ALBUM REVIEW: PRURIENT - RAINBOW MIRROR

PRURIENT
RAINBOW MIRROR
Profound Lore / Hospital Productions
Drone, Dark Ambient, Noise, Electronic.
Listening Format: Digital



Prurient is just one of the recording aliases of US Noise artist Dominick Fernow. Over the past 15 years the man has put out a labyrinthine discography touching upon Noise, Power Electronics, Death Industrial, Techno, Industrial and Dark Ambient. But the one thing they mostly have in common is that Fernow's music is nails hard, aggressive, in your face and loud. His live performances often culminate in walls of suffocating harsh noise, whilst he stumbles about the stage screaming his lungs out. Prurient's own discography can roughly be navigated in two different ways. There are the self-released noise tapes that crop up frequently through his own label Hospital Productions, often his rawest and shortest in length releases. Then there are his projects on other labels such as Profound Lore, Cold Spring and Hydra Head, which tend to have a slightly higher production value and artistic scope, usually following some sort of concept. His 2015 double album 'Frozen Niagara Falls' brought a lot of attention and critical praise to Prurient. At the time this was considered to be one of the most ambitious projects attempted within the Power Electronics realm, which tends to favour shorter length releases. Little did we know Fernow had even more ambitious ideas in mind...

'Rainbow Mirror' spans 4 CDs or 7 LPs or 3 hours and 20 minutes of new music. It's safe to say that alone would test the patience of even the most hardened music fans, let alone fans of extreme underground art. Before anyone had even heard a second of this album, fans and critics were already left bemused, with one publication even claiming the album was "too long" before even hearing any of the material. Perhaps Fernow is looking to axe the stereotype that Power Electronics is only suited to short, chaotic bursts. Or perhaps it is because the 3+ hour 'Rainbow Mirror' opus isn't really Power Electronics at all. The album is made of 15 tracks or movements averaging 10 minutes in length. The press release I got for this album described it as "Doom Electronics". I'm not sure whether this was conjured by the label, the press agent or Fernow himself, but it totally hit the nail on the head. All of the pieces here are long, minimalist, sparse, bleak and very melancholic driftworks built on slow tempo pulsing electronics, lonely synths, iced with brittle layers of noise gradually seeping in. The end results have much more in common with Drone or Ambient music than Noise or Power Electronics, and should be approached by the listener as such.

If we take just disc 1 alone, over the 4 tracks here, the first two movements are the most subtle, reminiscent of Dark Ambient musician Lustmord, with the icy, alien atmospheres that made up Autechre's 'Amber' album. 'Barefoot God' and 'Walking On Dehydrated Coral' are incredibly sparse and build ever so slowly, working into a very gradual crescendo with finales approaching something noisier and more intense. These pieces of music are built on a simple, haunting and sad repeated melody that hypnotises the listener as they loop and repeat. By the time Disc 1 reaches it's climax on massive highlight 'Chaos - Sex' we have certainly reached much noisier and abrasive textures like seasoned Prurient fans would want. Except, this time around Fernow isn't interested in shocking your body or mutilating your ears with harsh, visceral blasts of noise. Here Prurient uses noise to enhance the atmosphere and intensity of these long pieces of music. Even when 'Rainbow Mirror' reaches its loudest peaks, it always remains a very solemn and downbeat journey. It is also important to note that this entire disc is entirely instrumental. In fact I only remember hearing vocals on one track across the entire project, 'Naturecum', and even these vocals were more like whispers or murmurs as opposed to his violent screams of previous releases.

The biggest talking point to address though... Is it too long? Did this album need to be over 3 hours long? Sure it demands a lot of patience and you will need to set aside a lot of spare time if you want to tackle this in one sitting, but the run time is justified. I got an advance on this album and in the space of two weeks I was more than happy to listen to the entire opus twice through. I then went back and just listened to Disc 1 a further two times. The length is justified because this project is so rewarding. What Fernow has achieved perhaps more than ever is that he has put so much emotion and raw feeling into these pieces. The addition of slightly more melody and distinct chords is a welcome addition that does wonders to enhance the mood of his music. This is a very sad and ghostly album that even has a few hummable chord phrases tucked away within it. If you take out the running time, 'Rainbow Mirror' is one of his most restrained works to date. It doesn't have that "shock factor" to it. And yet in complete juxtaposition, it is an extreme and hard going work because it so challenging, so moving and so lengthy. Prurient is making extreme and boundary pushing music still, just his methods of doing so having completely changed.

