THING
by Gerald Fiebig I NHWRF I Gehirn. Implosion I Carsten Vollmer
With this seventh edition, attenuation circuit continues its series of four-way split albums called THING. The aim is to provide a medium for exchange and presentation of a great variety of artists. As each artist spreads the copies to their network, listeners also get to know the other artists featured on the same disc. The title references the fact that the CDs are physical objects – things! – but also refers to the 'thing' or 'ding' in old Norse and other Germanic languages, which designates the place of a popular assembly or the assembly itself and thus alludes to the 'meeting-place' character of the albums on (or around) which the four artists and their audiences meet, if only virtually.
This THING is a noise album. Its four 15-minute tracks clearly share a commitment to harshness. But they also make audible the variety of approaches and results that are possible within the spectrum referred to as noise, from confrontational glitching to immersive stasis.
Gerald Fiebig's “The Last Street Song” takes its cue from Walter Benjamin as read through Bruce Russell's essay “Exploding the atmosphere: realizing the revolutionary potential of 'the last street song'”, in which the New Zealand noise-maker and theorist argues that today, “the soundtrack to resistance might […] be Kevin Drumm or Lasse Marhaug rather than the Internationale” (or John Cale, Fiebig seems to add, whose quasi-noise song “Sabotage” is referenced at one point.)
NHWRF built the track “Moist Like DP – Dead Blood” on two fundamental samples. The title reflects the double nature of this structure. Indeed the title is 'double', and both the titles are legitimate and equal. "Moist Like DP" starts from the sample "Deep Pond" and reflects something wet. "Dead Blood" starts from the sample with the same name. The combination of the two reflects a sort of 'passage', a liminal zone, where wet and 'impure' things are at the same time dangerous and full of power.
The title of “Wir sind die Erinnerung” by Gehirn. Implosion translates as 'We are memory'. One aspect of this is memory in the sense of storage media, because the piece was created by running three already existing demo recordings (recorded memories) simultaneously and re-recording them without any further interference. So whatever subjective experience may be encoded, remembered in the demo recordings, is given over to a process that transcends and perhaps obliterates them. Because while we are shaped by the memory of our experiences, we are also yearning not to be completely determined by them.
The title of Carsten Vollmer's feedback noise suite “Respect Thee Runes” is primarily a tongue-in-cheek reference to the Nordic title of the THING series. But read the title out loud and move the excess “e” of “thee” slightly, and what you get is “Respect the ruins”. And isn't that the most respectable task of noise practice, this entropic endeavour par excellence: making audible the eventual ruin that waits at the end, or heart, of anything, no matter what the pompous 'runes' of ideology may claim to the contrary?
File under: harsh noise
ACU 1007
factory-produced CDr in cardboard sleeve
Released in 2024
limited to 100 copies
price: 7.00 EUR (excl. postage)
attenuation circuit ° ACUF 1007 ° 2024
attenuationcircuit.de ° attenuation-circuit@web.de
photos by Dan Penschuck (feindesign.de)
design by EMERGE
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geraldfiebig.net
facebook.com/rurik.sigurdsson
gehirn.implosion@gmail.com
carsten-vollmer.de
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the THING series is open for submissions
please check details here:
emerge.bandcamp.com/album/open-call-thing-4-way-split-cd-series
Also available here: http://www.discogs.com/seller/dependenz?sort=price&sort_order=asc&q=attenuation+circuit&st
BAD ALCHEMY
