Lo Imp - Nosferatu

Yet another project of Bridget Hayden, this time with Sam McLoughlin and Jake Blanchard. This is a live recording of them playing during a screening of Nosferatu in a church. The improvisation ranges from atonal doodlings to unsettling drones. 2017 tape on Was Ist Das?

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Demons - Untitled loop tape

Years ago the blog Corrupted Delights (which seems not to be functioning, sadly) as well as Bleak Bliss had posted a untitled tape made by Demons (Nate Young/Wolf Eyes-Steve Kenney) which featured an endless loop repeating itself with various short durations. The sound of that loop was the most sinister and contaminated evil synth noise that someone could have ever vomited on this planet, and for a long time I used to play it to fall asleep. I played it when I was doing my army service sleeping a few hours between my guard duty, and I repeated it for many hours in the morning while I was writing my MA thesis, only to end up in the afternoon lying on the carpet feeling that my brain had become completely fried by studying and listening to this.

So, I decided to buy it for archive purposes as well as play it on my new ghettoblaster that I have in the kitchen, but I was slightly disappointed. Instead of that evil synth, there was a cool - on the one hand - but completely different loop - on the other. What I hear is a bass loop rising and falling, alternating with a weak pulsing throb. Yes, it's cool, sounds a little bit like sounds from Dawn of the Dead or Cannibal Holocaust in devouring scenes but it's not the demonic puke emitted from the bowels of Marvel's Blackheart (do you remember the epic arcade game Marvel Super Heroes vs. Street Fighter?). Contacting the seller, he said that he thinks that there must probably be different versions, which makes sense that I tested it on different tape decks to see if there was a problem with the one. I'm thinking of trying to buy another copy so that I might be lucky, but I guess I won't do so.

Therefore, I decided to post both versions, mine and the one posted by Corrupted Delights, for you to compare and tell me what you think has happened here.

2006 tape on AA Records.

My bass loop version

The Corrupted Delights synth horror version

Vampyres - The Mezzotint

2019 tape on Beartown Records.

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Vampyres ‎– Embers Of Destruction tape

At Easter I always like to post something slightly related to religion and something its opposite. So, the opposite this year is another release of the sublime horror drone of Vampyres of Lee Stokoe and Martyn James Reid. You probably have understood how high I hold these two guys and their day projects (Culver and Depletion) so you know that you should expect top-notch modular synth drone terror. 2019 tape on Invisible City Records.

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Xqui - Timepieces/Settlers EPs

After the feverish Capitulate full-length cd earlier this year, Xqui returns with more subterranean manipulated sonicscapes. My description of his music as "Lovecraftian horror for urban landscapes" continues here; subdued dreamy and unsettling passages in undeground tunnels is always what comes to my mind when I hear his stuff, and while I was hearing "Biff" from his latest EP Settlers, I couldn't help but remember when I was playing maniacally Call of Cthulhu - Dark Corners of the Earth, and thought how much these tracks would fit that awesome game, (Which reminds me to ask, has anyone played the new Call of Cthulhu game? Is it worth?), or they could as well have been released by the master label of dark ambient in the late 1990s and early 200s, Roger Karmanik's Cold Meat Industry.

Both Settlers and Timepieces are available for free on Xqui's bandcamp, so enjoy them, and why not, help the artist continue his awesome job. Plus, I notices a new track from an EP due out in May called "Monatomic," which mixes the dark ambient style with a slightly 1980's experimental industrial style such as that of the very early Coil or Current 93 ritualistic feel (or even with SPK's Zamia Lehmanni), with an amazing reverb feel. Really excited for this new EP!

Charles Barabé / Howl Of The Lacerated / Andrew Paine / Toucan Lifecycle ‎– 4-way split tape

4-way split tape featuring excellent hypnagogic psychedelic ambient by Charles Barabé (who I'll definitely explore more), horror industrial in the vein of early Throbbing Gristle focused on howling guitar noises and creepy synths by Howl Of The Lacerated (side project of Jamie Azzopardi, boss of the label putting this out), fizzy space psychedelic electronics by Andrew Paine (reminding a little bit of Ashtray Navigations in a live environment, if you've ever seen them in the act), and blissful psychedelic synthetic ambient by Toucan Lifestyle. Nice! 2017 tape on Shack In The Barley Productions.

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Various ‎– South Of Hebburn - North East Noise Compilation Volume One cdr

Ain't too difficult to catch the Slayer reference here: On and on south of Hebbuuuurn... This compilation taking its name from the small town on Tyne River and continued by a second vol released by Shadow Of Venom, that is south of Hebburn, under the shadow of Cronos, Mantas and Abaddon features five noise/drone tracks: one repetitive machine noise piece by Church Burner's Victor Janos, a deep calming ambient piece by Joseph Curwen (whom I know nothing about, but I just checked his discogs to see he makes works inspired by Lovecraft so I'm def intrigued), one digital harsh noise track by Transylvanian Sex Pest, a toxic horror music piece by The Dead End Street Band (a project of first track's Victor Janos), but of course the big money is one the Culver tracks "Saps 76," which shares the title with Culver/Lee's 2015 namesake tape (cavernous black drone at its truly best-you must buy that), but is nonetheless completely different; here over a static engine drone that keeps getting louder and louder there's an absolutely nightmarish looped melody that gives me the goosebumps even on this hot and sunny summer afternoon. So, you should listen to this both for Joseph Curwen piece and absolutely for the amazing Culver contribution. 2013 cdr on Psychic Field Recordings.

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Nate Young - Regression cd

 

This should have been released in the late-1970s as a soundtrack to a horror movie. Unnerving and claustrophobic electronics made through mind-numbing loops and synths. What else could you expect by Nate Young, brothers and sisters? Originally released as a lathe laser disc in 2008, this is a cd rerelease by iDEAL Recordings.

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