Black Leather Jesus — Machofucker
For this release the often revolving line-up of Black Leather Jesus was: Kevin Novak, Mike Payne( Bondage Is The Future & Nymphs Or Satyrs), Sean Matzus(In The Land Of Archers, Last Rape, Priest In Shit, The Secret Geography)- all on electronics. Vance Osborne(In The Land Of Archers, Priest In Shit, Sevastopol Is Covered In Sewage) on Guitar & electronics. Thomas Mortigan(RU-486 and owner of Destructive Industries label.) on handmade instruments and lastly but hardly least is Richard Ramirez( Who formed BLJ in 1990 and is in numerous other projects like Werewolf Jerusalem, Vice Wears Black Hose, An Innocent Young Throat-Cutter,) on Steel metal.
Both sides of vinyl here are extremely punishing, thick and detailed. I’d say this is some of the most clamouring, thick and constantly brutal material I’ve heard from BLJ; it’s certainly not HNW, but instead it’s very dense and battering Harsh noise with extreme steel percussive abuse and seared to at times almost harmonic electronic trails. Side A just features one just over thirteen and a half minute track which is entitled “Scene one”. The track starts out with huge wall of scorching blow torch like noise that really engulfs and melts you ears. Pretty soon this develops and deepens in a sleazy, thundering and densely roasting mix of: muffled, hammered and battered percussive steel abuse, waves of agitated and tar black noise grain ‘n’ red raw rub, and sadistic turntable like screeching higher pitched electronics- all whichs makes an extremely loud and thick barbaric sound soup.
This dense mix slips ‘n’ slides with more creative or surprising textures that work thier way to the surface every now and then through-out the track. Like at the six minute mark when this wavering and grimly harmonic element starts up in the guts of the track; sounding like it could be dramatic vibraphone led soundtrack from a 70’s movie that’s melted and nearly completely roasted out. Or the mass of screaming baby like tones that appear around the ten minute mark & are juddered and bent by semi-harmonic electronic roars and bays.
Flipping over to side B and we have a track called “scene two” and this is once again is a very thick and dense noise attack, through it is slightly less intense and overloading than side ones track. Once more this side comes in around the thirteen and a half minute mark, and it starts out with layers of cruel and oppressive steel hammering, wonky pitch burns, slow motion fan belt screams and a sometimes galloping and sleazed bed of thick noise tone. Around the three minute mark the sound slightly thins out so you can hear accelerated noise tones and sustained feed-back tone sustains, but pretty soon it’s back again to thick and thundering. At the seven minute mark it once more strips down it’s layers so you can clearly make out this brooding and creepy synth waved harmonic element that’s running over a bed of very volatile feed-back pitch ups ‘n’ downs. Along with just about heard bass lines and cluttering glass junk like elements; that suddenly appear in rhythmic attacks before once more the track falls into the thick raging maelstrom of noise again.
As always with anything put out on the excellent Urashima label the black on black vinyl comes in the silver ink on black card slip sleeve. With on the cover a picture back of male figure in a leather jacket and a hoody, the projects name and the releases title. Inside along with the vinyl is an oversized A5 single sided paper colour insert which features a picture of a man in a leather eye mask, a leather gag in his mouth- which of course follows BLJ obsession with gay bondage imagery.
So in summing up two great, but extremely dense and nasty sounding sides of vinyl from this long running and highly respected Texas based extreme noise project. And as with most things noise wise this is ltd- so I advise quick action to pick-up one of the 102 copies pressed of this.