Linekraft - Bouryoku Kikai

For me Japan was always the land of controversial culture, where the ancient customs are widely mixed with a progress and technological development. The music is also influenced by those aspects; that's why the acts that arrive from the land of a rising sun should be discussed through the prism of specific way of thinking. Now I put on my Japanese headphones and start to listen to the new album from far eastern resident Masahiko Okubo which hides behind the code name Linekraft.

If you search for some record that will put your ass inside a time machine and will send it 20 years back to the past, this is the exact CD for you. 'Bouryoku Kikai' is the name of this creation, try to grasp it otherwise it will smash you like a meat grinding machine. Combining the elements of the old industrial bands like Throbbing Gristle and Dissecting table with so called japanoise, Masahiko tries to set a new perspective to the expression "sound violence". The sound that flows out of this cd is the example of how dirty one can go, without any reprocessing and fine tuning,- staying natural and rude.

Sometimes, it is hard to define a separation between the tracks, the analog drilling is simply everywhere and it just rules the whole atmosphere to the backbone; what changes from composition to composition is only its timbre.

There is no specific structure in the music; everything keeps constantly evolving, reminding of some kind of improvising. The tracks are full of noisy disturbances, sudden machine sounds, and sampled voices chatting on Japanese. A certain rhythm can be heard from time to time, implemented by different metal parts hitting each other, but most of the time these continuous knocks keep to be more of spontaneous origin. One more element that adds its portion to the whole cacophony is Masahiko's screaming vocal part, leveling already brutal music even higher. The fourth track, "Kenjyu Jisatsu", is based on mostly power noise concept without any compromise, where rhythmic and structural changes are minor, the wall of noise is solid and tough as an old boot. The album is finished by a thick composition"Kigurui", where there are few dark ambient elements crafted inside the layers of industrialism, like a distant humming melody and a gloomy atmosphere, which rolls on and on, though the metallic knocking presents as well together with different noisy grainy effects .

As a result of the experiments with different "at hand" tools, Masahiko creates a strong sonic soundscape for hard-boiled hearts. Old fans of industrial music sunrise will find plenty of interesting moments for themselves, as well as newcomers between us which were already born in the world full of noise may discover some delightful passages. The music constantly raises images of technological cataclysms and their effect on the urbanized world. And as the name of the game is a total apocalypse.

I am not sure that this record will be my favorite in this genre because of few weaker parts where the segments of the music are less stable and less concentrated; being more of background noise source then having a special purpose or destination. But still it is interesting and entertaining enough to keep me hypnotized for couple of hours.

The CD is available from Black Plagve which is a sub-label of Malignant Records. Jul 30 2012