Scott Miller / Lee Camfield / Merzbow
(Cold Spring Records, 2013)
Nocturnal noise and metal soundscapes: Merzbow’s blurry, screeching oscillation meets the abstract black metal of former Suteth Hexen members Miller and Camfield. Tough to define but it’s abrasive and intelligent stuff that’ll smack you right in the face. Fans of Xasthur, Bone Awl, and Whitehouse will surely dig this.

1. (22:03) Plodding bass and squiggly screeches wander into abstract terrain until a sudden burst of harmonized black metal guitar erupts around 7min, Merzbow follows with restraint and it sounds like a noisier Wolves In The Throne Room for a while, but that doesn’t last too long. Strange dissonant clanging, buzzing, whirring mechanical noise prevails.
2. (22:03) swirling oscillations start off, some dark doomy atmospherics slowly creep in, and by 8 minutes there are droning riffs reminiscent of early Earth, with some howling Burzum-esque vocals; the structured “metal” is short-lived, and soon enough we’re back to a cavernous vortex of sickening sounds.