hnwreviews

[hnwreviews]

Counter-Evolution - Metals And Plastics (CD, Left Hand Path Records, 2022)

What it looks like:

A cardboard slipcase with a full-colour and glossy golden print featuring the above artwork on the front and the track list and credits in gold letters on a black background on the back and a proper CD inside with the same stark gold lettering on black. It looks really excellent while at the same time not very HNW-y, the whole thing reminds me both a bit of modern PE and especially of the type of HN and sound that Troniks has been pushing for the last decade and a half. Counter-Evolution is presented as the duo of Swedish wallers Mattias (of L-F-8, Singh Singh and MKWALLS) and Nils (The 1967 Handen Murders, Big Rig). Left Hand Path Records is also a Swedish label and has so far presented a pretty diverse and high quality output ranging across experimental genres. 

What it sounds like:

The album runs a total of 63 minutes across five tracks, of which the first one is a brief intro of some Swedish (I guess?) monologue that I can’t follow, but the track title ‘Instruktioner För Att Göra En Rörbomb’ seems to mean ‘instructions for making a pipe bomb’, which I think is meaningful enough. The rest of the album tracks paint a continuing story: ‘Det Stora Guldrånet’, ‘Gisslan’, ‘Bombhot’ and ‘Göra En Flykt Mitt I Natten’, which I invite you to Google Translate yourself for an idea of what seems to be the album’s narrative. After the intro we are followed with four tracks of varying character with interesting sound design each of them: the gravely, seemingly ever-dying but never-relenting wall of ‘Det Stora...’, the plasticy squeaky sound embedded in the harsh ‘Gisslan’, the artificial-sounding synth rumble of ‘Bombhot’ and the desolate, windy ‘Göra En...’. There is real variety and pace to these tracks, without giving up the HNW character at any point, which only underlines the narrative sense that this CD has, like watching a riveting crime noir film. 

In conclusion:

Great quality HNW from Sweden, both the inherent sound, the concept and the product itself. Makes one hopeful that this is a revival of the Troniks era of HN and HNW that excited many of us in the second half of the 00s to take on the challenge of recording HN(W) ourselves. In any case, as a a HNW enthusiast you must seek out this CD!

[hnwreviews]

Heartless - Hollow Bastion (file, self-released, 2021)

What it looks like:

Heartless is new project that started in 2021 and has been steadily releasing lengthy walls dedicated to various aspects of the Kingdom Hearts series, with releases focusing on characters, items and world. Each release follows a set format: the cover art features a picture of the character, item or world, with the top left corner featuring name and the artist name over a fitting picture, accompanying a wall of two hours and thirty minutes to the second. This particular wall features a picture of Hollow Bastion, a world from the first Kingdom Hearts game. As all the other Heartless walls, it can be streamed freely or purchased for a small fee on the Bandcamp.

What it sounds like:

What I’ve loved of the Heartless project since its inception earlier this year is its absolute immersiveness. Each wall is prefaced by a small bit of dialogue, music or sound from the game, which also happens here, with a brief bit of soundtrack and sound from the game setting the tone, before launching into a grinding, crunching, slowly tumbling wall that for the duration of its 2,5 hours is entirely unchanging. It’s incredibly effective and I noticed that while listening it would sometimes merge into my surroundings, become almost ambient sound, while at other times coming back to the fore and suddenly grabbing attention again, even if the wall stayed constant throughout. As a particular achievement, I found that the wall manages extremely well to evoke the feeling of wandering down the desolate halls of Hollow Bastion. The moment the wall then suddenly but inevitably stops abruptly, the void left behind is particularly poignant, as a sudden death, as a breaking-off in mid-sentence. Little pleasures greater than listening your day through the Bandcamp, from each immersive wall to the next - but it is also extremely tempting to keep repeating this one just as well, as excellent as it is. For all the times I’ve listened to it, each time, I find an odd sense of anticipation building throughout, increasing and increasing, and then being absolutely helpless to just start the wall again - and again, and again - to wade around in its ruinous, crackly atmosphere.

