Agit8/Cheapmachines "Split" CD
[Brise-Cul]
First up on this split is Australia's Agit8 with five tracks under the heading of "The Thunder From Down Under", which jump from rhythmic surges and brief ambient lulls to scorching harsh noise... and all of the tracks are, of course, titled after songs by more notable Australian artists such as AC/DC and Men at Work.  I'm not a particular fan of the material, but it's loud, distorted, and in your face - without being too chaotic or sounding totally generic.  What I'm trying to say is that it's not my thing, but it's not bad.  There's some quality to it.  "I Come From a Land Down Under" is a two-minute assault that's far more chaotic than the other tracks, complete with one quick drop to near silence, but for the most part these five tracks offer a constant barrage of fierce distortion with only a few little shifts.  There's always a lot of movement, though.  The UK's Cheapmachines follows with four generally longer tracks titled simply "Cassette Fragment #1" through "Cassette Fragment #4", under the general title of "Failsafe".  The material was recorded way back between 1997 and 1999, which might suggest leftovers, but... not unlike Agit8, even though it's not really my thing, I can listen to it.  There's more variety present, which helps carry some of the longer running times along, and nothing ever gets as harsh as Agit8's work either.  There's a decent amount of repetition where a distorted midrange churn, ambient undercurrent, or stuttered machinated hum will lock in for a bit of time and perhaps be revisited later, and overall these compositions feel a little cleaner, more electronic, and more glitchy.  It's worth noting that the only sources credited are analogue electronics and effects, so... this isn't laptop noise or anything like that.  Ironically the longest of these songs, "Cassette Fragment #3", is the most stagnant, whereas "Cassette Fragment #4" is a similarly immobile piece but its far quieter and more subdued ambient approach makes it my favorite song on the entire split.  The CD-R comes in a black and white sleeve devoting one side to each artist, with a similar xeroxed insert inside.  Honestly all of the artwork looks pretty weak on this one, so I'm not really taken by the visual aspect of it at all.  But then again, I'm not taken by the music either.  The music is better than the visual element, but I'm pretty indifferent about it in its entirety.  Not bad, but not something that interests me, either. (5/10)
Running time - 52:20, Tracks: 9
[Notable tracks: Thunderstruck, Cassette Fragment #4]
Brise-Cul Records - http://brise-cul-records.cjb.net

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