I did not know much about James Nathan Powell, but he hails from Hot Springs Arkansas and describes his work as “Small handmade noise/hnw/loud stuff & pretty stuff.“ Well, if there is one thing that I enjoy, it’s small batch artisinal noise, so let’s dive in and see what recipe Powell has in store for us.

This album consists of nine tracks titled only with Roman numerals. We start off with a very short (42 seconds) dose of extra crunchy noise that gives us a taste of what we are in for. Track II is more static-filled, harsh, stuttering noise that shifts gears with bits of junk noise and some heavily distorted voice. If you've ever wondered what it sounds like to ride in a dryer with a bunch of scrap metal, Powell has you covered. This is not to say that it is all in your face noise. III and VII are both a bit more subdued crackling noise with a helping of static on the side, in the case of VII. But Powell also knows how to let loose, and tracks like VI are completely overdriven to the point of destruction. At the end, IX completely changes registers and offers up a short piano piece with a lot of background hiss and what sounds like cicadas. This is not harsh, but it is an intense, simple composition that provides a nice juxtaposition with the previous harshness.

If you like your noise extra crunchy, this is well worth checking out. It's the kind of stuff that lets your mind wander, which I enjoy considerably. Well worth picking up. This album weighs in at around 22 minutes and is limited to 42 copies.

From Berlin, Germany comes Cuntroaches, with their self-titled debut album of 8 tracks in 31 minutes. The band consists of Martina Schoene-Radunski - guitar, vocals; Claire Panthère - drums; and David Hantelius - bass, but since the sonics are so overwhelming it sounds like a lot more than just the three of them. The album is a nearly relentless audio assault of 8 tracks in 31 minutes, broken up by occasional bouts of silence, studio and other effects, sonic weirdness. There is a tension to this album you don't often find in this kind of music now. To me, that's a hallmark of creativity of craft, and Cuntroaches have that in spades. One listen to the five-and-one half minutes of "Gravity System" will dispel any illusions you may have had about this being just another noise punk band. "I Can (Still) Tell You're (Scum)" seems like it's going to be a straight-ahead hardcore diatribe, then it goes off to places you can't even imagine, like a bad DMT trip, finally tossing you back into the mosh pit. Heading into "Red Velvet Rose" it seems like it was recorded in another dimension, one that has no basis in this reality whatsoever. Of course the vocals are screamingly unintelligable and off the charts but what else might you expect? This is beyond no wave, way, way beyond it. This is noise rock for noise purists, and something to be damned proud of, despite the name. If you're going to buy the album, I recommend the green color vinyl.

Okay, there's a limit to my tolerance on noise and nonsense and I think I've reached it with Squid Pisser, a band from L.A. consisting of Tommy Meehan (vocals, guitars, bass, noise, samples) and Seth Carolina (drums, vocals). This is just hardcore/speedcore/grindcore with alien Halloween masks. It's chaotic screaming, shouting, mad drumming and fucked up guitar playing and songs that make absolutely no sense at all, no matter how you slice them. After you find out Meehan is the guitarist of GWAR and Cancer Christ it begins to make some sense, but Seth Carolina is the drummer for pop punk band Starcrawler and that makes much less sense. 'Vaporize A Tadpole' rips through 15 tracks ( I really can't call them all songs) in 31 minutes. With track names such as "Liquified Remains," "Marching For Trash," "Fuck Your Preacher," and "Smog of Self Abuse" I guess you know what you're in for. But all this is undoubtedly tongue way inside the cheek. (They even put out a comic book you can get when you buy their 'Vaporize A Neighbor' 7" 4-track EP, all of which are on the 'Vaporize A Tadpole' album.) Let me make it perfectly clear- I really think this is thoroughly awful, which means, if you like nasty, fast and noisy glitched out hardcore and all things slimy, you will LOVE IT.