In conclusion:

One of the best walls in a rapidly increasing series of lengthy tributes to the Kingdom Hearts series, Hollow Bastion is a delight, even if it is utterly demanding in its length - especially when considering it’s only one in an extensive series of releases. While it demands a form of dedication to engage with it fully - even if it can be enjoyed in an ambient sort of sense - it is easily and absolutely worth it. A great experience that I warmly recommend to anyone.

4 bricks out of 5

[hnwreviews]

Decoy Mannequin - Breaches (file, self-released, 2020)

What it looks like:

This is the second release from Decoy Mannequin (Walls Made Of Limbs was the first, just a few weeks ago) and just like the first it has dark and gloomy artwork featuring some creepy mannequin pictures and the logo and title on the cover. It looks a bit like classic HNW from back when it was popular as a CDr genre in 2010. I could totally see this arrive on my doormat in a slim jewelcase with an inkjet-printed cover. Of course, now everything is digital so it’s also the road that Decoy Mannequin has chosen to take. I’m not sure who’s behind Decoy Mannequin. The Bandcamp only lists its location as Illinois but has no further details. I’ve tried contacting them through the form but have not received a reply (yet).

What it sounds like:

Breaches has a total of 6 walls that are all between 10:13 and 13:10 in length and that all employ only the numbers 0, 1, 1 and 3 in their length: 10:13, 10:31, 11:03, 11:30, 13:01 and 13:10. I don’t know if it’s supposed to be a sort of code or something, but the first release had a similar thing (two tracks of 30:11 and 31:10 respectively) so there seems to be some significance to it. The six walls are all very similar in texture and each represent a muddy, mid-paced type crunchy wall with some minor tonal differences between each. It’s very classic and meditative, with little harshness to it and minor shifts if any. 

In conclusion:

Decoy Mannequin presents a sound that is not unlike the one of the previously reviewed Beast release. Is this the start of some kind of early HNW revival? I can’t say I dislike it, though it doesn’t quite have the charm anymore that it did way back when. Even still, it’s decent enough and a pleasure for HNW purists. Perhaps the most exciting is the fact that there are new projects coming out more regularly that wallow in the same sort of anonymity that was more common in the earlier days. That, perhaps more than anything, creates that nostalgic HNW vibe to the max.

3 bricks out of 5

[hnwreviews]

Beast - Attack Of The Beast (file, Straight From The Sewer Records, 2018)

What it looks like:

A pretty low-quality image of some kind of weird-looking creature (Beast) holding what looks like a glass shard of some sort (broken vase maybe). The text looks a bit slap-dash with bright colours in a square font. Weird choice but somehow it breathes a bit of the late 00s HNW vibe, which I appreciate. There’s three tracks here: “The Beast Clenched Its Jaws”, “Its Red Eyes Punctuate The Night” and “Howls Pierced The Silence As The Beast Attacked Its Prey”, each a neat 20:00 minutes each.

What it sounds like:

Like the concept of this album, the three walls also sound very true to 00s HNW. They are fairly simple and straight-forward, mid-pace juttering and crunch walling away in a pleasant and not particularly harsh manner with little variation. They are fairly similar, mostly differing in the tone. The first two tracks are quite claustrophobic in its packed, close sound. Track 3 uses its panning effectively with a good stereo sound that gives a nice depth to the wall and provides some breathing space. 

In conclusion:

I enjoy the call-back to early HNW that is evident in every facet of this release. While it doesn’t quite create the sort of excitement that I would have felt over something like this ten years ago, it is still a pleasantly nostalgic ride for something so recent. 

