#fushitsusha

[delusionglitter]

Fushitsusha.

[gamtozu]

withdrawe, this sable disclosure ere devot'd (1998)

[rafikny]

Interesting photo of Albert’s grave.

Keiji Haino pays tribute to Albert Ayler en route to NYC. Photo courtesy of Issue Project Room.

[radiophd]

fushitsusha -- the caution appears [album, 1995]

[evilthotiana]

Ive always held the opinion that swifties heads would explode if they heard Merzbow, Boredoms, Gerogerigegege, Coil, Throbbing Gristle, Whitehouse, Nurse with Wound, Einstürzende Neubauten, Brainbombs, Egor Letov, Death in June, Current 93, La Monte Young, Moondog, Lou Harrison, Henry Cowell, Luigi Russolo, Popol Vuh, Fishmans, Jean Jacques Perrey, Les Rallizes Dénudés, Rainbow Caroliner, Taj Mahal Travellers, Fushitsusha, Peter Brötzmann, John Cage, Scott Walker, Unwound, Dead, Frank Zappa, Morton Feldman, Captain Beefheart, Pharoah Sanders, Albert Ayler, Ornette Coleman, Alice Coltrane, Arnold Schoenberg, Pierre Boulez, György Ligeti, Karlheinz Stockhausen, Nang Nang, Thinking Fellers Union Local 282, Nara Leão, Basic Channel, Raymond Scott, Delia Derbyshire, Daphne Oram, Noah Howard, Terry Riley, Peter Sotos, Lula Côrtes e Zé Ramalho, Boyd Rice, Mahmoud Ahmed, Henry Flynt, Kazumoto Endo, David Tudor, Aporea, Half Japanese, Mega Banton, Secret Chiefs 3, Keiji Haino, Ramleh, Otomo Yoshihide, John Zorn, Joe Meek, Robbie Basho, Phil Spector, Faxed Head, Harry Partch, Wesley Willis, Fred Frith, The Residents, Sun Ra, Sun City Girls, Hans Krüsi, Royal Trux, Jandek, Yat-Kha, Loren Mazzacane Connors, Pärson Sound, The Dead C, Comus, Cromagnon, Eliane Radigue, Arthur Doyle, Shizuka, The Red Krayola, Henry Cow, Magma, Opus Avantra, Pan.Thy.Monium., Murmuüre, Ksiezyc, Gong, Cukor Bila Smert', cLOUDDEAD, Muslimgauze and Kaoru Abe

[pissmoon]

'Hoe scaring music' hoes arent scared of entry level pitchforkcore brandon. They are bored and waiting to go home so they can listen to Merzbow, Boredoms, the Gerogerigegege, Coil, Throbbing Gristle, Whitehouse, Nurse with Wound, Einstürzende Neubauten, Brainbombs, Egor Letov, Death in June, Current 93, La Monte Young, Moondog, Lou Harrison, Henry Cowell, Luigi Russolo, Popol Vuh, Fishmans, Jean-Jacques Perrey, Les Rallizes Dénudés, Rainbow Caroliner, Taj Mahal Travellers, Fushitsusha, Peter Brötzmann, John Cage, Scott Walker, Unwound, Dead, Frank Zappa, Morton Feldman, Captain Beefheart, Pharoah Sanders, Albert Ayler, Ornette Coleman, Alice Coltrane, Arnold Schoenberg, Pierre Boulez, György Ligeti, Karlheinz Stockhausen, Nang Nang, Thinking Fellers Union Local 282, Nara Leão, Basic Channel, Raymond Scott, Delia Derbyshire, Daphne Oram, Noah Howard, Terry Riley, Peter Sotos, Lula Côrtes e Zé Ramalho, Boyd Rice, Mahmoud Ahmed, Henry Flynt, Kazumoto Endo, David Tudor, Aporea, Half Japanese, Mega Banton, Secret Chiefs 3, Keiji Haino, Ramleh, Otomo Yoshihide, John Zorn, Joe Meek, Robbie Basho, Phil Spector, Faxed Head, Harry Partch, Wesley Willis, Fred Frith, The Residents, Sun Ra, Sun City Girls, Hans Krüsi, Royal Trux, Jandek, Yat-Kha, Loren Mazzacane Connors, Pärson Sound, The Dead C, Comus, Cromagnon, Eliane Radigue, Arthur Doyle, Shizuka, The Red Krayola, Henry Cow, Magma, Opus Avantra, Pan.Thy.Monium., Murmuüre, Ksiezyc, Gong, Cukor Bila Smert', cLOUDDEAD, Muslimgauze and Kaoru Abe

[ripempezardexerox]

