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The Rita, "Snorkel/Skate"
Sam McKinlay's work as The Rita is almost synonymous with the Harsh Noise Walls (HNW) within the noise community. In contrast to the ever changing and eclectic work of artists like Wolf Eyes and Prurient, the HNW adherents are all about worshiping the stagnant mass of barely changing static and white noise that old school artists like CCCC and the Incapacitants created. This LP surprised me with the amount of variation and depth that it actually has, considering what I was expecting.
While I like a good brutal blast of noise here and there, I tend to prefer stuff that has a distinct style or approach.Much of the HNW stuff I've heard simply sounds like the critique often delivered against any noise music:it simply sounds like a broken AM radio playing through a distortion pedal.However, McKinlay's approach to this is much more nuanced and diverse, and while it meets that impenetrable wall of noise criteria for the genre, there’s more going on besides that.
Never one to hide his interests or source material, "Skate" is based on the source recordings of McKinlay skating on a mic'd up metal rail.Immediately upon its introduction, there’s the obvious clack of a skateboard hitting a rail, discernible through the miasma of white noise.As it progresses, the heavy, thick layers of feedback and static occasionally part, allowing the obvious, raw recordings of skateboarding to be heard within, serving as some sort of perverse rhythmic breakdown to the otherwise concrete wall.
The other side, "Snorkel," is constructed from samples of snorkeling and scuba diving from various horror and adventure films.While the source material is never completely apparent, there's a vibe of an old, worn VHS tape with tracking issues throughout:crackling, hissy sound alongside the harsh, brittle noise.While there are no obvious breaks in the sound—as is found on "Skate"—there is a slow, but obvious progression and shift throughout, giving it much more depth than it seems.
There's no chance this LP would appeal to anyone who can't tell the difference between Merzbow and Masonna, but as someone who usually has little interest in the wall noise approach, I found both sides far more captivating than I had expected.The variation and nuance is quite subtle, but definitely there.
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