IRM:Closure cd

IRM

Closure

Malignant Records

Holy crap. This sounds exactly, not sort of like, but exactly like a Dalek making creepy industrial. I would pay this guy to start screaming "EXTERMINATE!" That being said it's still pretty easy to take this seriously as the music is awesome. Really dark and dramatic, from the school of Genesis P-Orridge. I dig it. That layout makes the music seem like it is part of some very evil play made by some lovely dadaists. I think this is pretty well done overall even if it is sung by the Doctor's greatest enemy. 

Idylls—Prayer for Terrene cs

Idylls

Prayer for Terrene

Tapes of a Neon God

Just like the last tape that TOANG released for Idylls, this one is absolutely amazing. I can't say enough how much I enjoy this one. This is about three floors above heavy, fast and brutal. There are even some songs that move from the world of Converge/Trap Them to a more Birthday Party vibe which is very much my jam. The recording is enviable and the music is just unrelenting. Really fucking good. Buy this tape as soon as you are able. 

It looks pretty good. Very simple and the cover is pretty hard to make out but overall it is well done. I appreciate how TOANG will add tiny lyric sheets to releases that call for them…

Yautja—Songs of Descent cs

Yautja

Songs of Descent

Tapes of a Neon God

Yautja is one of those bands that people think I must know well and have played with a thousand times because my current band, Great Falls, sorta shares a sound with them. I do not know them personally and I have yet to play with or see them but I really wish I did or had on all counts. The music is excellent heavy, noise core. There are moments that feel like a heavier Knut or Botch but then songs with an almost Crowbar meets Melvins vibe before dropping into something blazing fast. Others that feel like one of my favorite bands of all time, Spaceboy. It's pretty damn good. 

The layout for the tape is okay. The text kinda disappears into the photo collage on the cover. I honestly would have switched the cover and inside cover. It's great that it includes an insert thought with all the lyrics. 

Trepaneringsritualen & Sutekh Hexen—One Hundred Year Storm cs

Trepaneringsritualen & Sutekh Hexen

One Hundred Year Storm

Cloister Recordings/Pesanta Urfolk

Two things. One I have no clue on how that project is pronounced. I have a few of his albums and I basically treat that band name like a character in a fantasy novel. I know it when I see it but I could never say it out loud. Second, I actually had a hard time believing this was recorded live. This is such a wonderful bleak and tragic recording that I was sure this was a long studio endeavor that spanned months. Not a semi-improvised spontaneous recording by Mateo Garcia from last year's Stella Natura Festival. It's a fantastic recording and I would scramble to get a copy of this one. Really crucial. 

It's packed in a black Brad pack that is very, very well designed and illustrated. Definitely a highpoint in cassette design. This is going in the book...

Old Iron—cordyceps cs

Old Iron

cordyceps

self released

So Old Iron is touring the west coast right now and you should go. The band is made up of two of Seattle's most talented and tasteful tattoo artists and one damn fine drummer. The music is somewhere between Torche and Neurosis but with a more rock-sensible sound. The guitarist Jesse Roberts is also the bass player for Seattle's Sandrider and you can hear it a bit. Anyway, these guys rule. The tape sounds great and you should really go see them on tour. The only real issue I have with this whole tape is that the typography is pretty slap-dash. Someone just sort of filled the spaces with text instead of composing the sections of their layout. Also the text on the spine is upside down. I don't enjoy when that happens but it happens often enough I think it may be a conscious choice and not a mistake. Oh well...

Nipple Stools—Turkish Circuits cd

Nipple Stools

Turkish Circuits

self released/bicelphalic music

plastic. metal on metal. gravel. depth. harvesters. an orchestra. tapes. melt. 

This is quite good. It looks okay. Not as good as it sounds. I highly recommend finding this though.