v/a "With Brutal Force!" compilation LP

v/a - With Brutal Force!

Here's a nine-track international compilation LP of harsh noise and power electronics, making for one hell of a debut release for this new label! Pain Nail opens up with some superb power electronics in "Phase Extinct": Reminiscent of early work from The Grey Wolves meets Genocide Organ with some raw distortion and percussive explosions amidst reverberated midrange tones with highly treated vocal shouts. This is how power electronics should be. The atmosphere is excellent, the sound is rugged, and nothing is overbearing or irritating. DJK is up next with a mix of indecipherable samples and sinister distorted crunches alongside ambient hums with reverberated yelling on occasion. It's somewhat quiet and sort of thin, but another solid offering as far as the genre is concerned. The Grey Wolves' "Terminate With Extreme Prejudice" is a great piece, definitely in line with the material from their early LP's in its use of bright distortion over smooth ambient hums and a mesh of samples. The throbbing, pulsating background rhythm makes things even more menacing. Lasse Marhaug unloads some rhythmic banging with excessively overloaded distortion and some subtle melodic elements at times. Lockweld's track was recorded live in CA back in 2000 (complete with applause at the end) and throws out some throbbing low-end distortion and raw power tool grinding, sounding even more rugged than usual thanks to the live recording. Death Squad's "A Fractured Sense of Life" opens up side B and is probably the darkest track herein. Some spoken vocals arise through brooding drones - some lightly distorted, others cleaner. The vocals are mixed very low, secondary to the fluttering foreground. A curious piece, indeed. Finland's Grunt unleashes the most extreme track in "Valta", with tons of distortion and feedback with percussive banging and manic distorted screams. I love the ending, as things change over to eerie drones and lighter feedback before exploding full blast once more. Next is a live collaboration between DJK and Phosgen, using samples and rhythmic stuttering distortion. It's completely chaotic, with distorted vocal yells and piercing feedback. Totally nuts... very different from all of the other tracks, though in my opinion its impact is far weaker than its companions. Survival Unit (Sweden) closes things out with "The End Justifies", superb as always. This is another atmospheric power electronics track with lots of diversity and almost more of a death industrial atmosphere going on. Very nice. The LP is on opaque red vinyl and comes in a nice black and white sleeve with high contrast graphics. The entire sleeve is wrapped in chicken wire. Nice touch! The back cover is hand-numbered out of a mere 505 copies as well! Inside are numerous xeroxed inserts (approximately 5.5" x 8.5") with art for each project. I wish that all of the contributors had included contact information or at least their countries of origin, as many focused on visuals but neglected the inclusion of other pertinent information. Some of the art is more interesting than others, with the best pieces definitely going to Survival Unit and Pain Nail, with Death Squad, Lasse Marhaug, and DJK closely behind on the visual front. For a compilation this one's got a solid lineup that shouldn't disappoint. There are only a few tracks herein that I don't enjoy, so I would highly recommend trying to track one of these down if they haven't sold out yet. (8/10)
[Maruta]
Running time - 45:00 (approximately), Tracks: 9

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