'Rainbow Mirror' is a true opus that doesn't need to be rushed or listened to in one sitting. The way the 4 discs have been broken down is very suitable and each disc feels like it's own album, each with a logical beginning, middle and end. Fernow is a very prolific musician, always writing and recording music, a lot of which is built on improv, documenting a mood probably based on what he is feeling as a musician at the time. But even though he puts out a lot of recordings very frequently, the overall quality of the end result has not been hampered. 'Rainbow Mirror' speaks as one of the most personal and heartfelt journies Fernow has ever expressed. Not only is it his masterpiece, but it stands as a late-coming album of the year contender. 9/10.

ALBUM REVIEW: GODSPEED YOU! BLACK EMPEROR - LUCIFERIAN TOWERS

GODSPEED YOU! BLACK EMPEROR
"LUCIFERIAN TOWERS"
Constellation Records
Post Rock, Drone, Noise Rock.
Listening Format: Vinyl



Godspeed You! Black Emperor feel like they should need no introduction, but I actually forget that when I stumbled upon this band more than ten years ago, I'd never heard them mentioned by anyone. No other artists or journalists were name checking this Canadian collective and they didn't have any radio airplay. It wasn't until the Danny Boyle film 28 Days Later came out that I first heard the name, but I didn't stumble across what a legacy this band hold until falling deep down the internet forum rabbit hole. Of course nowadays, they feel like a band that need no introduction at all. Pretty much anyone who listens to alternative music or reads Pitchfork will claim to love this band. They even got name checked by Seth Rogan in the film Pineapple Express. But if you STILL haven't heard of them by now, Godspeed You! Black Emperor hold a LOT of acclaim. I frequently hear them get labelled as "The best Post Rock band EVER!", "The best band of the last 20 years!" or even "THE BEST BAND EVER!!!" And who am I to argue!? Their 4 main releases in their original incarnation between 1995-2002, I consider to be some of the most mind-blowing, groundbreaking, forward thinking, bone-chilling, awe inspiring, [INSERT GRAND HYPERBOLE HERE] EVER!!! One of THE bands whose music will sing ruthlessly in my veins 'til the day I die. They went on a large hiatus after 2002's 'Yanqui UXO' album, but came back really strong. Not everyone has favoured their "reunion" albums quite as much, but I have thoroughly enjoyed them. So here we have their third "reunion" album, Godspeed You! Black Emperor Plays "Luciferian Towers"!

Well... Once again I am floored! Following in the wake of 2014's 'Asunder, Sweet, And Other Distress!' Godspeed are making some of their most concise albums, running just over 40 minutes and single LP length. Yet I feel like they are still managing to bring an apocalyptic tour-de-force with their grand instrumental Rock. Opening with the 7 minute 'Undoing a Luciferian Towers', this track plays like an overture. An ominous drone escalates in loudness and intensity as the ensemble of guitars, drums, violins and atmospherics gradually sink their teeth in one by one. It plays like an orchestra warming up their instruments at the start of the concert. Though the track concludes on an almighty cacophony... An eerie, joyous racket... GY!BE veterans might be tempted to call this "light" or perhaps even "tame" compared to the band that devastated our ears on 'Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven's 20 minute behemoths. Fortunately, once the band have warmed up they soon deliver something much more atypical of their style. In fact 'Bosses Hang' is without a doubt one of my all time favourite GY!BE compositions. Over 14 minutes and 3 distinct movements, the ensemble chill my bones to the core with thundering drawn out guitar chords, pounding timpani drums and sweeping violins. Because GY!BE implement so many Noise, Drone and Ambient sections into their compositions, I feel like their ear for supremely catchy melodies can often be understated. But 'Bosses Hang' delivers this absolutely beautiful and glorious leading melody that often weaves in and out of the 3 movements. The first act is pretty storming, building up rather hastily (by their standards), before winding down in the second movement to an almost Celtic influenced string section that sounds eerily similar to the mid section of The Who's 'Baba O'Riley'. Typically when the third movement of 'Bosses Hang' kicks up, it cuts you like a storm in heaven, reprising the epic main melody with guitars that are screaming towards the skies. Godspeed You! Black Emperor are well known for their ear shattering climaxes (often following long teasing build ups) and here we find one of their most effective uses of this trademark. Even though it may adhere to Post Rock standards, I feel like GY!BE have more than earned the right to be doing it still in 2017, I mean they really ARE the band that have always done it better than anyone else!

