John Wiese - Soft Punk [Troubleman Unlimted - 2007]Soft Punk finds Mr Wiese delving into all facets of his sound from his solo work to his work with Sissy Spacek and beyond. Building a jolting, adrenaline filled and textural rich ride, that also dips into more atmospheric and introspective sound valleys along the way. It finds him merge in extreme metal, jazz textures, cut up drum patterns, environmental recordings and all manner of sound and musically texture along the way with noise elements. I think the most impressive thing here is the different moods and elements he’s weaved together - in the past you knew that he’d stay using similar elements or sounds within an albums structure here you don’t know quite were he’ll throw you next- be into strange broken funk like meets noise runs, or brooding narcotic night hums that build to burning walls of sound or maybe sinister bell like harmonics that seem to spell something very uncomfortable and edgy. He also lets some elements breath more, this isn't just about overloading you. Real thought has been giving to the contrast of sound and tracks positions for maximum effect either jarring and disorientating or atmospheric and audio picturesque. The audio edit is here has truly reached breathtaking level- Wiese truly is a sound artist of the highest level, taking tiny second long sound elements and building a complex and starling soundart. With Soft Punk Wiese has built a varied and adventurous album taking some surprising sound routes and risk that all pay off. One of the noise albums of this year? Oh Yes! Roger Batty
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