EXPANDED NOISEHANDS
The noise music of Merzbow
by Carlos M. Pozo

"Most Japanese noise artists never use computers or very high-tech equipment.
We tend to be very low-tech and analogue, so our actions show the effects of
expanded noisehands, muscles...the body's movement." Masami Akita (Interview
with Arthur Potter)

"I wanted to compose real surrealistic music in a non-musical way. Surrealism
is also reaching unconsciousness. Noise is the primitive and collective
consciousness of music. My composition is automatism, not improvisation."
Masami Akita (Interview with Oskari Mertalo)

"My first motivation for creating sound was anti-use of electric
equipment-Broken tape recorder, broken guitar, amp etc. I thought I could get
a secret voice from equipment itself when I lost control. That sound is
unconsciousness, libido of equipment. Then I tried to control them with more
powerful process." Masami Akita (Interview with Dixon Christie)

"I named my project Merzbow after a great work by the German collage artist
Kurt Schwitters which he called "The Cathedral of Erotic Misery". He made an
art from oddments he picked up from the street, just as I make sound from the
scum that surrounds my life. I was very inspired by Dada and Surrealism.
Probably the greatest idea of Surrealism for me is "Everything is Erotic,
Everywhere Erotic". for me, Noise is the most erotic form of sound...that's
why all of my works relate to the erotic."
Masami Akita

"I'm working on the forthcoming 53 CDs project for an Australian label, and
this is no joke. It will contain 53 CDs. It is set to include almost all my
early cassette-only recordings (40 CDs) and ten unreleased studio/live
releases, plus three new techno CDs." Masami Akita (Interview with Chris
Twomey)

The Austalian Extreme label's announcement of a forthcoming $500 50 (fifty)
CD boxed set (the "Merzbox") of Merzbow's music provoked the following
selected reviews of the CD output of Masami Akita from 1990 to the present
day. The boxed set is said to include in addition to 50+ compact discs a full
color book, an interactive CD-ROM, a commemorative medallion, a T-Shirt, a
series of post-cards, stickers and a poster all packaged in a specially
designed box. With the knowledge that this is forthcoming, to include a
complete discography in this article is as ridiculous as it is pointless.
Maybe Masami himself has kept track- I personally doubt he has a complete
listing of his recorded works- but I wouldn't be surprised if he does. A
listening guide of some sort is also pointless- noise seems to be even more
subjective than non-noise musics. One man's masterpiece is literally
unlistenable to another, and for the most part, the fact that some noise
music is unlistenable is the aesthetic victory the noise musician is striving
for. Merzbow music is unlistenable in that sense. But it's not just about the
music, its the man himself, the mystery engendered by the endless stream of
music emanating from his home studio. It's the fact that he's been doing this
for so long, and can pull it off live worldwide. He's an art critic noise
rock and roller who writes articles about pornography for a living. 

The Art Brut and Automatist analogies are apt ones, and the two definitions
below are as good an explanation of Merzbow's motives as any analysis of the
man's music itself. The massive distorted portions of Merzbow's music are
less obviously surrealistic, and are perhaps his impressions of Art Brut,
deranged and surreal in his intent to remove himself from any high art
aesthetic AND assault the senses of the observer with rough unbearably loud
bursts of feedback noise and pornographic visions. The porno imagery is more
difficult to explain. It is not an expression of freedom, so much as it is a
symbol of claustrophobia  and opression. Even the sickest porno aims for some
sort of sexual gratification- that is not entirely Masami's intent. He seeks
some sort of anonymous symbol of extreme cultural production- porn is a
pretty good one of that, with all its social implications: violence against
women and children, and its primitive singular purpose. His music is
essentially about visceral, emotional power- his intent might have an
intellectual foundation, but the result resembles a hammer to the head more
than any other aesthetic experience I can think of. In photos he looks like
Klaus Schulze behind a mass of cryptic electronic equipment. In fact, the one
person you could compare Masami to the most perhaps is Klaus Schulze, a man
who tosses off 30 minute electronic tracks in his sleep and has amassed an
impressive and almost equally insurmountable discography over the years. And
like Masami, Schulze has ambition:

"Everyone though it was a joke when Klaus Mueller* announced the plans for a
25 CD set entitled The Jubilee Edition. Yes 25 CD's of unreleased Klaus
Schulze, adding to the two 10 CD sets and who knows how many more solos and
collaborations over the past few years...when I quizzed Klaus Schulze about
it, after the Derby gig back in April, he was quite serious." Alan Freeman,
Audion magazine (UK) #36 Autumn 1996

*Yes, this is the same Klaus Mueller who wrote the article "The Real
Krautrock Story".
Kraut Rock

Conceivably, might there not be someone out there who intends to purchase
both the Schulze and Merzbow sets? Unlike Klaus, however, so much of Masami's
music is available domestically (in the USA, that is) its staggering. I would
have to recommend as starting points for the loud legendary typical Merzbow,
the recent releases that are most recognizaby his own, "Electric Salad" and
"Pulse Demon" in the USA, and "Spiral Honey" in the UK. Or, if you can find
it, treat yourself to the excellent Noisembryo, on Releasing Eskimo (Sweden).
For the less spastic and listenable side of Merzbow, try the two "Music for
Bondage Performance" releases, or especially the "Ecobondage" reissue. For a
glimpse into where the sound of Masami might be headed, I suggest "Hybrid
Noisebloom", "Space Metallizer" or the even more different Masami solo disc
"The prosperity of vice, the misfortunes of virtue". Still, if you only buy
one Merzbow release a year you're probably better off not buying any Merzbow
releases at all. And if you actually do have $500 to spare, send a check or
money order to me c/o Angbase.