Dices Merzbow, yo digo Justin Beiber

Dices Boredoms, yo digo Katy Perry

Dices Gerogerigegege, yo digo Skrillex

Dices Coil, yo digo Lady Gaga

Dices Throbbing Gristle, yo digo Black Eyed Peas

Dices Whitehouse, yo digo Taylor Swift

Dices Nurse With Wound, yo digo Bruno Mars

Dices Einstürzende Neubauten, yo digo Maroon 5

Dices Brainbombs, yo digo Drake

Dices Egor Letov, yo digo One Direction

Dices Death in June, yo digo LMFAO

Dices Current 93, yo digo Beyonce

Dices La Monte Young, yo digo Carly Rae Jepsen

Dices Moondog, yo digo Kelly Clarkson

Dices Lou Harrison, yo digo Coldplay

Dices Henry Cowell, yo digo PSY

Dices Luigi Russolo, yo digo Imagine Dragons

Dices Popol Vuh, yo digo Lana Del Ray

Dices Fishmans, yo digo Ellie Goulding

Dices Jean Jacques Perrey, yo digo P!nk

Dices Les Rallizes Dénudés, yo digo Owl City

Dices Rainbow Caroliner, yo digo Carrie Underwood

Dices Taj Mahal Travellers, yo digo Christina Aguilera

Dices Fushitsusha, yo digo Ariana Grande

Dices Peter Brötzmann, yo digo Rihanna

Dices John Cage, yo digo Jennifer Lopez

Dices Scott Walker, yo digo Ed Sheeran

Dices Unwound, yo digo Mumford & Sons

Dices Dead, yo digo Tyga

Dices Frank Zappa, yo digo Shakira

Dices Morton Feldman, yo digo Macklemore

Dices Captain Beefheart, yo digo Big Time Rush

Dices Pharoah Sanders, yo digo Akon

Dices Albert Ayler, yo digo Foster the People

Dices Ornette Coleman, yo digo The Weeknd

Dices Alice Coltrane, yo digo Panic! at the Disco

Dices Arnold Schoenberg, yo digo Florida Georgia Line

Dices Pierre Boulez, yo digo Big Sean

Dices György Ligeti, yo digo Gym Class Heroes

Dices Karlheinz Stockhausen, yo digo Miley Cyrus

Dices Nang Nang, yo digo The Lumineers

Dices Thinking Fellers Union Local 282, yo digo Jay-Z

Dices Nara Leão, yo digoCharlie Puth

Dices Basic Channel, yo digo Mac Miller

Dices Raymond Scott, yo digo Twenty One Pilots

Dices Delia Derbyshire, yo digo Harry Styles

Dices Daphne Oram, yo digo Charli XCX

Dices Noah Howard, yo digoBTS

Dices Terry Riley, yo digo Iggy Azalea

Dices Peter Sotos, yo digo John Legend

Dices Lula Côrtes e Zé Ramalho, yo digo OneRepublic

Dices Boyd Rice, yo digo Migos

Dices Mahmoud Ahmed, yo digo Logic

Dices Henry Flynt, yo digo Bastille

Dices Kazumoto Endo, yo digo Five Seconds of Summer

Dices David Tudor, yo digo Pentatonix

Dices Aporea, yo digo The Chainsmokers

Dices Half Japanese, yo digo Fall Out Boy

Dices Mega Banton, yo digo David Guetta

Dices Secret Chiefs 3, yo digo Greta Van Fleet

Dices Keiji Haino, yo digo Alicia Keys

Dices Ramleh, yo digo Kanye West

Dices Otomo Yoshihide, yo digo T-Pain

Dices John Zorn, yo digo Lizzo

Dices Joe Meek, yo digo WALK THE MOON

Dices Robbie Basho, yo digo Cardi B

Dices Phil Spector, yo digo EXO

Dices Faxed Head, yo digo Solange

Dices Harry Partch, yo digo Lil Nas X

Dices Wesley Willis, yo digo Disclosure

Dices Fred Frith, yo digo Sam Smith

Dices The Residents, yo digo Michael Buble

Dices Sun Ra, yo digo Paramore

Dices Sun City Girls, yo digo Linkin Park

Dices Hans Krüsi, yo digo Florence + The Machine

Dices Royal Trux, yo digo Rascal Flatts

Dices Jandek, yo digo Eminem

Dices Yat-Kha, yo digo Chance the Rapper

Dices Loren Mazzacane Connors, yo digo Mariah Carey

Dices Pärson Sound, yo digo Snoop Dogg

Dices The Dead C, yo digo Adele

Dices Comus, yo digo Shawn Mendes

Dices Cromagnon, yo digo Chris Brown

Dices Eliane Radigue, yo digo Camilla Cabello

Dices Arthur Doyle, yo digo Halsey

Dices Shizuka, yo digo The 1975

Dices The Red Krayola, yo digo Billie Eilish

Dices Henry Cow, yo digo A$AP Rocky

Dices Magma, yo digo Dua Lipa

Dices Opus Avantra, yo digo Kendrick Lamar

Dices Pan.Thy.Monium., yo digo Nicki Minaj

Dices Murmuüre, yo digo Madonna

Dices Ksiezyc, yo digo Britney Spears

Dices Gong, yo digo Post Malone

Dices Cukor Bila Smert', yo digo Jonas Brothers

Dices cLOUDDEAD, yo opino que te calles

Dices Muslimgauze, ¡¡ YO GRITO POP!!