The third track 'Fam/Famine' is more on the restrained side like the opener, but still glorious. GY!BE manage to work in their more introspective and mellowed out moments arguably more effectively than the previous two album's Drone interlude tracks. This track once again hangs on an understated melody, washed with tremolo strings, and noisy production, retaining such a distinct earthy and natural sound. "Luciferian Towers" ends on another 14 minute composition, 'Anthem For No State', building slowly with gloomy guitar arpeggios and mournful strings, almost having this Morricone old west kind of feel. The way this track unfolds is much more gradual, reminiscent of old school GY!BE in a way. Once again it is the third and final movement that impresses most, launching into straight up Noise Rock territory, with these loud feedback driven guitars just hanging in the air as Sophie Trudeau's violin shrieks violently and the punishing drums shatter the ground beneath. This track certainly has the most "soundtracky" feel on this album, tying nicely with the album artwork that mimics a film script.

Admittedly Godspeed You! Black Emperor's post reunion albums aren't QUITE as good as their original incarnation's legacy, but I will say with an honest heart that all of the major Post Rock bands such as Mogwai, Explosions In the Sky, Sigur Ros and Mono had a 10 year gap where they could have caught up and tried to outdo their genre foes, but none of them stepped up to the plate (don't get me wrong, I actually like those bands). A new Godspeed album doesn't come along often enough, but they are still the absolute kings of Post Rock... When Godspeed release a new album, they manage to dwarf EVERY ONE OF THEIR PEERS into complete insignificance. That is how good this band are. "Luciferian Towers" is another stunning effort, and it stands out from some of their other albums by proving just how utterly fucking good they are at writing killer melodies. Not since the opening refrains of 2000's "Storm" have I found myself humming a Godspeed song on my walk home from work. Instead of going for something, dark, apocalyptic and menacing, "Luciferian Towers" plays like a victory march after an epic, bloody battle. It's one of their most joyous, majestic and dare I say it, feel good albums in their entire discography. Utterly essential listening. It is a new Godspeed album and YOU MUST HEAR IT!!! 8/10.

ALBUM REVIEW: BORIS - DEAR

BORIS
DEAR
Sargent House.
Doom Metal, Drone Metal, Amplifier Worship.
Listening Format: Digital & CD


Boris are a seminal band from Tokyo, Japan who are celebrating their 25th year of making music together. Boris have a vast discography and are best known for making all kinds of music that is incredibly loud and extreme. The band have experimented in Drone, Doom Metal, Harsh Noise, Electronic Music, Psychedelic Rock and all sorts. Alongside experimental legends such as Earth, Melvins and Sunn O))), Boris are considered to be one of the pioneers of the amplifier worship concept, even naming their 1998 album 'Amplifier Worship', which helped establish such ear destroying sounds. The group's discography is so deep, with many collaborations, that even die hard Boris fans struggle to keep up. It's safe to say though that the band have shied away from super loud Doom and Drone Metal releases over the past decade. Commercial releases such as 'Smile' and 'Noise' experimented with Psyche Rock and Shoegaze. 'Attention Please' was a really interesting left turn into making a dreamy Synth Pop album. Even though this band have always been putting out interesting and experimental music, a large part of their fanbase love it best when this band bring out the crushingly heavy riffs. In all honesty, Boris haven't quite given us that ferocity since their classic 2006 collaboration with Sunn O))), 'Altar'... Until now...!!!