"Surrealism rests in the belief in the superior reality of certain forms of
association neglected heretofore; in the omnipotence of the dream and in the
disinterested play of thought." 
(Encyclopedia definition of Surrealism, as quoted by Andre Breton in "What is
Surrrealism?" 1924)

SURREALISM
Pure psychic automatism, by which it is intended to express, verbally, in
writing, or by other means, the real process of thought. Thought's dictation,
in the absence of all control exercised by the reason and outside all
aesthetic or moral preoccupations.  (Andre Breton, "What is Surrrealism?"
1924)

AUTOMATISM (In the plastic arts)
"The Canadian 'automatists' distinguish between three types of automatisms:
1. mechanical automatisms, the result of strictly physical processes;
plissage (paper crinklings), grattage (scrapings), frottage (rubbings),
deposits, fumage (smoky trails made by a candle flame on the surface of a
picture), gravitation, rotation, etc. 2. psychic automatism, based on the
recollections of dreams (Dali) hallucinations (Tanguy), 'chances of all
kinds' (Duchamp): 'interest centres more on the subject treated (idea,
resemblance, image unforseen association of objects, mental relation) than on
the actual subject (plastic object, dependent on the expressivity of the
substance employed).' 3. superrrational automatism, impromtu plastic writing:
one form invokes another until a sense of unity is arrived at or until one
can proceed no further without destroying the artifact. During the process,
no attention is paid to 'content'." 
(From The Encyclopedia of Surrealism by Jose Pierre 1972)

ART BRUT
"This term, invented by the painter Jean Dubuffet c. 1948, in
contradistinction to 'cultural art', designates the artistic creations of the
self-taught, isolated- for social reasons or through individual
circumstances- from ordinary cultural activities and places where resulting
artifacts are displayed (art schools, galleries, museums). 'Art Brut',
henceforward no longer the product of a social rite but of a strictly
individual impulse, is characterized by a kind of spontaneous generation,
since the artist derives the total substance of his work from his own
imaginative experience. The question is the degree to which this kind of
artist approximates in the process to the surrealist painter or sculptor who
by recourse to automatism or the most banal figurative code (e.g.
Magritte)aspires to a 'similar state of grace'.This convergence seems less
surprising if we emphasize the number of 'medium painters' in the ranks of
'Art Brut' who draw or paint on the 'automatic' principle. But the largest
proportion is represented by painters suffering from mental derangement,
among whom the schizophrenics make up the largest and most glorious
contingent. The study of schizophrenic art has high-lighted some general
characteristics (use of bourrage, the stereotype, etc.) which should be
compared with similar phenomena in the automatism of mediums and surrealists.
The third category of 'Art Brut' comprises self taught artists who depend
neither on psychiatry or spiritualism, although their works have affinities
with those of the other two categories. The Surrealists, and Breton first and
foremost, have been anxious to show that they regard then all, mediums,
schizophrenics, and autodidacts as exemplary creators."
(From The Encyclopedia of Surrealism by Jose Pierre 1972)

MERZBOW ON DISC:

"Rainbow Electronics"
CD Released by Alchemy Records (Japan)
1990
Booklet says:
WORKS ALL CUT UP FROM WORKS
Transformed From About 21 Hours Tapes For 14 Fragments
Raw Material Tapes Were Recorded In 1987-90
ALL DECOMPOSED BY MASAMI AKITA

One of Masami's earliest releases on CD and the culmination of his 80's tape
loop work. An exhausting listen for sure, this is perhaps the greatest single
noise recording ever, one untitled 73 minutes track of junk noises and
overloaded tape feedback scrambled and endlessly recycled. Pure sonic
automatism indeed. Air raid sirens, power drills, jack hammers, radio static
and contact mic hum played simultaneously and recorded with extreme
distortion. Then reassembled with the addition of effects and the sounds of
tapes at different speeds and the buzzing hum of electronic equipment
interfering with each other. Then reassembled and remixed. Endlessly. Not the
all out singleminded roar barrage that later ("Green Wheels"/"Electric
Salad", the Relapse titles) Merzbow would become, there are moments of subtle
delicacy (try the pulsing high pitched tones around the 15 minute mark or the
quiet scrapes and moans at the 28 minute mark) and the humor of recognizable
snippets of found sounds sped up or slowed down in messy waves cutting from
left to right channel. Also, the surprising sounds of drums make a rare
appearance around the 35th and 39th minute, played in a stumbling
near-metronomic beat over intense buzzings that are more Neu than anything
else Masami has done. There are also moments of intense psychedelic confusion
like around the 54th minute, when the sped up tape seems to be echoing back
into itself, like some quantum physics paradox. Fucking trippy, man. It all
ends in a blizzard of synth squiggles and high-pitched feedback squeals. The
final 3 minutes are some sort of masterpiece of controlled chaos, as deep
engine hums begin to drown out all other sounds before short bursts of
distortion (jumping at you from channel to channel) erupt out of brief
moments of silence.