Dices Kaoru Abe, y te parto la madre

El 92% de la juventud está escuchando Avant Garde Noise. Si eres parte de ese 8% que aun escucha música de verdad, comparte este post a tus contactos de facebook.

¡¡¡¡ No dejes que el espíritu del POP muera !!!!

[brainless-moe-white-lotus]

Okay reblog this and tag with a numerical response for how many of these artists you listen to. It's stereotypical "tumblr user" music.

Merzbow

Boredoms

Gerogerigegege

Coil

Throbbing Gristle

Whitehouse

Nurse with Wound

Einstürzende Neubauten

Brainbombs

Egor Letov

Death in June

Current 93,

La Monte Young,

Moondog,

Lou Harrison

Henry Cowell

Luigi Russolo

Popol Vuh

Fishmans

Jean Jacques Perrey

Les Rallizes Dénudés

Rainbow Caroliner

Taj Mahal Travellers

Fushitsusha

Peter Brötzmann

John Cage

Scott Walker

Unwound

Dead

Frank Zappa

Morton Feldman

Captain Beefheart

Pharoah Sanders

Albert Ayler

Ornette Coleman

Alice Coltrane

Arnold Schoenberg,

Pierre Boulez

György Ligeti

Karlheinz Stockhausen

Nang Nang

Thinking Fellers Union Local 28

Nara Leão

Basic Channel

Raymond Scott

Delia Derbyshire

Daphne Oram

Noah Howard

Terry Riley

Peter Sotos

Lula Côrtes e Zé Ramalho

Boyd Rice

Mahmoud Ahmed

Henry Flynt,

Kazumoto Endo

David Tudor

Aporea

Half Japanese

Mega Banton

Secret Chiefs 3

Keiji Haino

Ramleh

Otomo Yoshihide

John Zorn

Joe Meek

Robbie Basho

Phil Spector

Faxed Head

Harry Partch

Wesley Willis

Fred Frith

The Residents

Sun Ra

Sun City Girls

Hans Krüsi

Royal Trux

Jandek

Yat-Kha

Loren Mazzacane Connors

Pärson Sound

The Dead C

Comus, Cromagnon

Eliane Radigue

Arthur Doyle

Shizuka

The Red Krayola

Henry Cow

Magma

Opus Avantra

Pan.Thy.Monium.

Murmuüre

Ksiezyc,

Gong

Cukor Bila Smert'

cLOUDDEAD

Muslimgauze

Kaoru Abe

[determinate-negation]

tfw no Merzbow, Boredoms, Gerogerigegege, Coil, Throbbing Gristle, Whitehouse, Nurse with Wound, Einstürzende Neubauten, Brainbombs, Egor Letov, Death in June, Current 93, La Monte Young, Moondog, Lou Harrison, Henry Cowell, Luigi Russolo, Popol Vuh, Fishmans, Jean Jacques Perrey, Les Rallizes Dénudés, Rainbow Caroliner, Taj Mahal Travellers, Fushitsusha, DNA, Peter Brötzmann, John Cage, Scott Walker, Unwound, Dead, Frank Zappa, Morton Feldman, Captain Beefheart, Pharoah Sanders, Albert Ayler, Ornette Coleman, Alice Coltrane, Arnold Schoenberg, Pierre Boulez, György Ligeti, Karlheinz Stockhausen, Nang Nang, Haruomi Hosono, Thinking Fellers Union Local 282, Nara Leão, Basic Channel, Raymond Scott, Delia Derbyshire, Daphne Oram, Noah Howard, Terry Riley, Peter Sotos, Lula Cortes e Zé Ramalho, Boyd Rice, Mahmoud Ahmed, Henry Flynt, Kazumoto Endo, David Tudor, Aporea, Half Japanese, Mega Banton, Secret Chiefs 3, Keiji Haino, Ramleh, Otomo Yoshihide, John Zorn, Joe Meek, Robbie Basho, Phil Spector, Faxed Head, Harry Partch, Frances Baskerville,Wesley Willis, Fred Frith, The Residents, Sun Ra, Sun City Girls, Hans Krüsi, Royal Trux, Jandek, Yat-Kha, Loren Mazzacane Connors, Pärson Sound, The Dead C, Comus, Cromagnon, Eliane Radigue, Arthur Doyle, Shizuka, The Red Krayola, Henry Cow, Magma, Opus Avantra, Pan. Thy.Monium., Murmuüre, Ksiezyc, Gong, Cukor Bila Smert', CLOUDDEAD, Muslimgauze, and Kaoru Abe gf