'Dear' opens with a slow, drum rattle, and then just a single, face-melting power chord is struck and left to ring out, at maximum volume. The amp feedback swirls and pierces around your brain as a reverb drenched chanting vocal comes in. Instantly the fans of Boris at their heaviest will light up with a sadistic smile. Across the whole album, Boris dish out some of the slowest, heaviest and most crushing riffs they have ever dealt. The third track 'Absolutego' even name checks their very first album, so you can tell that the band are looking back on themselves for this anniversary occasion. Even though Boris seem to be looking backwards, they still perform with absolute conviction and passion. Other highlights include the monstrous 'The Power', which could easily have fit onto the 'Altar' album. Incredibly slow pounding drums rumble at a funeral pace, as these gorgeous harmonised doom riffs tread very similar chord(s) to Sunn O))). 'Distopia - Vanishing Point' verges into Space Rock over twelve psyched out minutes. The track starts off with hushed and dreamy vocals, as the loud fuzzy guitars escalate gradually. A barrage of Floydian guitar solos in the second half brings an epic sense of drama that works really well. The closing title track 'Dear' sounds like Boris ate Melvin's 'Hag Me' for breakfast and then slowly regurgitated it back up, sounding even slower, louder and more downtuned.

'Dear' ultimately feels like a love-letter to the fans who who have stuck by Boris since their inception. Whilst their experimental works outside of the Metal realm have been very commendable, 'Dear' is absolutely that back to basics, all out Metal album that fans have been waiting for, and they have done it in true style. Boris very much still know their way around a wall of amps and an array of fuzz pedals, and they continue to prove why they are one of the best in the business. 'Dear' is very much the successor to albums such as 'Pink' and 'Altar'. Not only that, it is genuinely one of the heaviest albums of 2017. 8/10.

LIVE REVIEW: MANCHESTER INTERNATIONAL FESTIVAL'S DARK MATTER HIGHLIGHTS

The Manchester International Festival is an annual event that spans many weeks and venues taking all creative art forms such as live music, poetry, theatre and more. Every year the festival gets more ambitious and creative, truly thinking outside the box and pushing the limits of what a festival can entail. Highlights of MIF 2017 included New Order, Fatherland, Arcade Fire and Dark Matter...

Dark Matter is just one small slice of the festival. A series of individual live shows favouring musicians known for making very dark, experimental and otherworldly music. Dark Matter has been curated by British DJ, journalist and BBC Radio 6 presenter Mary Anne Hobbs. Eight headlining acts performed over the duration of the festival, including LEVELZ, Holly Herndon, Paleman, The Haxan Cloak, Clark, Kojey Radical, Colin Stetson and Sunn O))). There were also brilliant DJ sets from the likes of Demdike Stare, Akkord and Mary Anne Hobbs herself. Sadly I wasn't able to attend all of the shows, but I wanted to give a shout out to the ones I did attend. It's brilliant that MIF and Mary Anne Hobbs were able to give such a prominent platform to strange, experimental and esoteric underground music.


PALEMAN
Gorilla. 6/7/17.

Manchester raised Paleman began his craft as a Jazz drummer and it is clear that he implements that into his sound. Not only was Paleman twiddling knobs and triggering samples on stage, but also adding live percussion along the way. He worked on improvisation, sculpting off kilter techno beats with icy cold synths. He delivered many peaks and troughs in his music, with the calmer parts evoking spacey atmospheres, soon leading into upbeat, lively passages that got the crowd dancing. The dim lighting and room full of fog helped to enhance a special atmosphere created by Paleman. His music was slow building, yet playful.


THE HAXAN CLOAK
Gorilla. 7/7/17.

The Haxan Cloak (real name Bobby Krlic) is a Yorkshire born Producer who has worked with Bjork, The Body, and even created film and TV scores. But when it comes to his solo act, Krlic likes to get sinister! The Haxan Cloak is one of the best modern names in Dark Ambient music, essentially creating scary soundscapes inspired by the music and atmospheres of horror and nightmares. The entire performance felt almost like one continuous piece of music, beginning slow like a glacier as long drawn out, ominous synths gathered in intensity. Krlic gradually built up layers of eerie and unsettling effects such as buzzing static, escalating noise, scraping and clanging sounds. The way The Haxan Cloak is able to allure an audience through gradual build ups and a foreboding sense of dread is mesmerizing. The use of strobe lights and thick smoke just added to the atmosphere. Only towards the second half of his set, did pulsing Industrial beats become more commonplace. The finale of his show in particular lead even greater towards Industrial Electronic music, with heavy, pounding beats and piercing noise that rumbled and shook your entire body. Krlic's show is incredibly loud and truly akin to a live horror experience. 