3 bricks out of 5

[hnwreviews]

床次 竹二郎 - リミックス (CD, math & matics, 2020)

What it looks like:

A proper CD in a proper jewel case with a proper booklet and everything. I ordered this CD last week and it arrived within a mere few days from the label. Kind of wonderful how in 2020 this is also HNW! The 12-page booklet contains several pictures and liner notes. Unfortunately all liner notes are in Japanese which I can’t read. I do know some of the back story. Takejiro Tokonami is a Japanese jazz/avant-garde drummer who has been around for a while and has released and played with many bands and collectives since the late 80s. Ever a man with a focus for texture (those familiar with his work will know), he was introduced to HNW in 2011 and has since been fascinated with it. While from what I understand he was mainly a fan until now, with this release (”Remix”) he takes his first steps into the genre in a fascinating manner.

What it sounds like:

Make no mistake: Remix is a drum record. However, it is completely original and 100% a wall album. Over the course of 4 tracks of 12 minutes Tokonami constracts walls by using only his drumkit and does so in a captivating manner. The opening track (リミックス 1) is exclusively made with what sounds like brushes on a snare. A distinctly drum-sounding but impressively static sounds is created through a constantly and irregularly perpetuating rattle on the snare. Track 2 is most traditional as it literally just is plain old snare drum work, but through the lightning fast irregular drum patterns that Tokonami employs, the sound of a crackle is evoked and you need to remind yourself now and then that you are in fact listening to a drummer just playing the drums. The final track seems to use both bass drum and a low-tuned floor tom. Here the frequencies are low and through the same irregular playing style of the other two tracks again a wall track is created, this time in the lower range. The final track sees all three other tracks layered: the static-y swish of the brushes, the crackle sound of the snare and the bassy rumble of the floor tom and bass drum. The effect is massive and supremely satisfying. 

In conclusion:

The sheer technical skill that Tokonami employs here is amazing and jaw-dropping. The sounds are clearly achieved by playing the drums, but their walled character is something that could only have been produced by a sheer genius with insane musical mastery, which Tokonami proves himself to be here. In addition, the walls are each an absolute pleasure to listen to, and their combined sound in the final track is the icing on the cake.

5 bricks out of 5

[hnwreviews]

横扫千军  - the palm of the wind’s hand (file, ZX Conscious Canyon, 2019)

What it looks like:

A recent release on ZX Conscious Canyon, of which we previously reviewed ‘when the waves desert us’, which was fantastic. This release has a similar artwork style with pastel-tinted shapes and images from an unnamed manga. The artist name is the Chinese rendition of ‘Total Annhiliaton’, some Googling teaches. This release has two tracks, both just over 15 minutes. The overall impression like last time is delicate and poetic.

What it sounds like:

This release works in the same aural field as the earlier reviewed ZX Conscious Canyon release did, mostly operating in the ANW range with a lot of buzzing static sounds that are however never actually abrasive or aggressive. Inevitably the texture reminded me a bit of the end of a vinyl record being played where the grooves still run but the music has ended, except that here what is usually a fragment is being constructed into a lengthy composition. Both tracks mostly utilize this same base sound of soft rushing white noise with some gentle pops and crackles. The sound is very organic and as the compositions progress there is increasingly the impression that this is in fact a field recording. Gently buried within the static are what may be sounds of nature: grass moving, the rush of water, the gust of wind. However, they are soft and integrated to an extent that it is hardly clear whether they are indeed natural sounds or just separately generated static textures woven into the larger wall. In the end, the feeling the walls give is of standing in a large empty field through which a soft wind blows, with no other sound peaking through - a vision somewhat apocalyptic, of a world in which all life is extinct: total annihilation.

In conclusion:

Another solid release on ZX Conscious Canyon. Definitely seek out this label for what is top notch in current ANW!

4 bricks out of 5

[hnwreviews]

Dinosaur Hunter - Dino Knifing (CDr, Mutant Creature Records, 2019)

What it looks like:

Inkjet printed artwork in a plastic sleeve. The cover shows an homage to The Rita’s Shark Knifing 7″ from 2009, with here the theme instead being dinosaurs rather than sharks. The artist name is taken from Turok and the picture looks like it is as well. The back cover shows another picture of a dino being knifed from the game (I imagine) and the catalog number and label site. It looks just like the actual Shark Knifing release. A fun release concept.