[jangling-girl]

need a gf who listens to Merzbow, Boredoms, Gerogerigegege, Coil, Throbbing Gristle, Whitehouse, Nurse with Wound, Einstürzende Neubauten, Brainbombs, Egor Letov, Death in June, Current 93, La Monte Young, Moondog, Lou Harrison, Henry Cowell, Luigi Russolo, Popol Vuh, Fishmans, Jean Jacques Perrey, Les Rallizes Dénudés, Rainbow Caroliner, Taj Mahal Travellers, Fushitsusha, Peter Brötzmann, John Cage, Scott Walker, Unwound, Dead, Frank Zappa, Morton Feldman, Captain Beefheart, Pharoah Sanders, Albert Ayler, Ornette Coleman, Alice Coltrane, Arnold Schoenberg, Pierre Boulez, György Ligeti, Karlheinz Stockhausen, Nang Nang, Thinking Fellers Union Local 282, Nara Leão, Basic Channel, Raymond Scott, Delia Derbyshire, Daphne Oram, Noah Howard, Terry Riley, Peter Sotos, Lula Côrtes e Zé Ramalho, Boyd Rice, Mahmoud Ahmed, Henry Flynt, Kazumoto Endo, David Tudor, Aporea, Half Japanese, Mega Banton, Secret Chiefs 3, Keiji Haino, Ramleh, Otomo Yoshihide, John Zorn, Joe Meek, Robbie Basho, Phil Spector, Faxed Head, Harry Partch, Wesley Willis, Fred Frith, The Residents, Sun Ra, Sun City Girls, Hans Krüsi, Royal Trux, Jandek, Yat-Kha, Loren Mazzacane Connors, Pärson Sound, The Dead C, Comus, Cromagnon, Eliane Radigue, Arthur Doyle, Shizuka, The Red Krayola, Henry Cow, Magma, Opus Avantra, Pan.Thy.Monium., Murmuüre, Ksiezyc, Gong, Cukor Bila Smert', cLOUDDEAD, Muslimgauze and Kaoru Abe

[dustedandsocial]

@natureboy55 google sucks so bad now, although "Christians" would be hard to find either way, I guess:

"Christians is an improv project that appears in various configurations led by Vancouver guitarist Jeremy Stewart. S/Z (titled after Roland Barthes' structural analysis of narrative codes) was recorded at Phil Elverum (Mount Eerie)'s dilapidated church studio in Anacortes, WA. This allowed Christians to take on the guise of a classic Pacific Northwest power trio, with Stewart joined by Stanley Jason Zappa on bass and drummer Nick Skrowaczewski (both of whom appeared on last year's Golia / Shiroishi / Sikora / Skrowaczewski / Wedman / Zappa tape HelMel). The trio translates the sonic vocabulary of metal, blues, and punk into the musical language of free improvisation. Two monolithic feedback solos stand in the middle of the session as a depressive core to the psychedelic mania that surrounds them, while the trio obsessively returns to a theme from The Rite of Spring. Exhilarating sounds recommended for fans of Fushitsusha, Caspar Brötzmann Massaker, Last Exit etc."

[futuredaysbycan]

for the character asks: tserri, leorio and mike :)

sure thing!

Tserri:

My first impression ah he's That type of guy

My impression now nice, he likes Merzbow, Boredoms, Gerogerigegege, Coil, Throbbing Gristle, Whitehouse, Nurse with Wound, Einstürzende Neubauten, Brainbombs, Egor Letov, Death in June, Current 93, La Monte Young, Moondog, Lou Harrison, Henry Cowell, Luigi Russolo, Popol Vuh, Fishmans, Jean Jacques Perrey, Les Rallizes Dénudés, Rainbow Caroliner, Taj Mahal Travellers, Fushitsusha, Peter Brötzmann, John Cage, Scott Walker, Unwound, Dead, Frank Zappa, Morton Feldman, Captain Beefheart, Pharoah Sanders, Albert Ayler, Ornette Coleman, Alice Coltrane, Arnold Schoenberg, Pierre Boulez, György Ligeti, Karlheinz Stockhausen, Nang Nang, Thinking Fellers Union Local 282, Nara Leão, Basic Channel, Raymond Scott, Delia Derbyshire, Daphne Oram, Noah Howard, Terry Riley, Peter Sotos, Lula Côrtes e Zé Ramalho, Boyd Rice, Mahmoud Ahmed, Henry Flynt, Kazumoto Endo, David Tudor, Aporea, Half Japanese, Mega Banton, Secret Chiefs 3, Keiji Haino, Ramleh, Otomo Yoshihide, John Zorn, Joe Meek, Robbie Basho, Phil Spector, Faxed Head, Harry Partch, Wesley Willis, Fred Frith, The Residents, Sun Ra, Sun City Girls, Hans Krüsi, Royal Trux, Jandek, Yat-Kha, Loren Mazzacane Connors, Pärson Sound, The Dead C, Comus, Cromagnon, Eliane Radigue, Arthur Doyle, Shizuka, The Red Krayola, Henry Cow, Magma, Opus Avantra, Pan.Thy.Monium., Murmuüre, Ksiezyc, Gong, Cukor Bila Smert', cLOUDDEAD, Muslimgauze and Kaoru Abe

Favorite thing about that character his whole existence is another proof how well togashi knows people because tserri is THE villain of current era i know several dudes that are just like him (without like. the killings and crimes of course) twitter and reddit is like sprawling these guys

Least favorite thing

hed be into my gemini ass

Favorite line/scene

Leoš Janáček hanta hanta real

Favorite interaction that character has with another when theta shot him ♥️

A character that I wish that character would interact with more HE NEEDS TO INTERACT WITH SO MANY PEOPLE I NEED AS MANY WHAT THE FUCK IS THIS GUY REACTIONS anyway i have this comedy sketch in my mind about several ways chrollo could get his power in his little book he would be like yaaay meteor city xenophobia yea i agree noooo way you know nen can you show me :o noooo way can you splain me that in more details nooooo way anyway wanna check my nen catalogue

Another character from another fandom that reminds me of that character i do count people from Patrician Music Chartposting the facebook group as characters and he is several of them. hence why my tserri playlist is 100% canon.