"Music For Bondage Performance"
CD Released by Extreme (Australia)
1991

"My Bondage Art research was started from researching Fetishism. Fetishism is
related with spiritual thought as spirit is revealed on void object. Shaman
using fetish dolls for their rituals, sometimes he puts the nails on Dolls
body. It's very primitive symbolic act as Christianity use nails on cross.
Symbolic meaning of nails is Binding (Death) and
Metamorphosis(Resurrection)." 
Interview with Dixon Christie.

Masami's soundtrack work for bondage videos, which I won't even pretend I'm
familiar with, although judging from the CD booklet photos they look about as
nice as any sleazy porn you could hope for. Quite surprising at the time,
this release on the Australian "post-industrial" Extreme label saw a gentler
kinder side of Merzbow's music. Harsh, yes, and the subject matter as
disrespectable as ever, this might still be the most serious and "musical" of
Masami's many releases. Unlike many releases on Extreme, there is no
conscious attempt to be "musical" by appropriating ethnic rhythms  or
euro-disco beats. Deep murky rumbles and echoes dominate a mix upon which
metallic scrapes and rings sluggishly fade away in the distance. Somewhat
similar to Coil's "How to destroy Angels" and many other "dark ambient"
atmospheric records of the last couple of years. All sounds remain muffled
and submerged, totally unlike anything before or since in Masami's oeuvre.
Booklet also contains an essay by Masami about Kinbaku, the art of Japanese
bondage, some very nicely done diagrams of  rope binding methods and some
bleak photos of tied up young girls.

"Great American Nude (live in U.S.A. 1990)
Crash For Hi-Fi"
CD Released by Alchemy Records (Japan)
1991

"There is no difference between Noise and Music in my work. I have no idea
what you term "Music" and "Noise". It's different depending on each person.
If "Noise" means uncomfortable sound, then pop music is noise to me."
Interview with Oskari Mertalo 

Sort of the "Frampton comes Alive" of the noise-set, this is like most live
albums some sort of exercise in vanity plus a gift to the die-hard fan. Check
out the constant unchanging roar provided by Masami on "live electronics and
found metals" and Reiko A. on "bowed instruments and metals". Perhaps this is
Masami's homage to America as filtered through J.G. Ballard, as the title and
front and back covers of the CD attest, and as all tracks are recorde live in
various American cities. Regardless, in a live setting this actually sounds
pretty much like various electric drills and power saws working over a radio
station tuned to static and white noise-amazing to see in person I presume,
but too muffled and unchanging to make a lasting impression other than, "this
is really noisy". Each track however, being edited out of a long
uninterrupted performance begins quite suddenly with a startling burst of
noise that is pretty disorienting, as each track on the CD gives way to the
next. The last track "Crash For Hi-Fi" is partly a humorous tape collage
presumably taped off American radio with the voice of Ozzy Osbourne (and many
others) put to good use amidst flailing mic fuzz and wrinkled tape squeaks,
as well as some superior briskly cut-up explosions of sound.

"Artificial Invagination"
CD Released by Vanilla Records (Japan)
1991
Short, sweet and very cute little 3 inch disc with some fine very fast moving
(sped up?) tape and screech work with "voice" from Masami's wife Reiko A. A
nice starting point (if it was more widely available) as it compresses into
20 minutes the whole Merzbow arsenal of flowing, free-form noise work. Tapes
of a live performance form part of the basis for this release. As Merzbow
himself put it in an interview with Arthur Potter: "...I formed a new
performance project called TRUE ROMANCE : me, Bara and Seido (he is the
machine maker). The first TRUE ROMANCE show was at the Art University last
month (10/91). We used many latex creatures (almost formed as testicles and
guts) and plenty of medical equipment. Noisy sound.It was a hyper-splatter
performance which used only SFX. The idea was based on SIMULACRE AND
SIMULATION by Baudrillard. I used a photo from that event on my forthcoming
CD single". That photo appears on the splendid obi strip, and it is a very
cool multi-colored thing.

"Venereology"
CD Released by Release (USA)
1994

"I'm influenced by death metal from the early '90s. My biggest influence was
grind drumming. So, I liked bands with good drummers like MORBID ANGEL, early
NAPALM DEATH, early CARCASS. Secondary, I found similar artistic taste in
early CARCASS, early CADAVER, etc. I liked those extreme medical/dead
artworks. For MERZBOW, it's more abstract influenced as speed or grindcore,
the edge guitar sound of death metal. Also, I started using lots of DOD
guitar pedals." 
Interview with Oskari Mertalo 

Looking like an early SPK cover (especially an early live cassette whose
title I can't recall), this release was Merzbow's conscious attempt at
ingratiating himself to the gore worshipping extreme death metal crowd. The
Release label, is after all,  a sublabel of Relapse, one of the last
remaining cornerstones of the genre. It features a long "thank you" list, in
the grand tradition of underground Metal albums, although Masami's is not
even half as long as the average Napalm Death list. Not particularly
different than other releases of this time, this is mainly imprtant for its
sick autopsy artwork and widespread availability. I've seen it in some pretty
mainstream record stores, and hopefully many pimply faced metal punks
stumbled on it by accident. The photo under the CD (within the clear jewel
case) is a mighty fine monstrosity- enjoy!