What it sounds like:

The two walls here are both 5:01, just like on the actual 7″, making it ever more evident that this is a tribute fully inspired by The Rita. They are both grindy, organically rattling walls that crunch away pretty much unchanged but with plenty of great, angry-sounding punch and variation within itself. It’s a short but sweet release that certainly leaves you wanting more (and only 10 minutes of the CDr used seems a bit of a shame) but the reasons for the execution of this concept are clear so I see no particular issue with it. 

In conclusion:

A fun release that pays tribute to a great 7″ in a light-hearted way, all the while offering two nice walls. 

4 bricks out of 5

[hnwreviews]

Andrej Heyrovský - These gods live in empty houses, the sky is a vacant lot (CDr, Extinguished Embers Records, 2017)

What it looks like:

A square gatefold-type CD sleeve in cardboard with a cloud or smoke-like black and white pattern on it with an abyss of sorts in the top left corner. On the back the release information is collected in an ivory-coloured text box. The CD itself is an all-black CDr. Extinguished Embers releases many different types of experimental music, all in their trademark gatefold sleeves that look very cool. Among their catalogue are a few HNW releases and this is one of them (from the top of my head some others are Sandlot’s “Oracle” and R. Nesbit’s “Anatomy Of Wind (2008-2011)”). I have a few releases from Andrej Heyrovský and they are as varied as this label’s output, but this is the only one that is a HNW release.

What it sounds like:

Taking a look at the release before playing it raises some interest, as the credits note some a-typical instruments: A. Heyrovský - acoustic guitar, lap steel guitar, pedals. While some guitar walls exist (even acoustic) they are far from the norm in HNW and I don’t think I’ve seen lap steel guitar being used in HNW at all before. Of course, the question is if it can be heard so much in the sound. This release offers an interesting wall sound over its two tracks - it is very low tuned and throbbing/strumming, with the source of the acoustic guitar being audible but also layered and processsed to a degree that it doesn’t instantly strike you as such. As the first track develops an additional low thrumming sound comes through and is layered on top of the original strum. I imagine this is the lap steel guitar and it has a ghostly, weirdly reverberating quality to it. It is absolutely wall in its monolithic, singularly focused character though it is at the same time very original. The second track seems to do the exact opposite and starts with the full combined sound and then slowly ultimately degrades back to just the original low throb of the acoustic guitar. I initially suspected it was just the first track played in reverse but it actually isn’t the case and the tracks are individually composed to be each others mirror image. A very cool effect and when you realise the effort it becomes even more fantastic.

In conclusion:

Original walls from a singularly creative mind that show that there is so much to still explore in wallage. 

5 bricks out of 5

[hnwreviews]

Read It And Weep - Challenged Belief (file, self-released, 2019)

What it looks like:

One among the 10 or so releases that so far have appeared on the Bandcamp of this obscure Dutch project run by Tim van Galen, who in the years prior was active in various psychedelic rock bands, including the cult group Halogen Lite. In 2019 he began to make a name for himself with the releases on his Bandcamp under the moniker Read It And Weep. This particular release was issued in November of 2019 and features stark artwork with a cityscape picture in VHS look over a pink and grey background and the artist and title on top.

What it sounds like:

Challenged Belief is a single wall of almost an hour that in its running time runs through a variety of textures in walls and sustains each particular one for a length between just over a minute and 7 or 8 minutes. It makes for an active wall with some smoother transitions and some more abrupt ones. This give it a sort of harsh noise impression at times which is cool, even if the textures are static and monolithic. The wall starts with a throbbing bass wall that slowly fades in which after a few minutes cuts abruptly into a white noisy rush of sound. This then transitions more smoothly into a more classic sounding crunch wall at mid-pace. As such, the track continues and manages to stay interesting and captivating for its running time, even if the wall textures themselves are not necessarily all equally captivating.