A headcanon about that character him and halkenburg bonded over wanna be deep music i see hankenburg running to tserri like you have to hear this!!!!! and gives him a copy of kid a by radiohead (its year 2001 in hxh)

A song that reminds of that character every song from obey by brainbombs, i mean even the cover is a pic of that serial killer who made stuff like belt from nipples

An unpopular opinion about that character he is sadly and tragically very funny

[dustedmagazine]

Listening Post: Les Rallizes Dénudés

It’s difficult to paint an accurate picture of the history of Les Rallizes Dénudés, as an aura of mystery and an inordinate amount of conjecture surround the band. This we do know: Les Rallizes Dénudés sprung from the fertile music scene in late 1960s Japan, in striking opposition to the Group Sounds and folk-rock music that was popular in their country at the time. The original line-up of the band formed in 1967 at Doshisha University in Kyoto, comprising guitarist and vocalist Takashi Mizutani, guitarist Takeshi Nakamura, bassist Moriaki Wakabayashi, and drummer Takashi Katoh. They initially dubbed themselves Hadaka No Rallizes but, according to legend, after Mizutani befriended the radical theater ensemble Gendai Gekijo they became Les Rallizes Dénudés in accordance with the fake French slang that the troupe had invented. 

Throughout the band’s three-decades-long existence, they cut a striking figure. Fronted by the long-haired, sunglasses-and-leather wearing Mizutani, Les Rallizes Dénudés took sensory overload to a new level. The band’s live shows were punishingly loud and replete with extreme visual elements. They had a repertoire of just over a dozen songs, but the myriad bootleg recordings that appeared in the band’s wake indicate that Mizutani and company never played a tune the same way twice. Their music seemed deceptively simple, with bass-and-drum vamps that stretched to infinity overtop of which Mizutani unfurled scorching clouds of guitar noise and vocals sung in his native Japanese. 

After original bassist Wakabayashi was involved in the hijacking of a plane in 1970, the already enigmatic Mizutani became downright elusive. Outside of their iconoclastic leader, Les Rallizes Dénudés’ membership rotated frequently. Official recordings didn’t appear until 1991, at which time the band issued a trio of CDs compiled from various studio and live recordings from across the first decade of their existence. These quickly disappeared, as the legend of Les Rallizes Dénudés had grown considerably by this time, likely indirectly due to acts like High Rise and Fushitsusha that followed in their wake. 

Mizutani passed away in 2019, and shortly thereafter an organization dubbed The Last One Musique appeared, complete with a new website devoted to the band. Earlier in 2022, the Temporal Drift label began issuing Les Rallizes Dénudés material, notably The Oz Tapes and the Oz Days Live compilation, supported by The Last One Musique. In November, the label plans to reissue those first three official releases – ’67-’69 Studio et Live, MIZUTANI / Les Rallizes Dénudés, and ’77 Live – completely remastered and with new liner notes that will hopefully dissolve some of the fog-like mystique surrounding the band. 

We here at Dusted have varying levels of affinity for Les Rallizes Dénudés, and felt that through group discussion, we’d be able to approach the music most adroitly. Given the sheer volume of material involved (The Oz Tapes is a double LP, ’77 Live is a triple LP, and the Oz Days Live compilation is a triple CD), we chose to focus on the official releases. 

I don’t know about you guys, but that ’77 Live release is what I typically associate with the Les Rallizes Dénudés “sound”. Apparently that Heavier Than a Death in the Family bootleg includes some of this material. 

Intro by Bryon Hayes

Ian Mathers: So, while I'd certainly heard of them (albeit thinking they were French for a bit when all I knew was the name), my first real encounter with Les Rallizes Dénudés was only a few months ago, hearing the Heavier Than a Death in the Family version of "Night of the Assassins" and going “What is THAT?” I hadn't gotten around to investigating much further than that, though, so this Listening Post is both very convenient for me, personally, and also when I started playing '67-'69 Studio et Live and "Les Bulles de Savon / Soap Bubbles" began I was very surprised.  Like you, Bryon, '77 LIVE is more what I expected, albeit on far more circumstantial grounds. And while, once I adjusted to the gentler, arguably more dated material on '67-'69 and MIZUTANI / Les Rallizes Dénudés none of it is particularly unpleasant or hard to deal with, it does suffer for me in comparison to '77 LIVE which on first listen is one of my favorite things I've heard all year, maybe longer. The 95-minute length and sheer abrasiveness of its noise means it's not going to be a casual play around my apartment, but I can honestly say I was riveted for every minute the couple of times I've been able to fit it in so far. The length of each track and of the album as a whole is part of what I think is so distinctive and incredible about it.

