Prostitutes Of The 19th Century — The Victorian Ideal
The release comes in the house-style Altar Of Waste packaging- which features a clear DVD case, and this takes in( on both discs & double sided cover) black & white Victorian pornography. So it’s not the most arty/ colourful of AOW releases, but it of course fits both the projects name & the releases theme well.
I first became aware of this project after the Moral Defeat’s four tape porn ’n’ wall compilation A Vulgar Abstract from early 2016. I was impressed by the projects ability to create cacophony, yet detailed & sleazy bound wall-craft that very much fit the projects themes. In all this set offer six ‘walls’, and each are entitled The Victorian Ideal with a roman numeral after.With the shorter tracks appearing on disc one, and the mid length ones on disc two.
So disc one takes in "The Victorian Ideal parts I – IV". 'I’ starts out with a selection of fairly consistent rolling & circular juddering textures- these sound almost like layered field recordings of multiple trolleys moving. At around the third minute a more off-pattern knocking & thick striking textures at added to the mix. These elements sudden appear at times quite jarring, though through-out we get the consistent undercarriage of the rolling/ circular patter-nation. It’s an effective & appealing opening track, which nicely ushers you into the sets crude & murky organic world.
‘II’ carries on the lo-fi industrial like vibe of the first track- bringing together a muffled & slightly caught circular rumble, with a thick layer of rushing, almost murkily aquatic drone matter.
‘III’ starts off sounding like a blend of the churning, searing and monotonous sound of machines in industrial revolution mill, blended with melt & stretched choral music, or music hall fare. As the track progresses the elements nicely blur & blend together to create this dense & truly hellish cacophony- which is edged with more screeching machine belt slippings deep in it’s monotonous ‘n’ churning mass.
Lastly on disc one we of course have “IV”- it's built around a muffled-yet-revered machine churn ‘n’ batter. This is surrounded by a blend of spinning, rattling, and circling tones, and every so often this stretched forking tone can be made out, as the track bitter slogs & batters on & on. The track brings to mind images of aged & antiquated projectors, spinning out endless reels of flickering & aged porn in underground rooms, to a group of greyed & smoked hazed men. It's both sleazed, hellish, yet oddly soothing in clamouring yet dusty grind.
Onto disc number two, and here we have the last two tracks "The Victorian Ideal parts V & VI". “V” comes in at just over the twenty seven minute, and is constructed around a blend slowed roasting’s, slurred billows & buffetings, and a selection of crumbing descents. The whole thing is most spelling binding in its drowsy yet consistent simmer- bringing to mind watching a line of buildings slowly but surely getting engulfed & consumed by fire on a crisp yet pitch black winters night. At times the pace picks-up a little from its lulling roast, with the addition of slightly more rapid buffetings- yet it never really gets much above a mid-range pace.
So last up we of course have "VI", and this is the longest track here at near the thirty six minute & a half mark. The ‘wall’ is built around a juddering & fairly pacey mid-ranged tone, this is back by a distant throbbing, and a selection of smaller jittering ‘n’ scrapping sub-tones. The whole thing has a very weathered & organic feel to it, and it trundles along in a persistent yet stark manner. By around the 20th minute the whole thing is seemingly more rapid in it’s attack- with the centrally juddering become less defined in it’s feel, as well as been edged with a more creating seared tones- all to create quite a numbing yet captivating vibe.
All in all The Victorian Ideal gives the listener six tracks that are a fairly distinctive blend of numbing, grey, and muffled wall craft. I certainly look forward to checking out more of this projects work soon,.