"Noisembryo"
'Psycho-Analytic Study Of Coital Noise Posture'
CD Released by The Releasing Eskimo (Sweden)
1994

"I found Processed Audio Mixer and it's able to control feedback. Feedback
sound of equipment is basic idea of MERZBOW. I was extreme Materialist.
Feedback makes automatically storm of noise and it's very erotic as Orgon
energy. Magnetic exploitation of electronics. So, I found Pleasure of Noise.
Then I tried to develop different variation of pleasure Noise." 
Interview with Dixon Christie.

Beautiful (in completely different ways) front and back cover, the front one
in a high art collage way, the back in a pervert Asian babe way- these Swedes
aim to please. The printing on both sides is very glossy and fine. The music
is pretty classy too, with some nice mic-inside-the-mouth vocal gymnastics on
the first track, and some stuttering machine gun farts nicely echoed through
out most of the tracks. Very chunky fast moving sonics permeate, with the
fuzzed up tape static on most tracks resembling surf or the furthest
white-noise reaches of the radio spectrum all scrambled up in a very
listenable fashion. The vocals reappear throughout, sounding tortured and
deranged, perhaps sexual in intent, they resemble gastronomic anomalies more
than orgasmic ecstasies. Of course, depending on the observer, that may be
one and the same. Regardless, I seriously doubt there is much of an
intentional connection between a Merzbow track's title (or album title) and
musical content. There is an intent to confuse, in the surrealist sense, by
juxtaposing an odd set of objects (or sounds in this case, or cover graphics)
and a title that may or may not have any connection to it. The subtitle for
this release is a good one, and the back cover photo of a naked oriental girl
surrounded by balloons an apt companion.

"Ecobondage"
CD Released by Distemper (USA)
1994

"Christianity have great bondage art form past before. I think Christ is king
of masochist. So, European bondage tendency is Female domination. But almost
woman dominant is bad bondage skill. Few exception is John Willie. He is good
bondage artist." 
Interview with Dixon Christie.

More reissues of early Merzbow material, this time a 1987 album not too
dissimilar to the Extreme 2CD release, though perhaps a bit less harsh and
more "pensive" in that some portions of these track slowly drift by in waves
of echo, as opposed to the usual breakneck speed of Masami's editing method.
The pieces also seem more carefully assembled than on "Age of 369", more
recognizably improvised than the automatist randomness on that earlier
release. Very live sounding collage of subtly banged trash percussion
clanging chains and distant voices and (muffled ) tape squiggles, all with
attention to the recording meter- meaning that the sound never goes "in the
red" as the usual Masami CD's always eventually do. Somewhat reminiscent of
Faust's collaged material, the floating sections of Guru Guru's masterful
"Spaceship" (on the Hinten LP) or some of the Fred Frith/Chris Cutler (or any
other free improvisers using electronics) live sessions I've heard but much
more clinical and sinister than that might imply. This is Merzbow after all,
and the 30 minute title track conjures up any sort of depraved activities
your mind can visualize to attach to these chain scrapes, moans and weird
rustling sounds. Track 2, the astounding "Ha Ha Ho Bari" picks up the volume
slightly, and approaches distortion on occasion, but in general retains a
less harsh muted appeal that relies heavily on deep bass rumblings of
electronic static and microphone hum. After about 13 minutes you get some
loud blasts of (tibetan-like) horns, and some rituallistic sounding echoed
metals, all sorrounded by whirring tape effects that sound like a swarm of
insects hovering nearby. Yes it's that good, and it dissolves into a muffled
"ambient" section very much like the first "Music For Bondage Performance".
At the 20th minute, a constant mechanical beat appears- and it sounds like
Autechre for about 20 seconds before the scraped percussion turns free form
and spastic. Truly one of Masami's greatest tracks. The last track is a
pretty fine thing- very subtle and percussive with a sort of oriental techno
(?) feel, like an acoustic YMO jamming in a buddhist temple. Booklet folds
out into a stunning and startling full color photo collage of a shiny and
pink naked Japanese woman (or is it a mannequin?) tied up in a pose
reminiscent of a christian martyr, surrounded by fragmented industrial
images. The printing on this is very well done, with the colors coming out
very deep and rich. One of the best looking (American) CD's I've seen
recently- even the printing on the disc itself is outstanding. 