CLARK
02 Ritz. 8/7/17.

Warp Records veteran Chris Clark delivered a whole new stage show to the MIF in support of his latest album 'Death Peak'. Clark performed practically the entire album in full (though sequenced differently) plus some welcome oldies such as 'Winter Linn' and 'Superscope'. Clark really went all out with the light show, which was a true spectacle to watch. Each tune he played had its own choreographed colour scheme and lasers projecting trippy patterns towards the crowd. He even had two masked dancer girls on stage performing improvised dance routines to Clark's music. Certainly not an easy task considering how wonky his music is, switching up tempos and rhythms frantically. Though Clark isn't the "darkest" of the Dark Matter lineup, his eclectic body of music suitably strikes a fine balance between different moods and shades. His beats are incredibly heavy, pounding through the Ritz's bouncy dancefloor like a pneumatic drill. He truly got the crowd dancing the whole way through. Clark is so fascinating to watch on stage, not just because of the incredible visual show accompanying him, but just seeing how busy he gets. He is constantly moving up and down his large desk of Electronic apparatus, flicking switches, triggering samples and adjusting mixers, breaking into a sweat almost immediately. If anyone believes that Electronic music is just somebody standing behind a laptop pressing buttons, then Clark is here to prove you wrong!

SUNN O)))
02 Ritz. 15/7/17

Closing MIF's Dark Matter series was one of the weirdest and most experimental bands on earth. Seattle's Drone masters Sunn O))) are renown for being perhaps the loudest band in existence. The core duo of Greg Anderson and Stephen O'Malley have featured in countless influential Extreme Metal bands, usually favouring the slowest and heaviest riffs in existence. Sunn O))) is definitely their most well known act, taking the concept of amplifier worship to the utmost extreme (and not just their name). The band perform in Sith Lord style cloaks in front of a colossal and intimidating wall of massive Sunn guitar amps. Over the years their touring line-up has continued to expand, tonight performing as a 5 piece. O'Malley and Anderson deafened audiences with their guitars, whilst the addition of two extra players on keyboards, electronics and even a Drone trombone added more layers to the sonic chaos. Attila Csihar, long time vocalist of the controversial Black Metal pioneers Mayhem, also performed a highly eclectic vocal display, as well as dressing in some elaborate costumes. Their music is so damn slow, that they have no use for a live drummer to keep a beat or tempo.

Sunn O))) are very much a love it or hate it kind of band, even causing debate among extreme music fans. One numpty in the crowd even yelled 'GET ON WITH IT' 10 minutes into Attila Csihar's widely versatile ritualistic chanting intro. I was genuinely dumbfounded by this rude interruption, hoping it was some kind of self-aware irony.  Personally I consider Sunn O))) to be true explorers, pushing the boundaries of what music can be perceived as further and further. In a nutshell, Sunn O))) performed for 90 minutes performing what is essentially just a note, or a chord, dragged into an infinite abyss. However because of their dynamic sound setup, the rumbling guitar drones were so incredibly, ear punishingly loud that the listener ends up confronting sound itself face to face. You can feel every wave and texture pulsing through your entire body. Sometimes it can be a scary and painful experience, as you feel all your bones rattling and it feels like your head is about to explode, but there are parts of it that are generally soothing, like getting a deep massage. In a sense, by attending a Sunn O))) concert, you become one with the force of sound. It genuinely is the closest I have come to being able to physically feel music travelling through my body.

