Controlled Bleeding – ‘Body Samples’ C70 $7
The second of two reissues on Obsolete Units documenting Controlled Bleeding’s paramount early 80′s work in the field of American harsh noise and post-industrial electronics. Following a similar collage aesthetic to Knees And Bones, the group’s second album from 1985 finds the staggeringly impetuous and rapturous pandemonium the group had been perfecting around this period advancing ahead diligently without much concern for any sort of repose. Perhaps a more diverse array of resonances are on display, but the mania is all masterfully regulated under the watch of founder Paul Lemos and late longtime members Chris Moriarty and Joe Papa. Another fundamental piece in the history of the American avant underground. Obsolete Units is enormously proud to be bringing this essential work back into print, with this being the first time it has seen release on cassette. This issue includes the original vinyl artwork as well as the bonus material included with the 1990 CD reissue. Pro-dubbed/pro-printed edition of 100.
Controlled Bleeding – ‘Knees And Bones’ C68
The first of two reissues on Obsolete Units of the singular early noise work from Paul Lemos’s chameleon-like project Controlled Bleeding, who have over the past 30 years excelled at styles as diverse as harsh noise, dub, free jazz, prog rock, and dark ambient. Knees And Bones though is unequivocally an important work of American industrial, harsh noise, and power electronics, with this inimitable collage of violence from 1985 finding Controlled Bleeding at its most cacophonous and outright ecstatic. Congealing together many disparate renderings of perplexing and unsettling improvisations, Knees alternates between near-contemplative states of raucous inspection to unhinged tantrums of hysterical frenzy. Much of your favorite harsh noise and power electronics starts here; think early Einsturzende Neubauten and the New Blockaders forcing forth a healthy regiment of pure aural punishment. Obsolete Units is enormously proud to be bringing this essential work back into print, with this marking the first time it has seen release on cassette. Pro-dubbed/pro-printed edition of 100.
Lea Bertucci – ‘Carillon’ C38 $7
An dexterous exploration of modern day tape music and woodwind composition, Carillon is the solo recording debut of TwistyCat member Lea Bertucci. A compendium of principles both familiar and unforeseen in Bertucci’s work, this cassette consists of two long pieces both similarly sharing a distinct fondness for the potency of tape as a musical means. The title piece superimposes Bertucci’s celebrated bass clarinet playing over found recorded sounds and amplified room textures, thus generating a sparsely oscillating work woven tightly within the warm confines of the cassette format. Her second composition represents a rather radical departure from her recordings with TwistyCat, this piece existing as a collage of sonics falling on deeply atonal and discordant planes. Here she reigns in her auditory tools until all sounds are gestated into a distinctly eerie and delicately beguiling essence. As a whole, Carillon is a powerfully visionary and penetrating statement that is to be expected from an artist of Bertucci’s talent. Highly recommended for fans of the work of Christina Kubisch, Luc Ferrari, and Pauline Oliveros. Pro-dubbed/pro-printed edition of 100.