I recently got a clove cigarette scented package in the mail from a man named Pat Cooksey. Pat records under the name RUBBISH and is also the man behind the Missouri noise label, ROIL NOISE. He's been putting out noise CD-Rs for a while now. To obtain copies of any of this stuff contact Pat at the ROIL NOISE website.
V/A - “Bales of Human Hair” CD-R (Roil Noise)
Compilations are one thing that you really don’t see a whole lot of in the noise community. Probably because noise tracks can and are often expected to exceed what one might consider regular song length. I remember buying $4.00 punk comps back when I was 13 and there would be like 40 of my favorite bands on a 45 minute long CD. While this hour long comp doesn’t have the immediate urgency of the punk comps of my youth, one thing it does have is a cast of noise unknowns and somewhat knowns laying down the noise hammer. The names I immediately recognised were RUBBISH (of course), ROTTED BRAIN, MYSTIFIED, METEK, and OUBLIETTE but there are also tracks from M.R.L., TERRENCE FULLER, RABBIT GIRLS, GAS SATORI, TINNITUSTIMULUS, PYTHAGORA, IRON BITCHFACE, CTEPHIN, SICK TO THE BACK TEETH, I AM SEAMONSTER, ONEIRIC IMPERIUM, CIRCLE SIX, and ESROM COLE. Sounds range anywhere from the laid back spacey dishwasher sounds of MYSTIFIED to the junk/background clatter of TERRENCE FULLER to the mid ‘90s Merzbow worship of ROTTED BRAIN. There’s a lot of noise on this CD but if you’re at all a fan of harsh noise then I’m sure each of the artist’s different takes on extreme/psychedelic sound will be able to hold your interest for the CD’s duration.
RABBIT GIRLS - “Demonizer” - 2x3” CD-R (Roil Noise)
Judging by the liner notes I’d say what we have here is some sort of collaboration between RABBIT GIRLS’ Noah Von Xeuitsh and Pat RUBBISH. It says that sound sources were provided by RUBBISH but the release is credited as just a RABBIT GIRLS release. That’s understandable. I guess using another artist as source material usually doesn’t constitute a full on collaboration. Either way, I’m really enjoying this release. There are two tracks, each filling up a 3” CD-R so be prepared to use your listening ears on this one. Disc one, “Bound by Shadows and Darkness” is an attention grabbing track that starts off with some harsher textues but soon drops off into a somewhat contemplative mid-section using lots of delays the occasional bird-like feedback squack. In the last couple minutes of the track the distortion creeps back in a little and things get really fuzzy. The second disc, “The Lifelong Journey into Nonexistence” is much like the first few minutes of the first disc but uglier, more abrasive, and 20+ minutes long. I like the sounds but there aren't enough changes for my tastes. I’m still digging this side of the release but I’d probably be digging it more if I did drugs. Yeah it’s that kinda thing... really slow moving and, “like whoa dude...” Still a pretty strong effort.
MALEBOLGE - “Evil Pouches” CD-R (Roil Noise)
I don’t know what to say. This definitely isn’t what I was expecting from ROIL NOISE. This is a reissue of a CD-R originally released on UMBRELLA NOIZE COLLECTIVE a little while back. MALEBOLGE is the moniker given to the combined collaborative effforts of CTEPHIN and RABBIT GIRLS with the former handling the ambient noise textures and the latter taking care of the beats... wait... BEATS!?!?!? Yeah beats. There are some ridiculously danceable beats on this CD. I’m afraid to use the “T” word seeing as how I’m not all that familiar with electronic beat based music but I’d like to say this sounds like a sort of gltchy, extremely high energy, rhythmically complex mutant tuh... tuh.. techno with CTEPHIN’s noisescapes laid over the top. Wow. I think my girlfriend might even like this. 21 tracks in about 70 minutes. Be sure to pop this CD in when you finally get tired of listening to nothing but improvised harsh noise wanking.
RUBBISH - untitled(?) CD-R (Roil Noise)
Packaging... It’s all in the packaging. You could give me a CD of nothing but the sound of you slapping yourself in the face but if it comes with some unorthodox, extravagant packaging then I’m gonna love it. The information that came with this CD is minimal... er... nonexistent. I don’t know what this release is called or what any of the track names are but I do know that the packaging was a pain in the ass to open. First a xeroxed paper square’s corners were folded around the CD. Then the CD was wrapped with twine and put in a piece of plastic netting which was then tied closed with a broken rubber band. As for the sounds on the disc... there are 15 tracks clocking in at about 70 minutes. All the tracks have a similair “medium-harsh” feeling but approached in very different ways. As the CD progresses the music gets more and more varied, incorprating pulsing beats and “clack clack” train track sounds with snorting electronics and beyond distorted industrial wasteland clatter as source material. My favorite track is #5 with the snapping/bubbling crackle and background ambience. I would like to know more about this release but I’ve got to admit I’m really enjoying the sexy ambiguity of it all.
P.S. I actually would like someone to send me a recording of a face being repeatedly slapped. That would be fucking awesome. Send it to... Fred Avila - 41 Grandview St. #1405 - Santa Cruz, CA -95060 - USA. I will review it. as long as it is packaged in some unnescessary extravagant way. I promise.
RUBBISH - untitled(?) 3” CD-R (Roil Noise)
Way to go RUBBISH. Another CD that is beautifully packaged. This one using yellowed pages out of old books, and purple plastic netting all wrapped with a rubber band and put in a small resealable plastic bag. There are 4 tracks with totally off the wall titles like “Ozark Mountain White Devils” and “ Rump Ranger Reveille” and the music contained is pretty off the the wall as well. This release has much more of a junk-vibe than the other RUBBISH CD I reviewed. I would be willing to bet that each of these tracks were all recorded live in one take. However they were recorded, the extreme urgency and lo fi-ness really adds to the overall sound. I especially like the first track, “Doorways of Emotion”. It’s some sort of lo fi field recording that sounds like someone walking through the forest and stopping to take a shit in the lake (seriously!). You can hear the “plop” and everything. The other 3 tracks have lots of “in the red” tape hiss, screaming feedback, trashy atmosphere, and anything else you could expect from a DIY lo-fi harsh noise release. I’m loving it so much. Probably my favorite of the ROIL NOISE releases I've heard. An excellent way to start my Saturday. I’m begging you, contact Pat RUBBISH to see if he has more of these. You won’t be sorry, I swear.
-Fred
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