"Green Wheels"
CD Released by Self Abuse Records (USA)
1995

An oddly packaged thing, it strikes me as outtakes from Pulse Demon (don't
laugh at the thought of a Merzbow "outtake") in that every sound seems
purposely generated as a massive "fuck you" to the listener as it dares
anyone to blast this out of their stereos. Some feel that all Merzbow CDs
sound like this, but who knows, really?. The industrial/noise/underground
necessity for bizarre packaging has always baffled me- I own a lot of records
and CDs and I like to keep then all together- if something comes out in an
outsize package it pisses me off more than anything, no matter how beautiful
it is. OK maybe that is not entirely true- those (slightly) oversize Mego
folders are too gorgeous to not like. Yes I understand the concept of these
odd object-packaged CDs- it's been done, lets move on. There is enough
creativity left to explore within the LP album format, regular jewel case
booklet and digipack printing (especially NOW with a computer in every
household). Regardless, this box is a pretty shitty looking garage sale
thing. The track titles seem like parodies of Carcass song titles
("Myo-inositolasanessentia Growthfactorforhumancellsin Testosteronepropionate
Anabolicaction" anyone?)and I have a hard time believing they came from
Masami himself. Whatever. The little 5" vinyl disc is pretty cool thing
though, especially since few turntables will actually play it- would anyone
care to guess what it sounds like? "Meattrapezoid" is a nice title though.

"Electric Salad"
CD Released by Etherworld
1995
Another beautiful looking cover (and inside photos) adorn another domestic
marathon release from the master. The thought of a 60 minute track seems at
first like an awesome endurance test- somehow it doesn't strike me as harsh
as the Pulse Demon release. It still borders on unlistenable, but it features
great use of echo and dynamic changes in volume in a very speedy self-assured
way. The mixing is alive and outstanding- sounds pop out from channel to
channel endlessly, and there is always some new synth explosion or percussion
rythm thing careening at you as the track develops. It doesn't really feel
like a 60 minute track. Last track is another spaceship soundtrack, with
perhaps a motor scooter barging in ocassionally (carrying a theremin?). As
for the packaging, well the CD itself has a really nice op art pattern design
printed on it in yellow and maroon. The cover and inside photos features what
is apparently (though perhaps not) the interior of Masami's house which as
you might have guessed has some pretty far out decor consisting of mannequins
in bondage gear and gigantic plastic bubbles like something out of an Allen
Jones Barbarella wet dream. The back of the CD shows what looks like Masami's
"studio"- effects pedals and old record sleeves (and polynesian fetishes?)
litter the floor. A nice glimpse into the man's psyche and an overall great
release.

"Pulse Demon"
CD Released by Release (USA)
1995

"The visual of "Pulse Demon" was my homage to French 70s Electro-Acoustic
records as Philips Contemporary Avantgarde series. Basically, this shiny
silver is the color of Heavy Metal. I mean it the way William Burroughs said
it. "Pulse Demon" is one of 3 CDs I recorded at the same time, "Magnesia
Nova" and "Electric Salad" are the others. These two releases contain more
Synthesizer and music concrete sound."
Interview with Oskari Mertalo 

Track titles:
Woodpecker No. 1
Woodpecker No. 2
Spiral Blast
My Station Rock
Ultra Marine Blues
Tokyo Times Ten
Worms Plastic Earthbound
Yellow Hyper Balls 

The second Merzbow CD on this label and its a stunner. Especially the Op Art
CD digipack- a totally beautiful black on reflective silver fold out thing.
If this had come out on vinyl in the same package I would have bought every
single available copy and framed them up on my wall, right up there next to
the first Sonic Boom LP. The titles on these tracks are pretty "killer" as
the average fan of the Relapse label would say, evoking the unintetionally
hysterical antics of the classic early grindcore rock and rollers Bolt
Thrower or Morbid Angel. "My Station Rock"- wasn't that a Krokus song?
Seriously, though, this lives up to the artwork with its harsh bad-trip
psychedelic insanity. The first two tracks on this should have been released
as a single- they are pretty amazing compressions of Masami's antisocial
side. You can actually ocasionally discern the sounds of stuttering death
metal being mangled by Masami's Godzilla sized tape machines. The beginning
of Track 6 actually drops the distortion somewhat except for some whiplike
squeals, and lets the percussive trashcan loop dominate until the whole thing
dissolves into a (loud) spacy drone and high pitched spaceship sounds- very
nice.

"Rainbow Electronics 2"
CD Released by Dexter's Cigar (USA)
1996

"nothing is really destroyed or disappears, as recycling is part of
production. It's a natural and necessary part of post-capitalism. There
should be no illusion of only production, as was the case with early
industrialization. We no longer use a dialectical approach in our
disposal/recycling system, only a forward movement to the reproduction of
reproduction."
From RRReport.

Ostensibly a reissue of the original "Rainbow Electronics" CD on Alchemy, or
at least being marketed as such, this is actually two minutes longer than
that one track release, and appears to be a different mix of the 1987-90
source materials used for the earlier release. Which means its not a reissue
at all. This makes much better use of dynamics than the 1990 version of
Masami's music- there are echoed portions that lead into brief moments of
silence that are almost completetely absent from the original release's
nonstop roar. Which doesn't necessarily mean its better- just an example of
how Masami's noise techniques have evolved over the last seven years.
Interestingly, among the instruments Masami gets credited for playing is
"electronic shaver", a picture of which I was not able to acquire. Very nice
pop art meets op art graphics on the cover.

"Spiral Honey"
CD Released by Work In Progress (UK)
1996

"The origin of Noise can be explained in various contexts, but more closely
related to me, the origin of my noise is coming from 60-70s heavy
psychedelic/progressive rock and live electronic music. I have a concept in
sound itself. Composition is always influenced from a way of noise as film
art. Mostly, my music is dedicated to music which I am influenced by."
Interview with a Portuguese fanzine.

