Dosis Letalis — Smisao Zivota Je Sloboda

When you think of Serbian Harsh Noise Wall, then, really there are only two names  that come to mind. The first is the legendary Dead Body Collection, which some time ago ended and from its ruins arose post-HNW project Kosmodrom. The second project is Dosis Letalis, which is currently the only well-known representative of the Serbian HNW underground. The project was founded in 2015 by Nemanja Nikolic, who also has couple of side projects, as well taking part in more than a few collaborations.

The ideology/ focus of Dosis Letalis is political, economic and social injustice, which is reflected in the names of albums and compositions, as well as, often, on album covers. In terms of approach to sound, Nemanja Nicolic chose the experimental path. He is not committed to one type of sound. Officially, Dosis Letalis is Harsh Noise Wall, but each album is individual. We can hear Ambient Noise Wall, Drone Noise Wall, Crackles, classic HNW or, so-called, lowercase noise wall. One thing remains the same: absolute static-wonder.

So, the album with the Serbian title Smisao ?ivota Je Sloboda, which means The Meaning of Life Is Freedom, was released by the American label Lurker Bias both on tapes and in a digital format. At the moment, tapes are still available, so you can order this edition on the bandcamp page of the label.

The cover of the album is a collage of photographs and clippings from magazines and newspapers. It depicts the face of a man with gray stubble, whose eyes are covered with a picture of female eyes of a slightly smaller scale. Just below his chin are stripes of tattered newsprint. The whole picture is rotated 90 degrees clockwise, that is sideways to us. The color of the image is clearly processed in the photo editor, as it is a combination of turquoise and pink tones. There is no project's name and no album title on the cover.

The album consists of two tracks each of the same length – forty four minutes forty four seconds. So accordingly, the album runs for a  little less than an hour and a half.

The first track is called Smisao Zivota (The Meaning of Life). Immediately I want to note the excellent stereo mix. Textures flow from one channel to another, creating a sense of volume. It's a very deep and textured track. Here there are a lot of layers and frequencies, so ones first impression was this - I'm in the epicenter of a sandstorm or a tornado. It is still difficult for me to describe the whole variety of textures. We hear high-frequency intense clicks, low hum, distant rumble at medium frequencies. I'm sure that I missed something, because with so many layers it's a little difficult to switch my attention from one layer to another. I also want to say that the middle channel is filled with hissing whine, while the main extravaganza of sound unfolds in the right and left channels.

The second track is called Sloboda (Freedom). This is a less intense track, with more clearly audible details. According to the "secret" tradition of HNW artists, the album is recorded with one setup, but with slightly modified settings. This track was recorded with the same setup as the first, but with explicit work on the equalizer settings. The sound of this track is more like an aftershock, like the consequences of not yet ended, but lost its force hurricane. In this composition, the textures are not so intense, but more distinct. We hear clicks at high and medium frequencies, gurgling at frequencies just below average and hum at frequencies close to bass. There is practically no bass, creating a feeling of lightness and some relaxation. Again, the number of layers is large and it is difficult to focus any single layer. The hissing whistle in the central channel slightly reduced its amplitude and became more like a radio-interference.

Of the obvious merits of this album, I want to note a non-trivial approach to the formation of "walls." It is rare to hear such a texturally saturated album, made in the genre of static noise. I would not describe it as HNW, there is not that "Harsh" here. Nevertheless, the album is quite hard sounded, and I would say that the style of this album is Hard Ambient Noise Wall.

Of the shortcomings of the album I would like to single out one - for me it was a little intrusive hissing / whistling / hum in the central channel on the second track.

So, we have a very original, rich and serious album in the style of static noise, superbly creating an atmosphere of meditative listening. I won't say that Nemanja Nikolic has surpassed himself here, as we've come to expect from him the new, no less original and creative conceptual works.