Richard Ramirez/Fire In The Head – Split
This is a 6 track split CDR, with each project offering 3 a piece. Richard Ramirez has been a pillar of the US Noise scene for well over a decade now and has remained consistently interesting in his output. His three tracks, all called “Legion” with each being a different version I-III. The first incarnation is a dense wall of jagged static like frequencies and underlying sub bass drift. It doesn’t really alter from that constant barrage, but at just over 3 minutes the intensity is maintained. Version II grows directly from this and pretty much stays the course for the first minute or so and then wells up into slowly shifting feedback yowls and electric hums. This slightly subdued passage gives way again to violent, scuttering noise and dense distortions with a constricted and choked quality to the ragged edges. The final version blends with the one preceding it alternating between the confined bite and a looser roar. The three movements total around 13 minutes, and showcase a great clarity to the sounds and steady shift in dynamic. Fire In The Head opens with “Sewn Shut” an ugly gurgling track of biting feedback and dense electronics with an off kilter but vibrant intensity. The vocals are delivered in a seething spoken style and held low in the mix. “Fear Becomes Complacency” is next and becomes in stark contrast to the previous track, with slow swelling synth tones as the sputtering electronics build to a spitting mass. The synth work remains intact throughout and provides a nice tonal bed for the chaos to rest upon. It’s a juxtaposition that works really well. “One Last Breath” ends the disc and fades into a heaving wall of heavy electronics and distant barked vocals. Really nice work from both here with a diversity of sound and style, and some really great sonics. Definitely a keeper. – Scott
AUDIO IMMOLATION INDUSTRIES
Worm Gear 