In conclusion:

Challenged Belief (what’s in a name?) combines an active approach to wall making by its use of transitions with monolithic wall textures and so provides an interesting, if not entirely convincing release. 

3 bricks out of 5

[hnwreviews]

PUTAS - EXTREMAS (CDr, MEJOR QUE TÚ DISCOS, 2010)

What it looks like:

This release came out on the short-lived (and ALL CAPS) MEJOR QUE TÚ DISCOS, a label that was run out of Colombia in the latter half of 2009 and most of 2010 (and then vanished straight off the earth again). I traded this CDr and a bunch of others in late 2009 and ripped them all to hard disc but sold a lot of stuff at some point so can’t give too many details anymore on the actual physical item other than that it was an Inkjet printed cover in a plastic sleeve with a spray painted disc. I remember the back of the cover just had the label name in huge caps and it contained an extra printed insert with release info. The cover shows an obscured picture of a group of girls behind some plastic wrapping and the artist name in big red caps (old picture from the label above).

What it sounds like:

Two walls of lowly grinding, muddy walls with a lot of activity within them. There’s a lot going on though because of the whole lo-fi mix it all kind of melts together into something not very distinct. There seem to be roars, squeals, squeeks and even screams buried into the mix, like some kind of aggressive harsh noise was originally recorded and then beaten down and degraded into HNW. Interestingly I guess this came from an era when there was a lot of exploration going on and people were trying to see what the ends of HNW were and when also a lot of things that would not anymore be considered HNW were still described as such (like Macronympha, Incapacitants, more like walls of noise yes but not HNW). This is just on the other side of that divide in a grey area where it is certainly wall though, but with some features of harsh noise. The two tracks do not have particularly different characters and seem like a single session cut into two (maybe originally intended for cassette release?). 

In conclusion:

A fun little release with some decent walls, nothing groundbreaking but definitely alright. Interesting for those who like the grey area where harsh noise and harsh noise wall meet and who like a little activity in their walls.

3 bricks out of 5

[hnwreviews]

my own enemy / Undesired - Tales Of Dejection, Vol. 1 (C60, self-released, 2019)

What it looks like:

A tape with a home-printed cover that features an indistinct B&W picture (some sort of figure and blood?) on front. The tape is a black C60 with roman numerals I and II scratched crudely into the A and B sides. The J-card has as other info the track titles and credits.  my own enemy and Undesired are two relatively new players in the suicidal/depressive DNW/ANW niche. my own enemy has contributed a fair number of releases to net labels and comps until now (of which I found ‘sadness. reigns. supreme’ on Envelop Media the best) with this tape being the first physical. Undesired by contrast has been an exclusively physical project with not even a Bandcamp to represent it. This seems a very specific choice and fits well with the quality I have come to associate with the project.

What it sounds like:

On side A (or ‘I’) my own enemy offers a single 30 minute track titled ‘suffering & humiliation’, which starts with a short sample of a woman crying and then rumbles in with a low-pitched bassy wall with no real crackle except where the bass rumbles so heavily as to distort into a craggy frequential blur. On side B Undesired presents two tracks, ‘A Constant Rejection Of Life’ and ‘A Constant Longing For Death’, both 15 minutes in length. The first track sounds like a down-tuned torrent of rain that constantly sucks down and down, a vortex that seems like it’s ever pitching further down though this is a mere auditory illusion. Track two rumbles thickly, a bit like the my own enemy track but with a more pronounced layer of crackly and an even filthier bass tone, like some abused synth drowned in three feet of mud and blood. As it progresses, a more pronounced and natural rain texture shifts into the mix, which eventually overtakes the whole track as the rumble falls out and it ends on a gloomy, desolate-sounding rain crackle that ends abruptly.