Even though the music of Sunn O))) is incredibly patience testing, their visual show was very exciting. A thick wall of smoke constantly filled the room, enhancing the sinister atmosphere. The sight of the amps and the mysterious cloaked men looked akin to an occult ritual for guitar fans. Vocalist Attila Csihar was by far the most animated on stage, delivering not only a great vocal performance but a physical display too. Near the end of the show he came out in a suit made of reflective mirror shards (reminiscent of their latest album sleeve for 'Kannon') and shot laser beams from his fingertips. The show seemed to drift slowly through different movements. It began with a chanting vocal warm up from Attila, followed by all 5 players demolishing Manchester with a monolith of loud noise. Some players would then drift in and out of the performance, allowing the drones to modulate, as if they were growing and shrinking in weight. Sunn O))) ended the performance with just the core duo droning away on their guitars. Despite the Sunn O))) live show essentially being 90 minutes of listening to one note, I still find them to be one of the most gripping, exciting, unique and thrilling live acts I've ever experienced. Sunn O))) are a landmark act in the field of the avant-garde. True experimentalists on a mission to shock audiences as well as defy perceptions of music and art altogether. What a perfect way to end MIF's Dark Matter showcase.

#316: GNOD - MIRROR

2016
Noise Rock, Drone, Psychedelia
Rocket Recordings

Fellow Salfordians GNOD are an experimental collective who are a sort of mysterious cult act becoming more popular across Manchester. They have already put out many releases, from Krautrock and Psychedelic Rock inspired LPs, to Noise and Drone cassette only experiments. "Mirror" has been released by Rocket Recordings on CD and Vinyl and is more of a canon album from the group, who recorded it at Islington Mill in Salford.

I picked up the CD of "Mirror" that is presented in a blank shiny reflective silver sleeve. My first impression of this album is that it is seriously some heavy shit! Though it is one of those albums that builds in weight and intensity as it goes on. The opening title track is the most relatively tuneful one here. It hangs on a Jah Wobble inspired bassline that repeats throughout the 8 minute duration. It moves quite slowly, but a splattering of scatty psyched out guitar keeps things interesting. The vocals are very interesting, with these washed out demented screams, with lyrics only half decipherable through the reverb. A minimalist dirge that definitely reminds me of early PIL.

After this, things take a tumble down a rabbit hole of gloom, misery and insanity! "Learn to Forgive" is practically Drone Metal, with a filthy fuzz bassline and noisy guitars that scream in agony. The vocalist sounds like Mark E Smith if he had been impaled on a spike and was slowly bleeding to death. Though it is based on the same chords throughout its 8 and a half minutes, the song just builds and builds in density and by the end it becomes so intense and noisy, but in a beautiful way. This track makes me feel like I am being slowly boiled in a giant pan. The use of what sounds like an air raid siren in the background is subtly effective. GNOD sound like they are channelling acts such as Boris, Jesu and Swans here, and the Industrial despair of the derelict ruined buildings on nearby Salford Crescent is captured perfectly. Third track "Sodom & Gomorrah" expands these nightmarish feelings even further. Weighing in at 18 minutes, this song is even slower and heavier. A clanging bassline of Doom will destroy your eardrums. Realising that they can't get away with a repetitive bass hook for too long, this song tends to drift in an out of quieter dark ambient parts. The jangling percussion and ghostly wailing voices give an occult and ritualistic kind of feel, and it is one of my favourite parts of the record, showing a whole other kind of intensity. The fourth and final track is somewhat of an anti-climax. This remix of the opening track by Raikes Parade doesn't really feel necessary and could be considered a bonus track. It isn't really that much different from the track the opened the album. The bass is more pronounced here and there is much more reverb added to the mix. This version of the track kind of reminds me of 90s Ambient Dub Industrialists Scorn.

If you have ever lived in Salford, or a city full of council houses, high rise flats and industrial factories, you will find a kindred spirit with "Mirror". I think it perfectly captures the feel of walking through Salford on a rainy night. The red bricks and the grey skies. But aside from that, GNOD have made a colossal droning album that will give you nightmares. It is very serious, heavy and laced with anarchic lyrics and menacing thoughts. "Mirror" exists somewhere inbetween the Krautrock of Can, the Drone experiments of This Heat and the full on crushing Doom misery of bands like Man Is the Bastard and Conan. The whole album feels like it has been buried in dirt and sewage, and I can see this appealing to fans of Psychedelic Rock, Hardcore Punk and Extreme Metal! Though minimalist and repetitive, "Mirror" speaks many languages. 8/10.