Ptomain — Internal Voices

Spider Tapes presents Internal Voices, a 30 minute tape by German-based harsh noise/HNW act Ptomain. This tape was actually released in 2011, and since then it appears that both the label and artist may be defunct at this point. And such is the life of most noise labels and artists, come and gone is the blink of an eye. Of course, unlike the flash in the pan ephemera that is mainstream music, experimental music is ripe to be discovered and enjoyed many, many years after the fact.

The packaging is pretty standard fare, a simple j-card and plastic case. The j-card features 2 pictures of a skinless man printed on textured paper. Nothing flashy, but it appears this is the signature look for many of Spider Tapes’ releases.

Internal Voices comprises 2 very different HNW tracks. Side A’s untitled track is an aggressive, suffocating mass of caustic static. It sounds like ramped up radio static with repetitive peaks and valleys throughout. I’ve listened to a lot of wall noise over the years, so there’s very little that surprises me within the genre, but there’s something about this track that sounds and feels like the first time I listened to a Vomir tape (my first HNW experience). It’s quite inexplicable, what it is about this track that rekindles the claustrophobic feelings I had upon my first encounter with wall noise, but Ptomain is certainly doing something right.

Side B is an entirely different animal altogether. I’m not even sure this untitled track would qualify as a wall noise piece, but rather dark atmospheric drone. It can best be described as a repetitive stream of billowing exhaust fumes combined with a layer of machinery hum. The track flows from point A to point B in an uninterrupted fashion. I had a friend who recorded an air conditioner one time and turned up the gain way high. This track sounds very reminiscent. I rather enjoy sounds of captured machinery hum, and while I have no idea if that was Ptomain’s source, it certainly appears so to my ears. It’s a much welcome contrast to the sonic violence of Side A.

In conclusion, Internal Voices is a really solid release featuring 2 very different, yet equally satisfying takes on static sound. The fact that the sounds Ptomain presents brings me back to the days when I was first dipping my toes in wall noise waters is certainly an unexpected bonus.