In conclusion:

Side A is adequate, side B has some truly fantastic tracks. I’m not sure if it’s the fact that through the physical only releases Undesired has established a different sort of quality control from the many projects that release endlessly through net labels, but whatever it is, it is something phenomenal. 3/5 for side A, 5/5 for side B.

4 bricks out of 5

[hnwreviews]

)()()( - POLTERGH()()()()ST.TIFF (file, 世紀帝國, 2020)

What it looks like:

A digital collage of pictures of ghosts and the artist and title in lots of grey-purple tones. The girl from The Ring, a ghost emoji, some anime - it’s a diverse and eclectic collection of pictures in a style that gives off a vaporwall vibe. This is released on the recently born net label 世紀帝國 out of Portugal. This project is listed as being the creation if its owner, 

What it sounds like:

There’s six walls here, four short ones of a minute each and two long ones of 40 minutes each, with the longer ones serving as bookends for the middle short ones. The first wall and last wall are both titled “oooOoOooOOOoOOOOO”, while the middle ones are represented by the ghost emoji. The first wall is a pretty classic sounding banger, with a rapid, blistering crackle attack over dense rumbling bass and a searing, ecstatic mid-range punch. It bursts on with minimal changes for its full duration, pretty much serving as a full-on album release right there. Next the shorter tracks start, which seem to be a sort of interludes, paving the way for the wall that’s to come. The first ghost emoji track is a minute of blistering radio static, with barely any low and mid range sounds. The next is a wobbly, very digital sounding blister pack of a track. The third ghost emoji is a a low tuned, buzzing drone, while the last one is like a wall version of dissonant piano play - very loud, very dissonant and very weird. Then the final track kicks in and this is where the beauty is found. It roars in like a whooshing, ghostly emanation bursting forth from some haunted place where it’s been buried for centuries, with a ghostly-like wail (like the title sounds) creeping up through a whirlwind of stormy drone. The whole track sounds like you’re in a derelict, dilapidated old haunted house, ghosts flying around your head while a major storm outside batters the walls, and like every single part of the house cracks and sighs under the weight of all this torment. It creaks and wails on until just after the halfway point some electric static buzzing starts creeping its way into the mix. The ghosts are being battled and finally, in the last few seconds, a metallic clattering announces a big reverse whoosh and then it’s all silent. 

In conclusion:

This release definitely has made me enthusiastic for the future of this net label. The middle tracks are a bit weird and the first track is good though far from original, but the last track is absolutely amazing and really deserves being heard. 

4 bricks out of 5

[hnwreviews]

ＳＮΞＳ░ＰＳＸ░Ｄｒｅａｍｃａｓｔ░ＷｏｎｄｅｒＳｗａｎ░Ｃ♢Ｌ♢Ｒ - 𝒮𝐸𝒢𝒜 𝒢𝒶𝓂𝑒 𝒢𝑒𝒶𝓇 𝒫𝐿𝒜𝒴𝒟𝐼𝒜 𝒩𝐸❁ 𝒢𝐸❁ (file, Need For Speed, 2016)

What it looks like:

The cover is a collage that features logos from various (mostly obsolete) consoles, and the title and artist name are also a sort of ‘collage’ featuring the names of these consoles. There is a brief bit of a Sailor Moon picture visible in the middle. The immediate impression is one of nostalgia for a bygone era of gaming, of 16 bit games and blocky early 3D era graphics. This is another release on the now defunct Need For Speed label and falls squarely in its catalog considering the sound and concept. This was a one-off project as far as I know that seems to have been the work of the person that also did RAN220.B.

