Andrew Coltrane – Urge to Kill (Cérebro Morto, 2011)

Andrew Coltrane – Urge to Kill
Cérebro Morto 2011

I’ve seen Andrew Coltrane’s name around a bit and I always thought it was funny to see that last name in the context of the contemporary noise scene. I don’t know if it’s a pseudonym or a given name, but either way, the name brings out the badass, free jazz side of John Coltrane, as if Andrew was some long, lost, grand cousin.

Anyway, Andrew Coltrane is based in Detroit, Michigan and has collaborated with John Olson of Wolf Eyes and Heath Moerland of Sick Llama. Urge to Kill was recorded in early 2011 in Detroit. Track 1 utilizes low, distorted drones mixed with sporadic screaming vocals, also blown out. The drones turn into wide and dense washes of noise and hiss before cutting out a couple minutes into the piece. The sounds become more minimalist and less heavy but still have a droning quality. Beams of noise shoot out atop another low, distorted drone along with high-pitched, wavering feedback. The pace is pretty slow, and I enjoy that, as waves of distortion drift in and out. I think there are intermittent vocals near the end, which sound pretty monstrous. “Track 2” is less dynamic, featuring a warbly, blown out stampede of dense hiss and bass-y rumbling. The source of the production or its process might reveal something worth noting, because it sounds like it could be a field recording.

Gianluca Becuzzi - Haunted (Cérebro Morto, 2011)

Gianluca Becuzzi – Haunted
Cérebro Morto 2011

Becuzzi is an Italian based musician and this EP was recorded in 2011. “H001” begins quietly with distorted, feedback-y tones until a pounding, echo-y bass enters on a slow, maybe a-rhythmic beat. It’s quite a spooky track. “H002” is slightly less intimidating though it still features ghostly, echo-y ambience with screeching, percussive noise. Waves of hiss pan left and right on the headphones and zoom in. There’s a nice sense of pace to the piece, gradually shifting textures in a very careful, evolutionary manner. The end of the song focuses on metal percussion clanging. Early in “H003” there are percussive sounds with a resounding echo. The overall sound of the piece is rather minimalist until a rumbling, thundering bass sound enters in addition to more panned hiss. “H004” sounds very similar to “H001”, incorporating the pounding bass and high-pitched feedback. They are also the same length, as are track two and three. Thus the sequencing process is quite noticeable and intentional here.

Pregnant Spore – Listen To the Universe (Cérebro Morto, 2012)

Pregnant Spore – Listen To the Universe
Cérebro Morto 2012

Pregnant Spore is the solo project of Justin Marc Lloyd based in Baltimore, Maryland and this EP was recorded in early 2011. “Time Melt” consists of crackling, free form analog synth racket at times becoming harsh and aggressive. The overall sound of the piece is on the minimal side allowing the silence to seep in amongst the synth. Cérebro Morto’s promo for the album also says that there is “real object sound processing” in the album, of which you can hear subtle, metal percussion rattling mixed with the synth noise. The synth is chaotic throughout the piece, in the sense that it is constantly shifting between pitch, texture, and rate. “Terres Australes” is less chaotic and frenzied and more of a drone affair, though it still features noisy textures. The synth is relatively tamer and it sounds as if the washes of noise are sourced from the processed percussion. In the first half of the piece there is a bass sound that could be a record player stopping that repeats, providing a sense of rhythm. The song has a mechanical aesthetic, composed of looping, minmalist phrases woven into each other.