A simple but distinctive silver digipack holds more of Masami's heavily
distorted free-style freakouts. I've been able to listen to this for extend
periods of time, so it must have something that sets it apart from "Green
Wheels"or "Venereology". Perhaps its the nice graphic of a sylized bee on the
cover. The disc opens up with a really nice trick- at first you think Masami
is just going to jam on his Moog ala the fat sounds of Heldon but 39 seconds
in he just jacks up the recording meter and blasts you with a nonstop (almost
static) barrage of tape fuzz. Things calm down eventually, but the star here
is still the distortion over which synth tones and theremin whistles float in
and out. Track 6 repeats the opening track ambush but this time its a jungle
(as in a fake 50's "jungle adventure" soundtrack) rythm on the drum machine
that gets swallowed up by the intense waves of noise. Track 7, "Great
Deceiver (Long Mix)", the "bonus" track may or may not be a cover or hommage
to the King Crimson track of the same name. 

"Music For Bondage Performance 2"
CD Released by Extreme (Australia)
1996

"In general, Fetish Fashion is realising desire of changing personality by
sexual way. My first level of interest in Bondage is same reason I'm
interested in Fetishism - sur- humanity. Secondary, in my study of "Japanese
Bondage Art" mean more narrow interest in especially hemp rope style. This
style is fit with Japanese woman reason that their shape of body and colour
of skin." 
Interview with Dixon Christie.

Another release of pieces by Masami for Japanese Bondage videos, this time
perhaps a bit harsher than the first volume of this series. The photos in the
booklet are of very high quality, for all you porn aficionados out there and
look much more fetching (in a sterile Penthouse way) than the sleazy
documentary style fuzzy photos in the booklet of the first CD. Truly stunning
and disturbing, as alien and mysterious as they are erotic. You also get
another essay and some nice etchings of traditional  torture methods which
have become standard procedure in Japanese bondage practices. Unlike the MFBP
1, which seemed like a departure from his usual style, this is much more
recognizably a Merzbow CD, not dissimilar in portions to "Electric Salad",
except the recording levels have been lowered slightly, presumably to allow
you to focus your attention on the porn. Opening track features some jet
engines and what sounds like the "waltz" setting on a drum machine. Harsh
rhythm loops, tape speed sounds and video game bleeps over echoed junk
percussion dominate most of the tracks. Track 8 features a twitching hypnotic
loop that seems very congruent with Panasonic (or maybe even Suicide), if you
ignore the car crash sounds and bell tones crashing in the background. When
the tempo picks around the 2 minute mark, the Panasonic/Sahko analogy gets
even more accurate- then out of nowhere a delicate pretty piano line that
doesn't sound sampled, emerges. All the while of course, the regular
distorted noises scream out in the background. Rather confusing, and if you
imagine what must be happening on the video as this music plays, it's rather
disturbing as well. Track 10 is perhaps the loudest track to ever have the
words "Ambient" in its title, and ends with a rythm box and looped wet burp
(or is it something else?) workout that fades into something that sounds
recognizably ambient. Track 11, the 30 minute bonus track starts with some
painful violin scratches and spooky rumblings. It's apparently a leftover
from the first MFBP and is a pretty magnificent thing. It has a horror
soundtrack feel in a Goblin way, with some deep synth chords appearing
occasionally amidst long drawn out squeals and metal scrapes and all sort of
mysterious sound efects all heavily processed and muted in the manner of the
other tracks on MFBP1.

"The prosperity of vice, the misfortunes of virtue"
CD Released by Che (UK)
1997

"I was very influenced by pre-surrealist poets like Arthur Rimbaud,
Lautreamont, Jean Genet, etc. because these poets are very close to
rock'n'roll. I was an art school student and painting every day. My first
influence was George de Chirico and Dali. Then I read a book by Marcel
Duchamp. This book talks a lot about Dada and Surrealism. I found out why
Dadaists destroyed all conventional art form. I decided to destroy all
conventional music."
Interview with Oskari Mertalo.

Roughly along the lines of the "Music For Bondage Performance 2" CD or maybe
even Masami's very early tape-loop collage material (Ecobondage being the
best available example of those) with occasional bursts of that trademark red
hot distortion. Which means this is very listenable, especially since he
seems to have lowered the recording levels on his tape machines, though just
as difficult and unapproachable as his super loud-super long recent material.
Very abstract and random in the best automatist tradition,  some tracks
feature recognizable sounds of scratches, bells, violins, horses and human
voices floating above shimmering electric tones and echoes. Impenetrable and
disorienting. Other tracks, like the opener, and track 6 are simple patterns
that wouldn't sound too out of place on the Mego (or maybe even Sahko) label.
Perhaps he's damaging his own CD's and recording the result before Oval beats
him to the punch. Track 11 is a pretty good one and features a rockabilly
sample falling into a vortex of spinning cut-up feedback farts. Apparently a
soundtrack for a theater production of the Marquis de Sade's "Juliette", an
obvious Surrealist hero done justice by Masami's extreme surrealist tactics.
Very sharp  digipack features photos of the theater performance- looks mighty
creepy in a Ken Russell meets Les Miserables style. The last track is one
single electric tone loop that sounds like an air raid siren but may be a
theremin- a pretty minimal and great way to end this wonderful disc.

