Lugola — Deform

Here is a 2022 release from Michal Neithan Kielbasa (Whalesong, Nothing Has Changed, Harmony of Struggle) under his alter ego Lugola. It is the fifth release under that name and is the project’s first live album, recorded at the XX Wroclaw Industrial Festival in November 2021. It’s a raw slab of brutal, noisy power electronics to clear out even the most congested ears.

The album contains 8 tracks, largely drawn from the previous album, You Are Not Special and beefs them up for this live performance. Opening with the title track, "Deform", a wall of oscillating madness with electronically charged, distorted vocals bleeding through. This is followed by "Choke" which keeps things moving in the same direction. Sonically, this is a pretty wild ride, ensuring Lugola’s studio performances are merely the entrée to his live rituals. "Nothing" slows things down a little, but keeps the levels of wild-eyed intensity that has already built up. "Parade of Death" drops things down a notch, but has more interesting sonic textures. It’s slightly more subtle in its use of white noise but still remains a wild intense ride. "Tightening the Noose" sits in a similar territory, but begins to ramp up the use of white noise again. Throughout this release the listener never feels like they can't relax, it’s an intense experience that takes no prisoners. "Better Cancel Yourself" almost feels like it has settled into some sort of white noise groove, before "Consume" starts to ramp up the intensity levels again with more textures and greater emphasis on vocal synthesis. The album finishes with "You Are Not Special", more intensely wild distorted power electronic goodness to keep the listener glued to the CD before finally fading away to silence.

Deform is a brilliant live album of wild distorted Power Electronics and droning HNW-style white noise. It takes what Kielbasa has done previously in the studio and carries it into the live setting with aplomb. It’s more brutal, wilder and even more intense than the studio recordings, taking the songs to the next level, and it never really lets up. This release from Zoharum comes packaged in a lovely, foldout digipak designed by Maciej Mehring and featuring live photographs taken by Bertrand Robion. Overall, this is a great release for fans of power electronics and HNW, and shows just how powerful a Lugola live performance can be.