Richard Ramirez "Male" CS
[Truculent]
Plenty of generally harsh noise with dark ambient/death industrial undercurrents throughout this one. Expect lots of reverberation and some sparse areas where minimalism and gaps of silence play a large role, and lots of really heavily treated percussive textures, perhaps metal being smashed together? It's definitely got somewhat of a rugged recording with a decent amount of what seems to be background hiss, but I'm not too bothered by that. In a few scarce areas biting feedback takes hold and sticks around for awhile, caving in at one point to just faint feedback and heavy breathing, which later turns to really ridiculous screaming/shrieking - very cheesy, it completely kills the flow for me. Side B, while noticeably different from A, is more or less the same general style, just with different arrangements and textures. There are percussive elements, cuts of feedback, hiss and rugged distortion, wacky vocal outbursts, etc. The cassette comes in a milky clear case that snaps shut, and inside is a simple folded insert with minimal text and a stark image of a man bound and gagged in a chair or something. There are no track titles for whatever reason, but the print quality is very nice, and the insert looks good. I don't like this as much as some of Ramirez's other material, however. There are a few distinct problems with this release. Firstly, it's entirely too long. I could overlook the ridiculous shrieking and goofy panting were the cassette a short but sweet assault, but 50 minutes is just overkill. Secondly, there's no real variety. Yes, there are shifts in dynamics, and those are important in creating the atmosphere, but again the length comes into play - as over the course of 50 minutes there's not enough diversity to hold one's attention. A 20- to 30-minute cassette could've been a different story, it wouldn't have been exceptional, but it could've been better. (4/10)
Running time - 50:00 (approximately), Tracks: 2
[Notable tracks: both are untitled]
Truculent Recordings - http://www.truculentrecordings.net

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