Nurse with Wound, "Insect and Individual Silenced"
Steven Stapleton hates this record and for the greater part of the last quarter century has wanted to forget it existed. Thanks in part to Matt Waldron, Kevin Spencer, and the folks at Raash, his diabolical plot to condemn this album to the waste pits of history has failed. Insect and Individual Silenced has been given a spectacular re-issue complete with new artwork, a new mastering job, and some very limited, very peculiar extras.
Raash
Everyone that has wanted to has probably heard Insect and Individual Silenced. Bootlegs have been widespread since it was originally released/destroyed and there are plenty of digital copies of varying quality floating around communities all over the Internet, but I can safely say this is the best sounding copy I have ever heard. Kevin Spencer at Robot Records created a digital master of the album from his copy of the vinyl and each of the three tracks sound phenomenal. The opening boom of "Alvin's Funeral (The Milk Was Delivered in Black Bottles)" is bright and resonant as are all the various explosions and crashes of sound that populate the piece. There is virtually zero hiss across the album and the range of sounds populating the record are clear and distinct. Each of the three tracks are very distinct and feature some unconventional approaches to sound-craft, but they play together nicely and emphasize just how effective Stapleton was at producing incommensurable but enjoyable slabs of sound. That begs a question: why did Stapleton hate this so much in the first place?
I won't waste the time speculating, but it should be noted that this stands toe to toe with just about every other early Nurse with Wound record out there. Stapleton's non-logical sequencing and adoration for the unexpected come across loud and clear on every track, especially "Absent Old Queen Underfoot." The playfulness of "Alvin's Funeral" might seem like a classic Nurse with Wound utility, it has all the ingredients fans have come to love. "Absent Old Queen Underfoot," however, sounds bizarre even in this trio's hands. The hurricane flurry of snares and Jim Thrilwell's caustic noise fiascos all come together in a brew of masturbatory jazz, flatulence and inside jokes.
Such an approach to record making would probably damn most groups to hell with their complete disregard for the listener scoffed at, but there's little sign of pretense on the track. It may go on a little long, but in the end it's perhaps the biggest surprise on the record and sounds the least like Nurse with Wound. The album is somewhat transitory, a constantly dismantled sculpture that rests on no base and never forms any wholly distinct features and because of this it can feel somehow torn between total chaos and arranged nonsense. Homotopy to Marie did come next and, on the whole, sounded more coherent, even at its most discombobulated moments. Listening to Nurse with Wound working out some conceptual kinks is massively entertaining and the opportunity to have an official copy with all the notes and new features makes the rerelease worth it.
Matt Waldron has completely reworked the original artwork for this release, though the original is featured on the inside of the beautiful six-panel digipack that houses the disc. The walking corpses have mutated into a trio of cut open insects, various flora and phalluses growing from their withered bodies. The color is phenomenal and the entire package feels substantial; everything has been handled with consideration and care. A four panel insert is included with a note from Stapleton and a photograph of the United Dairies insert is included beneath the CD tray for near total completeness. All that could arguably be missing is the information included with the cassette release. If, however, you manage to obtain the special edition release, a real treat waits inside. As of the time of this writing, Raash records still has some copies of an edition that comes with the revamped artwork and the album as well as a series of high-quality postcards and a "framed insect." Included in this box is a frame playing host to various insects, identified, numbered, and signed. It might be the coolest "insert" included in a boxed set ever: it looks fantastic, adds a somewhat quirky feel to the whole package, and pretty much sends the entire release beyond the stratosphere in terms of quality, design, thoughtfulness, and impact. Both the standard and special editions are worthy entries in the Nurse with Wound catalogue and stand out as being of the finest rereleases ever made.
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