Obsolete Units

The second of two reissues on Obsolete Units documenting Controlled Bleeding’s paramount early 80′s work in the field of American harsh noise and post-industrial electronics. Following a similar collage aesthetic to Knees And Bones, the group’s second album from 1985 finds the staggeringly impetuous and rapturous pandemonium the group had been perfecting around this period advancing ahead diligently without much concern for any sort of repose. Perhaps a more diverse array of resonances are on display, but the mania is all masterfully regulated under the watch of founder Paul Lemos and late longtime members Chris Moriarty and Joe Papa. Another fundamental piece in the history of the American avant underground. Obsolete Units is enormously proud to be bringing this essential work back into print, with this being the first time it has seen release on cassette. This issue includes the original vinyl artwork as well as the bonus material included with the 1990 CD reissue. Pro-dubbed/pro-printed edition of 100. Obsolete Units.

A dexterous exploration of modern day tape music and woodwind composition, Carillon is the solo recording debut of TwistyCat member Lea Bertucci. A compendium of principles both familiar and unforeseen in Bertucci’s work, this cassette consists of two long pieces both similarly sharing a distinct fondness for the potency of tape as a musical means. The title piece superimposes Bertucci’s celebrated bass clarinet playing over found recorded sounds and amplified room textures, thus generating a sparsely oscillating work woven tightly within the warm confines of the cassette format. Her second composition represents a rather radical departure from her recordings with TwistyCat, this piece existing as a collage of sonics falling on deeply atonal and discordant planes. Here she reigns in her auditory tools until all sounds are gestated into a distinctly eerie and delicately beguiling essence. As a whole, Carillon is a powerfully visionary and penetrating statement that is to be expected from an artist of Bertucci’s talent. Highly recommended for fans of the work of Christina Kubisch, Luc Ferrari, and Pauline Oliveros. Pro-dubbed/pro-printed edition of 100. Obsolete Units.

TwistyCat – Solar Plexus: When last we saw Brooklyn-based bass clarinet/baritone saxophone duo TwistyCat on Obsolete Units, they provided a deeply hypnotic and extremely limited loop cassette showcasing three immaculate minutes of their beautifully stark and patiently composed agglomeration of drone-infused improvisation. Taking noticeable cues from this previous release, Ed Bear and Lea Bertucci erupt on Solar Plexus both with pieces of meticulously realized minimalism as well as more comparatively dissonant waves of contemplative and ominous themes. The first side distinctively adds a veneer of found sound (from radio and elsewhere) to the mix, building upon these unfamiliar modes into a great wash of unrest before giving way to their distinctive command of woodwind-derived subterranean melodicism, whereas the flip presents in explicitly unblemished detail two pieces of slow-burning improvisation where the loops and electronic manipulations wavering in and out of the mix controlled with the utmost subtlety for further bewilderment. Includes special transparent liner-notes. Pro-dubbed/pro-printed edition of 100. Obsolete Units.