So if these three official/out of print releases have been around at least to some degree since the early 1990s, is the softer/folkier(?) sound of much of the studio stuff on there a big part of what people like about Les Rallizes Dénudés? I feel like once I heard more than the name I mainly heard people referring to the noisier stuff. And why did it take until this listen to realize that the bassline on what '77 LIVE calls "夜、暗殺者の夜 / The Night, Assassin’s Night" makes me think of that "I Will Follow Him" song from Sister Act? 

Mason Jones: I've heard a number of people refer to Rallizes as "Japan's answer to the Velvet Underground," which rings true in part because of the bands formed in their wake. While they were never well-known, perhaps "notorious" is a better description. Their influence leaked out over years, and their shadowy presence and noisy psychedelic swirl can be traced to many independent bands. I doubt that Keiji Haino would regard them as much of an inspiration for Fushitsusha, but there's at least a visual aesthetic that's even more visible in Kousokuya and Kaneko Jutoku's work and lurks behind many other bands related to the PSF label such as Shizuka and High Rise. Some of Japan's psychedelic underground readily admit Rallizes' inspiration, such as LSD March, Up-Tight, and Overhang Party.

Where the Boredoms inspired an entire Kansai scene of anything-goes indie anarchy, Les Rallizes Denudes infiltrated a smaller but no less impactful network of smoke-drenched psychedelic players. The heavier, noisier aspect of Rallizes is better-known outside Japan, but from the deep, slow strums of Suishou no Fune to the quieter aspects of Majutsu no Niwa and LSD March, the softer side is definitely there as well. That said, I've certainly always been more attracted to their more crazed, no-holds-barred work like that on '77 LIVE and bootlegs like Blind Baby Has Its Mothers Eyes. The 1980 Live and Soundboard collection (10 CDRs!) and Double Heads boots are also among the better ones, but in truth over the years it's been nearly impossible to untangle the recordings spread across dozens and dozens of poorly assembled bootleg releases. Seeing properly mastered and collected releases coming out now is very, very welcome.

Ian Mathers: Which brings up one of the biggest questions I have about all this: how does one “properly” master something like '77 LIVE? I think it sounds fantastic, so I clearly agree with the choices made, but I wonder what's involved and what's different about working with source material like that. 

Mason Jones: It's hard to say. In this case, it's possible that they have the original tapes, whereas the versions I've heard before are probably second generation or worse; very possibly duped from an old LP or cassette! However, I'm listening right now and comparing the old Le 12 Mars 1977 à Tachikawa bootleg I have, which is the same as '77 LIVE — same track lengths and all. The older bootleg feels slightly thinner and hissier, but interestingly it doesn't sound as much worse as I recalled. That one has a long history of unofficial re-releases, as shown on its Discogs page. The old bootleg I have of Mizutani is certainly improved on by the new reissue, with a great deal more clarity. I don't seem to have any previous releases that correspond to the '67 - '69 Studio et Live reissue, which is an intriguing collection of ragtag recordings. 

The OZ Tapes by Les Rallizes Dénudés

Ethan Covey: It’s funny you mention mastering as there was a minor Twitter flare up a few days back when someone posted a screenshot comparing audio files from the old CD release of ’77 Live with the new edition. It looked as if the dynamic range on the new release was crunched/maxed out/whatever the correct terminology is, versus a more forgiving mix on the CD. And there was the accompanying grumbling that modern mastering — especially on a release like this — is all about volume at the expense of subtlety. I haven’t listened to the new ’77 Live yet but have to say the mastering on The OZ Tapes sounded fantastic compared with previous versions of that material. I look forward to listening to the LP (if it ever arrives), and digging into these “new” ones. 

Mason Jones: Yeah, I can see that. Listening to my old CD copy versus the new one, while I haven't compared the files specifically there's certainly more modern compression on the new release. That's fairly typical these days. To my ears, it doesn't seem excessive, but it'll take more listening to let it sink in for sure. I do have to chuckle a bit about the idea of "subtlety" dealing with blown-out live recordings like these. As you say, though, I'm waiting for my LP copies to arrive, which will be a better test than mp3s. 

Bryon Hayes: I have a question for Mason and those of you who've been following Les Rallizes Dénudés for some time and have access to recordings from across their existence: these three releases document a band that appears to have experienced a sizeable shift in sound in its first decade of existence, from the almost garage-y tunes of '67-'69 Studio et Live and the softer acoustic sounds of MIZUTANI to the overdriven feedback onslaught that is the '77 Live set.  Does anyone know if this was a subtle transition that occurred slowly throughout the decade, or was there a Big Bang moment, with a clear delineation between those two sides of the band? 

