Bruising Pattern/Shumoizolyatsiya — Split
The release appeared on Stockholm based Ominous Recordings- who are presently one of the more active wall noise labels, though they do also put out releases from the wider noise/ experimental genres too. The unlabelled black shelled cassette came in a red, grey & black scribbled cover- sadly this tape is now all sold out, so ones only option( aside from Discogs…if your lucky!) is a digital download.
First, up on side A we have the Bruising Pattern track- this is untitled, and it’s a nice example of subtle developing & building wall matter. The track begins with a full & suffocating- though oddly soothing blend of lulling buffeting textures, thinner grit skip, and cascading loose rumble. As the just shy of thirty-minute track progresses we get more moodily placed extra textural shifts- be it a sudden longer rip, more bounding static mesh, or descending crisp flurries. Also as the ‘wall’ moves on the pace/ speed of the whole thing seemingly quickens-then- shift back again, I’m not sure if this is happening or not- but whether it a sonic allusion or a tangible shift it doesn’t matter as its most compelling- pulling you in further into the whole thing. At around the midway point, the intensity is kicked up a big notch more as we get this building in speed electro bass tone judder- and with this, we get looser noise tones appearing too. I’d compare this track to wondering through a mass of thick, and drifting fog- one feels enclosing & disorientating, but at the same time there is some decidedly comforting & roughshod appealing about the whole thing- and in the later quarter or so the fog gets flame-licked with things getting a lot more battering.
Flipping over the tape we have Shumoizolyatsiya, and this entitled “Tlen”. Here we kicking straight in with a flesh ‘n’ bone ripping bass tone- to start with this is fair straight & rapid in its racing & ragging feel, but as we move on it’s seeming stretched & pulled slightly- and this creates this almost chugging-to- rapidly sputtering feel. Around this thick & overwhelming main tone we have a blend of skittering static grain, rapid ripple, and cluttering grain fuzz. It’s a track that very much pins you down from the off, and doesn’t let you up until 29.22-minute end. As the track moves on the sub-tones nicely build, become more consistent & held in their attack, which makes for a subtle building- though very intense track.
It’s always nice to get a balanced & even split, and that exactly what we have here- so if you enjoy dense, subtle building and often damn intense wall matter you’ll need to hear this release for yourself.