AC's Fotoästhetik wäre ein eigenes Kapitel wert. Für die 7te Edition von THING (ACUF 1007, CDr) suggeriert Dan Penschuk Verfall, Anästhesie und Versteppung. Mit 'The Last Street Song' als tragikomisch quiekender, monoton pfeifender Schleif- und Brodelspur schreibt Gerald Fiebig im Einklang mit Bruce Russells Essay 'Exploding the atmosphere: Realizing the revolutionary potential of "the last street song"' und mit Walter Benjamins sürrealistischem Gassenhauer als Sprungbrett Noise eine stärkere widerständige Potenz zu als der 'Internationalen'. Und stellt doch mit John Cales 'Sabotage' der human intelligence kein gutes Zeugnis aus. Accursio Graffeo, ein seit über 20 Jahren unter diversen Masken umtriebiger Italiener, schöpft als NHWRF bei 'Moist Like DP – Dead Blood' aus dem Deep Pond, dem tiefen Pfuhl, infernalisch bebenden, siffenden, zerrenden Krach. Die Zahl der durch Agit-Pop, Punk, Noise gekillten Faschisten liegt leider bei zero. Auch bei „Killing the 90s“ blieb es unter Mittäterschaft von Gehirn. Implosion beim Mordversuch. So wie er einem hier mit 'Wir sind die Erinnerung' die Synapsen zerrauscht, trennt Hirnerfrischung und Amnesie nur eine mikrochirurgische Differenz. Doch das Löschen oder Verdrängen von Erfahrung nutzt lediglich dem Wiederholungswahn des Falschen. Carsten Vollmers grobkörnigerer Feedbackharsch 'Respect Thee Runes' zeigt danach zwischen Urknall und Entropie mehr Respekt vor Ruinen als vor Runen.
www.badalchemy.de
VITAL WEEKLY
For those who think they’ve seen this release reviewed before in VW, you’re wrong. The title is the same as six previous ones, I give you that, but that’s just the concept behind this series. Attenuation Circuit has an open window for a sampler series entitled “Thing” and this is number 7. Artists can apply for the series with a maximum of 15 minutes, and Sascha Stadlmeier, who is behind the label, will try to combine submissions until there is a new product where the tracks will fit together. After a fee, the 100 copies are distributed equally between the artists and the label (so, 20 each) and this way, you get a) a nice release and b) the possibility to get distributed amongst an audience of each of the three other projects which might result in getting your project out to a new audience. On this seventh iteration, the artists are Gerald Fiebig, NHWRF, and Gehirn. Implosion and Carsten Vollmer. I think they have been mentioned in VW before, but let’s listen …
Gerald Fiebig is a regular on Attenuation Circuit and his track “The Last Street Song” is a bit weird in my ears. The composition has loads of sudden movements, which is relatively minimal overall. It’s definitely noisy, but I’d personally put it in the experimental pile before I’d put it in the noise pile. There is a whole concept behind the track, with noise being closer to the ‘song of the resistance than the international’, but that concept doesn’t really bloom here i.m.h.o.
From the first tones, the second track is more up my alley. NHWRF’s massive droney noisy layers in his track “Moist Like DP—Dead Blood” are impressive. This track evolves organically based on particular well—chosen or well—generated samples. There is constant movement, and even though it’s a bit limited in dynamics (it’s constantly harsh with loads of bass), there is more than enough happening to keep it interesting—fully saturated basses.
The third track is for Gehirn. Implosion with their massive “Wir sind die Erinnerung” (translated: We are (the) memory). Relatively high-pitched noise where a lot is happening, yet nothing is happening. A harsh noise drone if people would ever need an example to define a genre. It’s noisy as hell, but if you read what it’s about, three older tracks played together and recorded as-is. ‘Because while the memory of our experiences shapes us, we are also yearning not to be completely determined by them’. Nice!
The final track is Carsten Vollmer, and those who haven’t heard of him have been asleep since the early 90s. With his alter ego, Bär & Co, he was present on the first sampler cassette on the legendary Ant-Zen label. Under his name, he makes feedback noise, and we all know feedback is hard to control. But because of his experience over the years, Carsten manages perfectly. “Respect Thee Runes” or “Respect the ruins”? It doesn’t matter. After 13 minutes of feedback your ears are happy for the silence that remains.
Just under an hour of four different types of noise. And you can order five of those doctors for only 20 euros, including this one. So, if you feel explorative, check Bandcamp or the website in the links. This one is a stayer in my collection!
https://www.vitalweekly.net/number-1457/
brezenstudio engine