Comments for MERZBOW, Deus Irae, with Kayazuki K. Null

Back in the days of yore . . . here we have a demonstration of Merzbow`s roots, with K.K. Null making an appearance on guitars, voice, and metals. Deus Irae was recorded live in 1984, and way back then, Merzbow featured sparring sessions between metals, guitars, voices, electronic effects, and DRUMS!As such, it`s a bit stunning, if not exactly the most well-rounded noise outing one may come across. The recording quality (although remastered by Null in 1993) is poor, so many nuances get lost in the battle, but once the roughly 20-minute introduction passes, Deus Irae turns into a living, breathing, huffing and puffing locomotive monster that`ll run right over you for about another fifteen to twenty minutes, when it loses steam and settles into a loosen-the-joints/take-a-breath session that goes in no particular direction.The end is abrupt - a feature which has since been replicated in all solo Merzbow recordings; your mind, infused with the noise, is suddenly caught holding nothing, and you`re flung over a cliff into a soundless vaccuum - quite unnerving, but you`ll rarely get your whole body to react to a piece of music in that manner!Null`s vocal shenanigans sound like Yamatsuke Eye (of Naked City fame, AFAIK) warming up - somewhat distracting, but well-suited, given the almost primitive (for the genre) tapestry of sound.Overall, this is a unique Merzbow experience - not great, but good.