Got a bunch of CDs from Skin Graft Records and you know what that means...IT'S TIME FOR NOIZE!!! First up is Hyper Gal, a duo of two young ladies from Osaka, Japan- visual artist Koharu Ishida (vocals) and noise artist Kurumi Kadoya (drums) but there's a lot more going on than just vocals and drums, there is also sampled (and maybe even played?) music and plenty of distorted noise. The distortion is everywhere...pervasive. Songs are minimal and quite repetitive. Once it gets going, in the opener, "charm," Koharu repeats "you're gonna bend it, shape it all night long" many, many, many times over the course of five minutes. "Tropical" is sampled orchestral hits played on a simple riff with lyrics that just can't be deciphered without a degree in noisology. Before you figure out what she's saying, the song is over. The first half of "Papapa" is all noise and drum clatter, but in the second half we have Koharu's Japanese speed rap. There really is no break between that and the next song, "Domestic Utopia" which feature locomotive-like distorted high-hat for a while then Koharu's repetitious vocal phrasing with on-the-beat percussion for emphasis, then back to the locomotive high hat. (Might also sound like a lawn sprinkler run through a distortion pedal.) This duality continues to the end where it picks up more distortion but not speed. "Wedding ring" runs arpeggiated synth sequences through the distortion device and takes a somewhat old fashioned melody through the noise machine. The effect is...well, disarming to say the least. While "Tenshi" does not really seem distorted at first with lots of toy-like synth sequencing, it's not long before the overdrive kicks in, and by the time the vocals come around it sounds like a full scale riot in progress at the mall in front of the music store. Yowza! It seems like it will never end! I guess "bleach" is Kurumi's drum solo since it's mostly drums and only 33 seconds but Koharu has her say as well. Based musically on a thoroughly obnoxious repetitious synth arpeggio, "Transparent new Living" gives Koharu more room for vocal expression but just wears you down, down, down. 'Pure' is Hyper Gal's second album (haven't heard the first) and they've been compared to artists such as Enjoy, Cowgirl Clue, Kumo 99 and The Hellp (if that's any help) and while I find this kind of noise pop essential to the scene in general, it's really not my thing, but I can respect it. I think the album cover captures the spirit of what these two Hyper Gals are all about. If I was producing Hyper Gal there are surely things I would have done differently, but no one asked me so take it for what it's worth. But they are cute. :-)

It's been a while since I've received anything from French experimental/noise/industrial label Cioran Records, and I think that goes back to Camecrude in 2021. I can always tell a Cioran promo when it arrives before I even open it; they use all black packaging with handwritten lettering for my address. According to the promo sheets, Flagorne is the project of experimental black metal artist Maquerelle and industrial hardcore producer Afga061. Now just because I've never heard of these guys before doesn't mean you haven't, but unless you live in Europe, I'm guessing you probably haven't either. No matter, talent doesn't have to have a reputation to be good, and for what they are, these guys are pretty darn good.

'Les Couleurs D'une Fievre' ('The Colors of Fever') is five tracks in a mere 38 minutes, but you don't always need an hour's worth of material on an album to make a point, and Flagorne certainly makes its point emphatically, which happens more often than not in the industrial harsh noise genre. First track, "Salutations" begins on the lighter side of noise with an almost industrial ambient demeanor, but when Maquerelle comes in with anguished ranting in French, it won't matter if you know what he's saying or not. A little more than halfway through the noise, ranting and tumult gives way to a calmer but creepy electronic ambience with distorted speech and other odd sonic effluvia. While that track rolls seamlessly into "Addresses," it takes on thunderous bottom-heavy percussion and totally insane chaotic instrumentality with screaming vocals drowning in the morass. This is quite a lot to bear for five minutes, even for the most seasoned noise enthusiast. (Gotta love the snare hit and vocal "GAAa" at the end though. "Devore" seems almost the inverse of the previous track, but with a very strong sequenced beat and old school percussion that are reminiscent of Neubaten and Throbbing Gristle. Very industrial, and almost rock, with plenty of shock. Gotta love this track! I even like the way it peters out at the end with the eerie whistling. "De rien de bien" begins with loops that sound like a broken vintage videogame, but after only a little over a minute in, the crunchy medium tempo beat begins with more ranting from Maquerelle, and now we've got a real scene going on here. Just when you though it was getting a tad too repetitive, the scene changes to a beatless purgatory before plummeting into the hellscape it was always destined for, and Maquerelle ain't gonna let you forget it.

What I really like about Flagorne is, that as noisy as they can be (and that's a plenty most times), they temper it with non-harsh, sonically interesting passages. That is very evident on final track "Comme plusieurs" where the initial music is ominous but not overwhelming, and Maquerelle's vocals are more sung than ranted or screamed, somewhat in the style of a muezzin, rather than anything in the industrial rock vein. (Hey, he's got a really good voice too.) Strange, but oddly delightful and almost dream-like. For a debut, this is a stellar album.