'Split' by Merzbow / Sutcliffe Jügend / Satori [CSR102CD]

SUTCLIFFE Jügend and Satori - both from England - appeared together fairly recently on another Cold Spring release, 'Japan Tour 2007', so I think it's rather appropriate that on this occasion they are joined by the leading Japanese Noise phenomenon, Merzbow. This current split was recorded to mark the appearence of the trio at the University of London Union (ULU) in April 2008, but all three tracks were recorded in the studio. Tokyo's Masami Akita, who formed Merzbow as far back as 1979, is to aural clarity what sodium chloride is to your average common-or-garden slug and kicks off this ear-splitting adventure with the 15-minute odyssey, 'Feedyellow mix.1'. The track's rhythmic frequencies take up the beat as muffled swathes of sonic energy swirl through the musical vortex like a liquid migraine. I've always preferred Merzbow to, say, Yamazaki Maso's work with Masonna, because although it's amazingly intensive and always captivating the former somehow manages to retain a central structure of some kind. Merzbow represents order in the face of chaos; restraint in the face of licentiousness. In a metaphorical sense, perhaps, similar to the image of the silhouetted trees on the CD cover, which create a stark contrast to the eerie mist in the background. The track becomes increasingly more experimental once we pass the ten-minute mark, whoops and tones rising and falling like a beleagured cripple on an escalator. Merzbow puts your teeth on edge, your stress levels at maximum and your headphones on meltdown. And then it's time for the charmingly-named Sutcliffe Jügend, a misogynistic rottweiler lovingly unleashed by messrs. Kevin Tomkins and Paul Taylor as a Whitehouse side-project back in 1982. Their 'Pigmother' (as opposed to 'Pigdaddy', another Cold Spring release), squeals its way onto your radar like a blood-spattered sow. Full of mocking vocals and slurred electronics, this is a bizarre cornucopia of shrill frequencies, grating metal and sneering taunts. The third representative in our triumvirate, Satori, first issued 'Paralysis' as part of their vinyl 'Kanashibari' (2008) album for the Japanese label, Dogma Chase, but here we are introduced to the 'Hypnopompic Mix'. Strangely enough, I'm reading Gary Lachman's 'The Secret History of Consciousness' (2003) at the moment, which discusses the concept of hypnopompic states in some depth. It relates to the work done by Professor Andreas Mavromatis of Brunel University who, in 1987, puiblished his findings about the ability of some people to experience hypnogogia - or 'dreaming while awake' - during the onset of sleep. The word 'hypnopompic', on the other hand, explains the same process occurring at the moment of waking up. The style itself is closer to power electronics than many of the tracks on their previous release for Cold Spring, but at the same time it's hard to deny the semi-martial influences at work here. The infectious, tribal beat is assisted by the sound of a small bell that almost sounds vulnerable amidst the tumultuous background with its scathing wisps of radiophonic interference. It's like trying to find Radio Four in the heart of the Belgian Congo, with a cannibal breathing down your neck. Who probably happens to have a small bell, too ... er ... but it's a great track and Justin Michell and Neil Chaney have pulled another little beauty out of the hat because this is easily the best track out of those on offer. All in all, a nice little threesome and well worth grabbing while you still can.

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