"Scumtron"
subtitled: "Remixes and original recordings"
CD Released by Blast First (UK)
1997
Not content with being known as the American Homestead, or the poor man's
Mute, Blast First enters the japanese noise sweepstakes with this CD bringing
together the Euro (plus token Yank) branch of the post-whatever establishment
and our man Masami Akita. What can one say about remixes that Wire, Option
and Spin haven't said already? Okay how about this: most of them suck-they
have the peculiar ability to take a horrible track and make it even more
hideous. When I think of "remix" I think of Duran Duran, Depeche Mode and
Madonna. The best remix music I've heard has been Aphex Twin's "Ventolin"
e.p. (and pretty much anything else the Aphex man has touched) and U-Ziq's
"U-Ziq versus the Auteurs". The Aphex phenomenon is difficult to explain- the
kid is touched by genius-lets leave it at that. Mike Paradina's masterful
demolition of the Auteurs is something else. I don't mean demolition as in
total obliteration of something that is despised- I mean a disassembling and
reassembling of sounds generated with one intent (worthy or unworthy-it
doesn't matter) and creating a new set of sounds, or 'tracks' if you prefer,
that are as valid a listening experience (i.e. they don't suck) as any set of
original material from any artist. 
The CD lists the particular track each remix used as source material, as if
the listener is going to run out and find the original version of, say,
"Elephant's Memory" to compare it to the Panasonic remix. Maybe the next
Merzbow remix CD can be one of those extended play singles, with 10 versions
of the same track, (like Aphex Twin's "Ventolin" or any average dance club
hit). Pretty amazing package of a pink xeroxed booklet with just text and a
bar-code on it and not much else except for the nice clear tray.

1.House of Kaya 	4:12
(Jim O'Rourke remix of "Spiral Honey")
Nondescript and meandering, this seems to try for that microscopic Oval
damaged CD feel, but just sounds like when my headphone jack kept slipping
out of my CD player every time I stood up. An accident so easily duplicated
that having to sit through a similar experience without the shock element of
fearing I've ruined another pair of headphones is not half as meaningful.
2.Eat Beat Eat #2 	6:29
(Merzbow original track)
Zoom Biff Pow its a full on noise piece from the master. Check the volume
knob.
3.Elephant's Memory remix	11:15
(Panasonic remix of "Elephant's Memory")
Panasonic are a happening techno-derived electronic outfit out of Finland who
are (consciously or not) doing a pretty good job of stripping the happy dance
face off "electronica" and paring it down to its Kraftwerk/ primitive Detroit
synth blips roots. They make loops of scratches and tones out of Merzbow's
sonic barrage and mix it up quite slowly and deliberately into twitching
non-funky insect rhythms. Very well done, with a nice no-fi feel. The best
track perhaps?
4.an.mon	4:51
(Rehberg/Bauer remix of "Antimonument")
Two guys associated with the German Mego label provide almost Aube-like high
pitched squeals looped into simple repetitive patterns floating from left to
right channels with occasional buzz farts popping up. Sounds pretty amazing
to me. Never gets as painful as some of Aube's tones can, but this is just as
worthy.
5.micromedley	4:12
(Russell Haswell remix of various vinyl Merzbow records)
Basic mix of several records played at once. Pretty standard noise recording-
try it at home.
6.ecobondage [ending] Ae remix	11:22
(Autechre remix of "Ecobondage [ending]")
Perhaps a bit too rhythmic and too reminiscent of Autechre's work somewhere
between "Tri-Repatae" and their more recent work this takes subtle samples
and arranges them into a fairly standard laid back techno beat. Not even half
as noisy as some of the tracks on "Chiastic Slide" either. The mellow ambient
(as in "ambient techno") fade out just makes the following track even more
initially painful.
7.Eat Beat Eat #1 	4:43
(Merzbow original track)
Our man doesn't hold anything back on this track- LOUD supersonic channel
hopping and extreme equalizer effects galore, sped up tape tricks and
electronic hum- just try and "remix" this.
8.untitled II 1996	14:40
(Bernhard Gunter remix of tracks from "Music For Bondage Performance")
For further ironic enjoyment this CD should have really been packaged with a
sticker that read: CONTAINS AN EXCLUSIVE FOURTEEN MINUTE BERNHARD GUNTER
REMIX. More conceptual pranks from this highly regarded composer. Not really
the equivalent of a Mark Rothko painting, this is more like staring at a
blank wall for a couple of weeks. I have to admit its mighty appropriate to
end this CD with this track. These inaudible rumblings and silent echoes can
be as discomforting and annoying as any high decibel Merzbow shriek.

"Age Of 369/Chant 2"
CD Released by Extreme (Aus)
1997

"My first idea of using pornography is in mail art concepts. I sent them with
my cassette tape. I was trying to make the very lowest form of sound and it
seemed similar to pornography, because porno is the unconsciousness of
culture, the libido of humanity."
Interview with Oskari Mertalo. 

