Aube — Stared Gleam (digital reissue)

For those familiar with the 90's Japanese noise scene, the name Aube sticks out from the pack. During a time of all out harshness and a worldwide explosion of noise fans, Aube kept challenging the genre while others rested on their laurels and released CD after CD of unimaginative static. Sure, this doesn't sound any different from a handful of artists and the current noise scene (sorry HNWers, but you bore me!), but I don't intend to sell Aube short. Although Nakajima Akifumi left us with many great releases throughout his career, we'll never get to see the full range of his vision. Sadly, Aube passed away on September 25th, 2013.

Originally released in 1997, Stared Gleam was the first of Aube's releases to combine his ambient and noise work. Though a combination of both, it leans more toward the ambient side. As with the rest of Aube's oeuvre, Stared Gleam uses one source object; In this case, it's a glow lamp. While I don't know what a glow lamp sounds like, it's safe to say that it is thoroughly processed and sounds very distant from its original tone.

The noise approach on Stared Gleam is very different from the noise coming out of Japan at the time. It focuses more on oscillation and repetition over extreme harshness. The opening track, "DimCode," has an industrial vibe to it. The looped, high pitched tones have a chain feel to them. Maybe it's because of the low synth loop they're played over. The background buzz fills out the field a bit. This one sounds a lot like some of Dissecting Table's stuff. Though, unlike Dissecting Table, this never really leads into industrial chaos. Instead, we're allowed the opportunity to listen to the layers unfold. "PermanentUrge" oscillates a lot from side to side, having a blast playing in the stereo field. The high pitched oscillation that comes down the middle hangs out right above your eyes. The whole experience is very insect like, whether being one or having one taunting you right in your face.

Aube's ambient side plays a bit better. "Gaze" starts off quietly, and bell like buzzes start to grow. After a few minutes, the buzzing leaves and a low rumble begins. This is accompanied by another buzz that grows slightly throughout the final few minutes. The song is a bit long, but it works very well if you're doing something else. "OozyFlicker" is a rumbling low throughout. For the most part, it reminds me of Maeror Tri - Language of Flames and Sound. However, this takes on a creepy, time bomb quality. The watery bell (huh?) of a ticking clock comes to the fore and reminds you that your time is limited. Finishing up the album is the title track. This beast clocks in at almost 21 minutes...the first four of which are hardly audible. A growing, buzzy oscillation starts to play, and we're treated to a combination of all previous aspects of the album (an "Underture" as Pete Townshend would've called it). Although this one plays it slow, the ending is well worth the wait. The cave like reverb and juicy squiggles help to reign in the varying buzzwaves. It's a solid ending.

While not the best Aube release I've heard, Stared Gleam is an interesting piece of noise history. Showing how open the genre can be, Aube mixed soft with loud, and did so seamlessly. The noise scene suffered a big loss with the passing of Nakajima Akifumi, but Iris Light is going its best to digitally re-release Aube's long out of print work. This reissue can be downloaded from Iris Light's bandcamp page here