Mason Jones: That's an interesting question, Bryon. I really don't have a solid answer but can make some guesses. The sequence you list is accurate, and these three albums essentially document three phases of the band: the first lineup from '67 to '69. The acoustic work on Mizutani was him sort of on his own (with some others playing with him) during the period when there wasn't a full band. Then in 1970 he moved to Tokyo and started with a new lineup. Takeshi Nakamura, who started the band with Mizutani, was quoted as saying "The live shows were really high volume from the very beginning" so the shift from garage-y as you describe it to the more out-there tracks might have just happened naturally due to the almost complete change in band members. But who knows, perhaps some of it's simply the selection of tracks we're hearing!

Ian Mathers: I am sympathetic to "loudness war" type concerns, generally, but I have to admit the notion that the stuff here that I really like would not be brickwalled seems a little funny. Interesting to know that aside from Mizutani himself there was a pretty complete change of personnel; I still kind of wonder, given the more standard/quality production on those earlier records, how much the production, not just the playing, on '77 Live was a deliberate aesthetic choice. Do we know if it's more a case of them playing high-volume shows with recording equipment that just wasn't up to the task, in unexpectedly glorious ways, or is there any indication they were leaning into that part of their sound (whether that's using equipment a step down from what they could, or playing in certain ways, or the recording process, or mixing, or...)? Any answer isn't going to make me like that sound less, to be clear - I have no stake in this being some variety of outsider or accidental art. I do wonder if when they first heard the tapes they went "great!" or "oh no..." though.   

Mason Jones: Yeah, it's hard to say whether the sound was intentional or not. In the case of the live recording, it's worth keeping in mind that in Japan it's unusual for bands to have their own equipment aside from the instruments and effects -- the live houses have amps and drums that the bands use. Since so few people drive, it's uncommon to be able to bring your own stuff. That means the amps they were using would have been the house amps, although '77 Live was recorded at Tachikawa Social Education Hall; who knows if they had a regular backline or rented equipment for the show. In any case, who knows how they felt about the tapes when they first heard them.

The overblown sound, though, was almost certainly the primary influence for Nanjo Asahito's recording and mastering approach for the first High Rise albums and later work that he did. Those recordings were infamous for the brick wall limiting, pushing everything into the red. I don't know for certain but given Nanjo's appreciation for Rallizes I'd be shocked if the sound of '77 Live wasn't the initial inspiration for that approach. 

Bryon Hayes: According to the information I've scrounged online, not only was the band notoriously loud, but they were also accompanied by a frenzied lightshow, beginning with their earliest performances. Apparently Mizutani coined the term "total sensory assault" to describe the experience and it is claimed that was the goal from the start. Of course, given the amount of speculation and conjecture that surrounds the band, this could be a red herring. In some respects, I hope that as Temporal Drift release more material, the mystery will slowly unravel, but I also kind of enjoy the mystique.

[onryou-onryou]

Purple Trap - You Within Me (Full Album) Keiji Haino, Fushitsusha

[goodbysunball]

Coupla notables & runner-ups: 2022

Here it is, list season begins. Four releases from a stacked year that got more attention than most, and were just barely edged out of my own Top Ten. Worthy in their own right, now put under the microscope.

Dead Void, Volatile Forms (Me Saco Un Ojo)

Been a big fan of the death metal scene in Copenhagen, which is still among the world's best. But like the trajectory of the Icelandic black metal surge a few years ago, a lot of the bands are getting too melodic and/or predictable for my taste. Impressive musicianship, no doubt, but how many times are they gonna re-write the same Death songs over and over? Enter Dead Void, who returned this year to follow-up their crushing The Looming Spectre demo from 2018. Where their peers are polished and seamless, Dead Void lurch forward with an inebriated stomp and sway; sometimes transitions are clunky, guitars groan and wail under their own weight, and the vocals are feral reverberations from below. The imperfections work to their advantage somehow, not only to differentiate them from the monolith of modern OSDM acts, but also to highlight their ferocity. Dead Void tear and claw their way through these five tracks; there is a palpable hunger on Volatile Forms. Songs like "Atrophy" and "Sadistic Mind" have the feel of the first two Eyehategod albums, filthy and desperate, and it also highlights the rough slow-fast transitions the band employs. The band runs closer to death-doom hybrids like diSEMBOWELMENT or Winter than pure death metal, bursting out of mantle-cracking riffs to barrage the listener with an assault of full-on thrash, and ultimately returning to the grimy depths. "The Reptilian Drive" is probably the weakest track, the two chord riffs overstaying their welcome, but it's still hard to deny the powerful drumming and squalls of guitar noise that pass as solos. If you like your metal slower, very dank and cavernous, and don't mind a little gristle here and there, Volatile Forms is your fix.

