I don’t think people realize how important Racebannon are at this point.
They’ve continued to get heavier and heavier while their peers wither away and die within a few years. Even their biggest influence back in the early years, Usurp Synapse, seem like a distant memory as so many sludgy hardcore acts form and disband.
Not ‘bannon though. They endure.
Their latest torture test, Acid or Blood, was a long time comin’, and it delivered the dredges once again, not to mention the Rapider Than Horsepower side project, which allocated safer, softer thrills without sacrificing quality.
The only question in my mind after the revitalizing new record/projects — and label change, from Secretly Canadian to Southern — was the eternal one: What’s next?
Merzbannon, that’s what, motherfucker! At least that’s what I’d say to myself now, having found out about this cherry lil’ 45RPM clear-vinyl 12″ (with download card included, I’m glad to say).
This is a nutty project that could have sent the world running … and still might. The idea of Japanese noise artist — hell, the original Japanese noise artist — Merzbow getting his corroded little hands on an entire Racebannon record, in this case the eternal concept album Satan’s Kickin’ Yr Dick In, absolutely stinks. STINKS.
You definitely shouldn’t miss it.
Not that this is the most respectful remix I’ve ever heard. I can barely hear any trace of the original document’s gnarled, snarling vocals and pulsing guitars. What mostly happens is all-new noise worship, which is somewhat disappointing but, by the end of the record, totally rewarding in its own right.
Jesus fucking christ, I have not a clue what else to say about this except where your goddamn hardhats and get ready to rumble with a whopping round of sound. Merzbannon are trouble, their undertaking a titanic rumble in the jungle between a noisesmith and his subject, one of the most respect grind/crust/punk/hardcore/noise bands around.
It’s as if the drums are a ghost haunting the speakers from afar; small snips of bass and guitar shine through the morass of mossy noise residue too, and when a scream pierces the cloud of electrical current you can almost feel like you’re listening to something more ‘bannon than ‘bow.
It doesn’t last for more than a few seconds at a time. Yet I find myself searching for this gorgeous bright-orange LP sleeve more often than I do for, say, a Hair Police execution gallery.
There’s a reason for that. I’m a tried-and-true fanatic for Racebannon, and as such I’ve given their row with Merzbow more shrift than I would for the average harsh-noise endurance test (not that I don’t respect that stuff; Prurient for Prez!).
Not only that, but my enthusiasm has been rewarded many times over.
Rusty and caked with dissonance as Merzbow’s lens may be, it serves its purpose here, offering a song cycle no one would have imagined emerging from the original incarnation of Satan’s Kickin’ Yr Dick In, which is a treat you’re going to have to enjoy as well if you’ve taken the time to read this SHIT.
And by SHIT I mean awesome blog post. Soldier on with me this week and I’ll slap your stupid face with more BJM, a few new goodies fresh off the presses (including Locrian and a 3-inch CD from NYC artist/minimalist composer Stephen Spera) and god knows what else.
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