Top Bar
Musique Machine Logo Home ButtonReviews ButtonArticles ButtonBand Specials ButtonAbout Us Button
SearchGo Down
Search for  
With search mode in section(s)
And sort the results by
show articles written by  
 Review archive:  # a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z

Burning Tree - Lammergyer [Utech - 2013]

Burning Tree's "Lammergyer" is a true endurance test of an album if I have ever heard one, a recording that would compel 99% of listeners of even the most abrasive free jazz and noise music shut it off before its 42 minute were up, myself included.  While listeners of John Zorn and Borbetomagus are undoubtedly familiar with the piercing, physically revolting sound of an altissimo saxophone squeal (one of the few sounds more abrasive than a raw human scream) it is unlikely most have ever listened to an entire album of unrelenting, unchangingly shrill shrieks from a player with apparently inhuman stamina.  There is scarcely a rest between these blasts, and these frequencies are among the most physically painful for virtually all listeners.  It's much like a tea kettle boiling over.

Being that I cannot listen to this record, I initially wanted to give it a very negative review, however, I must admit that it is the most extreme and unlistenable recording I have ever come across, and that this fact must count for something.  In a certain sense the physical anguish caused to listeners of this sound could be viewed as the musicians expressing their anguish through the sound.  This is not remotely a cathartic recording, as some noisy and cacophanous albums are, however: prolonged listening to "Lammergyer" will undoubtedly increase your anxiety level, never allowing your mind a moment's rest.

The most surreal aspect of "Lammergyer" is its absolute unrelenting monotony.  All the instruments play a single sustained tone / roll, perforated with abrasive re-entries, for virtually the entire album.  Truthfully, the only instrument that I can really hear is the saxophone; with its aforementioned shrill qualities it is much louder than the other instruments, and so mercilessly constant that there is no breathing room for anything else to come to the fore.  I would certainly get a lot more out of this album if the saxophone were partially or wholly absent, but I must admit that if this were the case, the album would certainly not come off as violent or pricklingly unwelcoming as it does now.  There is some kind of insane ecstacy in a ritual of pain such as this.

In conclusion, listening to this album will really, really want to hurt your ears, and you will certainly feel all the more agitated and irritable afterwards, even if you don't make it through the whole thing.  I would only recommend it to those who feel the need to know how far the limits of abrasion can be pushed.  Likely someone out there could penetrate into the strange dimensions hidden within the microtonal, animal warbles of the altissimo roar, however it is certainly not me.

Rating: 3 out of 5Rating: 3 out of 5Rating: 3 out of 5Rating: 3 out of 5Rating: 3 out of 5

Josh Landry
Latest Reviews

Burning Tree - Lammergyer
Burning Tree's "Lammergyer" is a true endurance test of an album if I have ever heard one, a recording that would compel 99% of listeners of even the most&nb...
241225   Wrathchild America - Climbin'...
241225   Rushab Nandha - Tear
241225   Hitcher-Hiker - Hitcher-Hiker...
231225   Devil Fetus - Devil Fetus (B...
221225   Zoltán Huszárik-1963- 1979 ...
201225   Re-Animator - Re-Animator( Bl...
191225   Venus DIE-trap - Venus DIE-tr...
191225   Coyotes - Coyotes(VOD/ Blu Ray)
181225   Various Artists - Santa Is Ro...
181225   Death Ride - Death Ride( DVD)
Latest Articles

Creepy Images Books - Killer Art
Of all the cult/exploitation genres, Giallo stands as one of the more visually & art-based- be it with the grand/ dramatic location, choreographed murder...
231225   Creepy Images Books - Killer Art
221225   Best Of 2025 - Music, Sound &...
041225   The Spectral Sounds of The Pr...
281025   Michael Hurst Interview - Unb...
071025   Xiphos - The Rise And Fall Of...
030925   Third Window Films - A Label ...
130825   HNW fest- Barcelona- 12th Apr...
250725   Raté interview - Walled-in F...
180625   Matthew Holmes - Of razor-sha...
280525   The Residents - Visits From T...
Go Up
(c) Musique Machine 2001 -2025. Twenty four years of true independence!! Mail Us at questions=at=musiquemachine=dot=comBottom