What it sounds like:

The album is fairly short, running just over 10 minutes and consisting of only two tracks. The first one (at only 36 seconds) serves mainly as an intro, being a piece slowly degrading video game music I can’t identify (it may be an original composition). While it starts with a fairly clear 16 bit sound it slowly degrades until at the end of that track it has devolved into a crunchy, stuttering bit of noise. The second track then starts with a sweeping 16 bit sound that instantly transforms into a crunchy wash of white noise that gradually sees some more bitcrushed wall sound being introduced within it (the bitcrushed walls seem to be a theme with Need For Speed). As such the wall slowly grows in body over the duration of 10 minutes and the organic white noise wash and the digital crushed wall combine to make a nicely rounded, intricate wall with good detail and a satisfying body.

In conclusion:

While the release is obviously a bit short, it definitely is very nicely done. The sound character is original, especially for the time this was released and provides another interesting look into the aesthetics and sound that this label tried to establish. 

4 bricks out of 5

[hnwreviews]

RAN220.B - Enter The Macintosh (95 Chambers) (digital, Need For Speed, 2015)

What it looks like:

The cover shows a rough collage of 3D images with an indistinct background, over which text is placed displaying the artist name (RAN220.B) and title (Enter The Macintosh (95 Chambers), a clear play on the first Wu-Tang Clan album). The look is hardcore inspired by vaporwave and if you had not heard the contents it would no doubt pass as such. This album was released through the now sadly-missed Need For Speed label, which released a host of RAN220.B albums as well as other projects that played mostly with vaporwave, 8-bit/16-bit and old media (VHS, LaserDisc) themes on their blog as MP3 downloads.

What it sounds like:

An early example of vaporwall, this release offers ‘walls’ that replicate the echo-y, reverberated, slowed down 80s aesthetics of popular vaporwave. I put ‘walls’ as such because I think you can debate over how much of this is true wall, as you can argue that some of the sounds are more ambient, even though there is a wallish quality to them. Over 11 tracks that range between 2:32 (shortest) and 5:44 (longest) we are presented with a big variety of sounds, none of which are very traditional in a wall sense. However, we’ve explored more fringe wall sounds before so this release fits in well in the blog in that sense. At the far extremes there’s tracks like ‘empty 金源时代购物中心’, which is pretty much traditional wall except for its bitcrushed sound, and ‘松田 ＳＮＡＫＥ 聖子’ which is a royally gushing ambient track that only in its unchanging frontal assault (of wavering ambient rather than thick crackles and rumbles) resembles ‘wall’. Other tracks toe the line of either extreme and manage to offer interesting blends of both, where crackles intermingle with ethereal shimmers or where bitcrushed white noise gutpunches a drowned-out drone of stretched out TV-jingle ambient. 

In conclusion:

This is an extremely varied and fun album that for some wall purists may stray too far from what wall is (not only in the character of sound, but also in the fact that it’s almost pop in its construction with 11 pop-length tracks), but those with an open mind are invited to explore this album and will no doubt find something to inspire them.

4 bricks out of 5

[hnwreviews]

Trash Defense - Abuse Of Power (digital, self released, 2019)

What it looks like:

A Xerox-look type cover with a picture of (female?) police or army force (no doubt in reference to the artist name and title of this release). The four track titles strengthen this image (’Country Of Pigs’, ‘Terror Force’, ‘Beaten Into Submission’, ‘Crackdown’) and suggests that this about the HK political situation. The look overall is a bit derivative and nothing you haven’t seen before but is adequate enough.

What it sounds like:

The four tracks each clock in at 15 minutes making for an hour’s worth of walls. The tracks are fast-paced and aggressive, racing forth at a belligerent, roaring speed that feels like an audio version of physical assault. There is not a lot of variety between the tracks, all working somewhere in the same type of range, with some variations in the layering but not much else.. Sometimes a hypnotic effect spills forth from the tracks as they batter your ears and it is a bit of a shame that every 15 minutes you experience a brief cut as the next track loads as it briefly breaks the weird spell it manages to put you under. 

In conclusion:

The main feeling this release gives me is that it is adequate, which may seem like an insult but it isn’t at all. It is nothing spectacular and does not particularly stand out among the many releases we have in the genre, but genre hounds will certainly enjoy it.

