I have this nice split CD in my possession for some time now, but it has eluded my proper attention, I guess one have to be in a mood to evaluate this stuff. We’re talking about power electronics, industrial noise, harsh noise wall stuff here – quite obviously a very niche genre you’re not gonna find playing on your mainstream radio station.
First servings come from – unfortunately, now no longer active – power electronic unit Black Sheet Servitude, who are nobody else but our staff member Corey Phillips a.k.a. Abbatoir Stalag and his wife Skye (a.k.a. Necro Doll, who was active also with her own project Lalemus).
And what the actual hell…this is truly violent attack on a listener’s senses, both aural and visual (well, artists in this field don’t usually explore the happiness and joyful feelings, quite the opposite), but at the same time, a very fascinating experience. The layers of sounds, effects, voices (distorted and semi-clean)… this all created a blend, but well thought of blend, which is hard to define or resist, especially when one approaches this material in a nihilistic, misanthropic mood. Actually, yeah, it works the best right in that kind of mood.
Odour Sonour is very similar to Black Sheet Servitude in its approach to musick, but at the same time, different. Where the BSS offers a violent HNW aural attack, Odour Sonour brings to the table this cold, emotionless soundtrack, well expressed in the opening track “for some men i grieve”. Slowly building to the climax and then fading out, it still leave with the unnerving atmosphere of anxiety and fear.
There is just one point I’d like to discuss. No, not the atmosphere, but the structure of the tracks. Basically all tracks follow the same routine – slow beginning, putting additional layers on the original skeleton, coming to the climax and then fade out. And although I won’t say the output itself is not interesting, the predictability makes it less captivating than it probably deserves to be. Although that’s probably how the genre works, what can I know…
Anyway, all said and done, it’s still a very interesting split CD and even those like me, a guy unskilled in HNW, power electronic or industrial noise, can actually enjoy it. I agree, it’s not for everybody, but I urge our readers to give it a try. One never knows what musical tastes can discover in themselves.
