Amboss, Slutmachine, Vile Enginez and White Darkness (A.K.A. Bong-Ra) are the guilty parties, and with a roll call like this, you may well have a fairly good idea of what lies beneath the shiny black surface of this vinyl disk. A pitch black assault of the senses; oppressive, gut wrenching, unyielding and uncompromising in any way.
[Release page] Hecate – the undisputed Queen of breakcore – sees a return to the forefront of aggressive, dark noise music. This EP – Brew Hideous Remixes – is, as the title suggests a collection of remixes from her 2006 album Brew Hideous (Sublight) which sees four of her closest and long time collaborators, all of whom are giants in the field, interpret songs for this project. Amboss, Slutmachine, Vile Enginez and White Darkness (A.K.A. Bong-Ra) are the guilty parties, and with a roll call like this, you may well have a fairly good idea of what lies beneath the shiny black surface of this vinyl disk. A pitch black assault of the senses; oppressive, gut wrenching, unyielding and uncompromising in any way.
Hecate, who’s real name is Rachael Kozak from Detroit USA, has been making and releasing her specific brand of breakcore / noise / industrial / black music since 1996. That’s 15 years of pure power! This latest release shows she is still very much an overarching figure in this scene. It marks the end of a period of silence from the veteran noise monger that has been the longest in her career. This EP might be her way of keeping a visible profile, seeing as there is no new material, in which case she will be completely successful I’m sure. Having said the material is not new is a bit misleading though; the remixes are new, and offer very different and personal interpretations of the original tracks. Remixes are funny things really; they can range from near identical versions of the original to completely new compositions carrying a few bare shreds of the original, it’s the latter type which often are very interesting and engaging, presenting ideas and snippets from a piece of music in a completely new and personal way. It’s a very difficult skill to master, and a good remix is a glorious thing indeed. And yes, it’s the latter which is the case here before you start wondering.
The first track – “Tooth of Inquisition” (Amboss remix) is a fast and furious assault delivered in a classic breakcore fashion. The beats are smashed and relentless, fast enough to make you want to put a crash helmet on. This is followed by Slutmachine’s version of “Kiss Of Death,” a slower and extremely sinister effort that made me feel genuinely uneasy the first time I heard it. It was on headphones and I was walking through town, and as the vocal incantations commenced I was drawn in completely to the dark pagan ritual being played out in my ears and mind. The dark drone background with it’s deep swelling basses and distorted midranges are more then a little disconcerting! If good music should have an effect on the listener, this ticks the box. The beats are distorted and mind shattering, albeit at a slower tempo then the preceding track.
The B side sees Vile Enginez go to work on the track “Secret Ingredient” with maniacal drums which are so fast as to be close to the point where rhythm crosses over to pitch, the brain not being able to decipher the beats quickly enough to distinguish individual hits – almost. Having said that, the beats are a bit less distorted and lower in the mix, leaving room for the dark textures and vocals to come through. The EP is finished off with White Darkness (A.K.A. the legendary Bong – Ra) version of “Dysfunction.” This final track is an immense quasi ambient tower of darkness, virtually beat free it looms over the listener like the dawning of the day of sacrifice, a huge monolith of sound dominating all existence with its dark foreboding and promise of doom. Dense and intense, the soundtrack to the demise of hope. Listen to it if you dare, I guarantee you will be affected by it!
By turns a dark, brooding, violent and aggressive EP, Brew Hideous Remixes is a welcome return for the dark mistress of ceremonies of breakcore.
Brew Hideous Remixes is out now on Ad Noiseam. [Release page]
