Ahlzagailzehguh "Music for Handicapped Ears" CS
[self-released]
Great packaging, as usual from this project. The cassettes come in cases that are painted entirely black and lightly charred, with a small black and white insert inside with chaotic text and abstract textures all over it. Even better is that the cassettes themselves were taken from an abandoned psychiatric hospital, so they've got typewriter labels on them representing their former content. My particular copy, for instance, looks to have been a recorded sermon called "Diligence" in its former incarnation. Stylistically this is highly active harsh noise with much more of a cutup style than some of his past work. It's very in your face and abrasive with shitloads of movement swirling all over the place and almost constant stereo panning for added impact. So, expect chaotic wails of feedback, straightforward harsh distortion, some glitchier electronic noises, a few quick breaks of shouting/screaming vocals, plenty of warbled textures and frenetic movements, some thicker and more rumbling low-end distortion textures, scarce samples, etc. Hell, there are even a few breaks of complete silence or "empty" background sounds - shuffling, dead signal hums, etc. It's basically 45 minutes (the same track appears on both sides of the 90-minute cassette) of that chaotic jumble of styles chopped up and assembled in different pieces - very rarely sitting still for more than five seconds at a time - literally! The cassette is hand-numbered of a mere 30 copies, and I'm not sure if it's still available or not. This is another that really sets Ahlzagailzehguh apart as one of the more creative harsh projects active in the US right now - it's not groundbreaking, but there's enough creativity all around to give it that extra something, you know? Nicely done. (7/10)
Running time - 45:00 (approximately), Tracks: 1
[Notable tracks: there's only one]
Ahlzagailzehguh - http://www.geocities.com/collapsedhole/

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