Gu-N, s/t (An'archives)

Might be a bit silly, but I've been buying the An'archives stuff almost purely for the presentation: Alan Siwa's beautifully silkscreened jackets and obis, thoughtful liners, and the postcards are a nice touch, too. The music is primarily focused on the sub-sub-underground of Japan, and ranges from the jaw-dropping to stuff that maybe should've stayed obscure, but all of it is head-scratching and deeply singular. File this Gu-N LP with the keepers. Featuring artists from groups like C.C.C.C., Hijokaidan, Incapacitants, Fushitsusha and LSD March, this is creeping noise reimagined in a guitar-bass-percussion lineup, with an unsurprisingly large helping of electronics and homemade instruments. I'd have guessed this would be either a caustic mess or a too-polite meeting of the minds (á la that Gagmen album), especially given that these four tracks are all improvisations, but it's wildly compelling. The tracks grow and throb, like a sped-up video of a fungus growing, and no one instrument or performer drowns out another. It reminds me a lot of the Dead C on their recent mostly-instrumental albums on Ba Da Bing, but there's a gnawing intensity burbling up behind these tracks, as if they're collaborating with Tom Darksmith or Joe Colley. The band never reaches all-out destruction like some of the members' other groups, and they don't have to, but the threat lingers throughout. Bowled me over, and continues to do so the more I lean into it. According to the writeup, this is a sampling of the band's improvisations; let's hope there's more releases in the works from the vaults of Gu-N.

Lilac, s/t (self-released)

Chicago, you're still ground zero for rough 'n burly rock accompanied by sneering spoken-yelled vocals. Shellac looms large over Lilac, as I'm sure the band loves to hear, but I also hear a good bit of those coasties Fight Amp on this record, too. Driving the album are big muscular riffs, boosted largely by the rhythm section, and even someone who's heard it all oughta be able to appreciate the energy injected into a oft-emulated, rarely this-well-executed genre. My personal favorite is the opening riff to "I'm Old" (check those lyrics, too), but the band hits on just about every song. The mixing and mastering by Seth Manchester probably plays an outsized role here; everything sounds clear, the bass and drums extra punchy, and the guitars are precise and noisy as a buzzsaw cutting metal. Some of the music I used to listen to in this vein makes me cringe now, but Lilac skewers topics like the casual misogyny commonly employed among "edgy" rock bands. Anya Davidson leads the attack on songs like "I.U.Dea" and "Woman In Power," the lyrical efficiency putting out backwards conservative talking points like a cigarette butt under a heel. That's not to say that this record isn't without its less than inspired moments, like "Burn Down the White House," a comparatively juvenile, unambiguous sentiment on an otherwise brutal yet cleverly indirect lyrical record. It's a more than forgivable offense - I mean, who hasn't thought that same thing in the last few years? - and it's especially easy when the rest of the record holds treasure like the seasick riff of "Sewage Alphabet" that hits at 0:18 in. Good lord. Seems the biggest problem with this record is that not enough people are talking about it or buying it, so go help Lilac cruise through the rest of these LPs they painstakingly put together and released themselves.

Reeking Aura, Blood & Bonemeal (Profound Lore)

Reeking Aura's three-song demo dropped in the midst of 2020 on Parasitic Records, and was quickly purchased and lost in the deluge of my Bandcamp Friday purchases. I thought it was good, but I didn't think it was good enough to land them on Profound Lore, one of metal's preeminent labels. It makes more sense now that I know the vocalist in Reeking Aura was, until recently, also the voice of Artificial Brain, who have a couple of LPs on Profound Lore. The vocalist in question, "Big Will" Smith, is an outsized, affable personality with arguably the best guttural metal vocals in the game. Set him up in a death metal band featuring three guitarists, and you've got my attention. Reeking Aura is a bit of a concept band, something poorly summed up as a band focused on the smells emanating from the life-death-rebirth cycle of nature, and on their debut LP, the concept grows to include a "caretaker" of a farm slowly succumbing to "morbid psychosis." The lyrics, for the curious, are available with the LP and on the Reeking Aura Bandcamp page. I'm not sure any of that adds to my enjoyment of the record (though the Reeking Aura shirts that say "Agricultural Death Metal" certainly do), nor am I sure that it could: Blood & Bonemeal is flat-out one of the most fun death metal records I've heard in ages. The ante is upped from the demo musically, too, even if it's a bit cleaner than I normally like my death metal. The vocal performance shines, and the triple-guitar attack is as potent as you'd imagine. There are big chunky riffs, leads that twist and spiral skyward, and peppered in are a few well-placed and well-executed Mournful Congregation-worthy breathers, specifically the last couple minutes of "Pyramid Shaped Plow / The Caretaker." I especially like the opening track and how it grabs you by the shirt, but it's always the ascent-and-decay of "Harvesting the Hatchet" and the rumbling doom of "Grublust" that end up my favorites. Those Death ripoffs I mentioned in the Dead Void review? Reeking Aura is basically one musically, but with a distinctive personality, one unafraid to put down washes of pastel watercolors on the cover and immediately start a circle pit. Blood & Bonemeal has been a perfect workout soundtrack for me, just over thirty minutes with built-in breaks, punishing enough and engaging enough to make repeat listens worth my while. Reeking Aura's flying a bit under the radar, and the lack of touring probably didn't help, but this is a damn fine slab of death metal. Purchase, and channel your own inner vegetative mush.