HIVE MIND
Hive Mind is the searing creation of a Michigan resident named Greh, who also runs the stellar Chondritic Sound label. There have been 30 to 40 Hive Mind releases since 2003, mostly ultra-limited cassettes and CD-R's, the biggest exceptions being 2004's dark, 38-minute single-track Sand Beasts on PacRec/Chondritic and this year's Death Tone on Hanson, whose overhwelming attack even convinced digi-phobes B.Coley and T.Moore to briefly relax their anti-CD regimen.
The closest parallel to Hive Mind's thunder is the thick drones of Double Leopards, but where that Brooklyn quartet stays mostly murky and blurred, Greh lets thinner sounds and clearer textures emerge from his cavernous mix. I've spent the last week glued to Metallic Thaumaturgy, a Chondritic CD-R culled from a 4-cassette box set of 2004 live recordings, and after about 25 listens, it remains awesomely tough to pin down. There's practically a cinematic progression here, as Greh's ideas gradually multiply and expand for 80 minutes like ballons that can procreate, but there's something else happening that words can't imprison. Parts are echoey and actually scary, circling ears like a hurricane's eye; other sections are finely granular, with sandpaper-like texture and infinite detail. On the final two tracks, Greh mercilessly scalpels his diligent drones using bumpy glitches and warped loops that sound like blindfolded robots marching into a fire.
Hive Mind will play on the middle day of the 3rd No Fun Fest, whose lineup is now totally set. Way too many great things this year to choose from, but I'm especially peeled for White Rock (Mouthus + Double Leopards), Fat Worm of Error, Shackamaxon (Double Leps + Son Of Earth + Pete Nolan), and the ultra-rare apperance of the legendary Smegma...
mp3:
HIVE MIND - sixth track from Metallic Thaumaturgy
The closest parallel to Hive Mind's thunder is the thick drones of Double Leopards, but where that Brooklyn quartet stays mostly murky and blurred, Greh lets thinner sounds and clearer textures emerge from his cavernous mix. I've spent the last week glued to Metallic Thaumaturgy, a Chondritic CD-R culled from a 4-cassette box set of 2004 live recordings, and after about 25 listens, it remains awesomely tough to pin down. There's practically a cinematic progression here, as Greh's ideas gradually multiply and expand for 80 minutes like ballons that can procreate, but there's something else happening that words can't imprison. Parts are echoey and actually scary, circling ears like a hurricane's eye; other sections are finely granular, with sandpaper-like texture and infinite detail. On the final two tracks, Greh mercilessly scalpels his diligent drones using bumpy glitches and warped loops that sound like blindfolded robots marching into a fire.
Hive Mind will play on the middle day of the 3rd No Fun Fest, whose lineup is now totally set. Way too many great things this year to choose from, but I'm especially peeled for White Rock (Mouthus + Double Leopards), Fat Worm of Error, Shackamaxon (Double Leps + Son Of Earth + Pete Nolan), and the ultra-rare apperance of the legendary Smegma...
mp3:
posted by MM at 7:00 PM
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2 Comments:
hey. i think your metallic thaumaturgy cdr might be scratched/messed up - the sample sounds weird to me as does your description of the last two tracks. i'll get a new one out to ya. thanks for the words!
weird...I just stuck the cdr in a real player instead of a computer and that track still sounds like that...thanks for noticing and sending me another one!
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