3 bricks out of 5

[hnwreviews]

Dawn Of Mourning - Roses For Elizabeth (CDr, Triste Confessions, 2016)

What it looks like:

The cover shows a picture of a woman with her mouth open and eyes closed suffused into pink, with something that looks like peeling gold leaf around her. It reminds me a bit of the classical Millais painting ‘Ophelia’. The cover is pasted onto a black cardboard slipcase which has the CDr inside it. On the back is another pasted-on paper which has the titles and credits.

What it sounds like:

I just reviewed the split with Abscess and since I was so appreciative of the Dawn Of Mourning tracks I thought it would make sense to feature more Dawn Of Mourning. Like I mentioned last time the project is focused on themes of depression and suicide and though the cover art and title may suggest differently in this case, it is in fact no different on this CDr. There are two tracks here like on the split, the 28:54 minute “It Was A Cold December Evening When Elizabeth Took Her Life” and the 31:36 minute “The Grief Is Unbearable And I Cannot Wait To Join Her”, which make it all too clear that this is a depressing affair all the same. I don’t know the exact details, but from what I understand Elizabeth was a close friend or possibly more of Thomas from Dawn Of Mourning and at some point in 2013 she committed suicide, which has been the theme of his walls now and then, and likewise this release pays tribute. With such personal subject matter it is hard to not feel affected and hard to assess the walls objectively, but I can only say that again on this CDr Dawn Of Mourning provides seriously great walls. The first track is a sparsely crackling track that mostly works in the higher ranges and has a lot of room sound and reverb, it’s like it was recorded in a spacious room and from some distance from the sound source, making it very organic to begin with but also extremely desolate. The second track is very heavy instead, with amazing heavy bass rumbles and thick, aggressive crackles on top. There is some movement and shifts throughout the tracks though they are both mostly monolithic and mostly un-changing.

In conclusion:

Another really solid effort from Dawn Of Mourning. It only makes sense to me that this project has been around for so long and has received quite a bit of recognition. This release easily gets under your skin and shows two very different but well-done forays into wall making. The CDr is of course no longer available but a rip has been doing the rounds so look out for it!

4 bricks out of 5

[hnwreviews]

Abscess / Dawn Of Mourning - Split (file, D.D.D.D. Records, 2015)

What it looks like:

A skull superimposed on a hand that emerges from the ground, a bit of a goofy image that looks like it’s from some 80s horror VHS tape, with the artist names on top and a red border. It looks pretty cool. This is a split between Abscess from the US and Dawn Of Mourning from the UK, both artists that are still fairly active and prolific to this day.

What it sounds like:

The first track on this split is by Abscess and is entitled “Tumorous Growth #2″, no doubt after the original “Tumorous Growth” which was featured on 2014′s “Making The Rounds” CDr. It follows a similar approach to wall-making, with a mostly bass-heavy sound that a mid-range crackle coils round and round throughout the duration. There’s the occasional shift, where an additional texture is added, through which the wall develops ever more towards it end. It’s not bad, but the overall feeling and texture is not quite that accomplished, I think. It somehow lacks a bit of punch (a similar issue I’ve had with some of Abscess’ other works, including the aforementioned “Making the Rounds”). Dawn Of Mourning is a project that is mostly fixated on themes of depression and suicide. The two tracks here, each an exact 15 minutes, are “Shadow On The Night Side Of The Earth” and “I Desire The Things That Will Destroy Me In The End”. Both are understated, low key walls with few flourishes - mostly empty crackles, crunching away somewhere far, in somewhat muddy quality that filters out most low-range sounds. What remains is sparse and stripped bare, but it’s very compelling. Much better than the Abscess side, certainly.

In conclusion:

While overall a mixed bag, the Dawn Of Mourning tracks are certainly worth looking for this split for. The Abscess side is not as good and mostly just doesn’t really pack the punch you’d expect on the basis of the sound profile.

3 bricks out of 5