Review: Human is Filth “Moxie” CS

As is the case with most Human is Filth releases, this cassette contains no track titles and nothing but around a half-hour of raw, basic harsh noise - interrupted only by the spilt between side A and side B. The approach is a fairly minimal one, using very little layering, no stereo panning, and a pretty direct attack of midrange distortion that regularly sways into fierce feedback. The recording is fairly raw, a little thin on the high-end, and not too bass heavy, but it works and has a certain intentionally lo-fi character that comes across effectively. On occasion things break down to a quieter level for brief spurts, and my favorite moments are those when the distortion begins to decay and lets a speaking voice start to seep forward just a bit (though the source and the content remain a mystery), but even with those passages in tow, this release is 100% consistent, and is basically made up of the same delivery for its duration. Side B is a bit fiercer in its distortion, and allows the raging feedback to take control for more persistent periods of time, so it is differentiated from side A in the grand scheme of things, but this still isn't as strong as the prior work I've heard from Human is Filth. The packaging also leaves a bit to be desired. His work always looks a bit crude, but the usual black and white aesthetic using more violent imagery always struck me as more powerful, even if typical. But this time out the only text on the entire insert is the band name on the spine, whereas the rest of the brightly colored xerox is wallpapered with the iconic man from Moxie soda bottles. A strange visual companion for this material, indeed. Overall this just isn't as curious a release as I would've liked. Thus far I've generally enjoyed everything I've heard from Human is Filth and always found the project to be one of the more promising of a newer breed of traditional harsh noise artists, but this particular tape just doesn't grab me on any level. It's not bad, but the intrigue simply isn't there with this one.