Japanese noise god Masami Akita, better known as Merzbow, teams up with Nine Inch Nails keyboardist Alessandro Cortini for a mutual celebration of the famed EMS synthesizer.
Despite the more musical leanings of one half of the duo, Alessandro Cortini and Merzbow delivers an all-out onslaught of pulverizing noise reminiscent of Akita’s best work of the ’90s. Throbbing squelch collides with hyper distortion, creating a pulverizing atmosphere of electronic oppression. Ear-splitting frequencies chirp over stuttering sheets of grinding violence. With five tracks spread over four vinyl sides, it continues in the vein of Merzbow classics such as Pulse Demon and Space Metalizer.
It’s encouraging to see Akita, one of the loudest and most prolific definers of the genre, join Cortini, who’s known for making intense music, albeit with a melody, for such an uncompromising sonic attack. Turn this one up so loud you feel it in the core of your very being.