More reissues of Masami's early cassette material. As the man himself
intended they are explosive and disposable- true junk music built out of
taped snippets of radio static and contact microphone scrapes. Loops set up
unintentionally musical rhythms that are quickly obliterated by free-form
feedback distortion jams flying out of nowhere. The actual sounds of cheap
and up-front recording equipment dominate- the whirring of tape reels and the
static hum of mics, mixers and decks interfering with each other provide a
backbeat for Masami's rustling metal objects and trash can percussion.
Packaging seeks to duplicate the feel of those early Merzbow tapes wrapped in
sheets ripped from porn magazines, but the Extreme graphic design department
can't help but stylize and gussy up the filth by cleaning up the focus,
emphasizing abstract flesh and overprinting with fragmented texts.
Regardless, it still manages to look depraved-cool! The liner notes are
extremely difficult to read due to the smart ass red ink letters on collage
panty crotch photos.


"Hybrid Noisebloom"
CD Released by Vinyl Communications (USA)
1997

Track titles:
1.Plasma Birds
2.Mouse of Superconcetion
3.Minotaurus
4.Neuro Electric Butterfly
5.The Imaginary Conversation of Blue

Yet another domestic release for Masami, the second in fact on this label.
Less abrasive perhaps, spacier in a Klaus Schulze goes to hell mode, with a
wide use of fat synth blips and extreme right-to-left (and back again)
channel mixer abuse. Track 2 for example takes loud swooshing spaceship
synths worthy of the early to mid material of Schulze, Heldon's "It's Only
Rock and Roll" or even (gasp) the sounds at the beginning of every Hawkwind
song and gradually mixes in some trademark junk percussion, tape distortion
and high pitched squeals. It never totally dissolves into roaring distortion,
always maintaining those waves of classic synth bleeps and swooshes.
"Minotaurus" has a post-noise disco flair worthy of Panasonic or the Mego
label folks- a constant "beat" provided by a single synth bleep endlessly
farting out its frequency. Nothing new for Merzbow, really, as the tracks on
""Age Of 369/Chant 2" attest. "Neuro Electric Butterfly" retains that rigid
"post-techno" feel: it uses the tools and basic building blocks of Detroit
techno while still managing to make even Panasonic sound like The Ohio
Players. It's perhaps the best track here, with a great rythmic beginning and
a dissolution into the free-form chaos we have come to expect from Masami,
tempered by the synthesizer squiggles and occasional (non-linear) "beats".
But don't worry-its still noise. Which is very tranced out and outstanding.
The booklet has an amazing  photo of Masami at the controls of his mixing
board surrounded by electronic equipment, looking quite like Klaus Schulze
(or Keith Emerson if you prefer) Some really cool track titles too.


WHO IS MERZBOW?
Merzbow is mainly Masami Akita, with his wife Reiko A. helping out on
occasion, and other people, such as Bara the butoh dancer who helps out as
needed live or on record..

BIOGRAPHY:
Born 1956 in Tokyo, Japan
Graduated Tamagawa University, Art Department; majoring in Painting & Art
Theory
Worked as an editor of several magazines
Became a freelance writer for several books, magazines
Favourite area of writing is: Art; Avant-garde Music; and Post-Modern Culture
Formed Japanese premier noise group MERZBOW in 1981
Released over 50 records and CDs, to date
Continues to perform and record as MERZBOW
Has worked with many different media: Butoh Dance; Performance; Art
Installation; Video; Film; CD ROM etc
Toured Russia in 1988, U.S.A in 1990, Korea in 1991, & Europe in 1989 & 1992

MERZBOW PLAYS:
Porta Two 4 Track cassette recorder
DAT Recorders
Cassette Recorders
Filter Bank FB3 Mk 2
Maxon DM 1000
Korg DRV 1000 Reverb Unit
Roland SDE 1000 Delay Unit
EMS Synthi 'A' Synthesiser
Moog Rogue Synthesiser
Therematic Theremin
Ishimashi Theremin
Novation Bass Station Synthesiser
Various contact mic units
Ring Modulator
Various Junk Metallic Tools
Various Effects Pedals
Leader High & Low Frequency Generator
Relaxation Alpha Wave Generator
Stargazer Mind Expansion Sound Visualiser
Novation Synthe Rack

SOURCES:

The Encyclopedia of Surrealism by Jose Pierre 1972


Corridor of Cells e-zine (Oskari Mertalo interview):
Corridor of Cells

Stagedive digi-zine (Interview with Dixon Christie):
Stagedive digi-zine

The best way to find data about Merzbow on the internet seems to be to go to
as many search engines as you can think of and search for Masami Akita and/or
Merzbow. In addition, the following sites are invaluable:

DIGITAL MERZBOW: Merzbow
Oskari Mertalo's Digital Merzbow contains the cover and complete track
listings for just about every CD discussed in this article.
 
The noise newsgroup can also lead you to interesting places.

ADDITIONAL LINKS:

Masami Akita interview with Trevor Brown at Trevor's home page:
Trevor Brown

Good sources for all Merzbow CDs mentioned:

Ear/Rational (domestic Merz at very good prices- best prices on Extreme also)
Ear/Rational

Anomalous (Always something interesting to be found in this huge catalog)
Anomalous

Forced Exposure (lots of Merzbow import discs- on Alchemy, etc.)
Forced Exposure

Extreme Subterranea
Extreme Subterranea