming at the listener like waves in the ocean – soundwaves.
Despite the humorous, carefree
titles, A Meditation on Procrastination presented here is complex and
very well executed. I like the whole body of work of this release, the small
quirks and glitches work well to add character to the expansive lushness this
artist continually produces. A futuristic gem of a release.
CHEFKIRK – A Non-technical
Introduction – CDr/Download – 2023 – [IND148]
https://innerdemonsrecords.bandcamp.com/album/a-non-technical-introduction-ind148
https://chefkirk.bandcamp.com/music
https://cementimental.bandcamp.com/
1. Accidental
Birds.
Accidental Birds pulsates
into life, CHEFKIRK controls the pulsations whilst warped waveform
noises play with those pulsations as they morph into glitches of sound. I like
the fresh, original use of noise that combines with other sounds as if to add a
bumpiness to the movement of sound, I’d describe it as having a deliberate multi-layered,
rough texture. At times it falls into cacophony of psychedelic science fiction
sound effects as if in a film from the 60s or early 70s. It has a lot in common
with the work of Tim Drage’s Cementimental project and I would advise working
together. This sound seems to occasionally push overload on itself and run excitedly
towards a meltdown. This is a strong release, well worthy of purchase.
One and alone 2024.
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