The Hafler Trio - Ignotium Per Ignotius [Korm Plastics - 2007]The Hafler trio who is mainly one Andrew M. McKenzie, have made a career out of making some of the most puzzling, confusing and down right odd & hidden agenda art since the mid 1980's. Both with their strange and often jarring soundworlds which fall some were between; noise, ambient/drone,Musique concrete and their often very complexe and arty packaging. Ignotium Per Ignotius is the seventh re-issue by korm plastics of 1980’s albums previously released on Touch. With the orignal superb/deeply head scratching artwork, booklet etc been reproduched- which is as important as the enclosed near on 40 minutes of sound. The package conists of : a sheet of tracing art paper that’s watermarked with bizarre and puzzling text wrapped around a cardboard folder, which houses the disk and a 30 plus page booklet, which is again wrapped in art paper like the folder. The booklet is filled with backwards text and old black and white prints that get progressively odder as the booklet goes on. The text consist of strange and often surreal tales and dialogue, which goes from plain odd to bizarrely amusing. The cd it’s self goes from been barely-there ambient sound sheen, to sudden jarring and loud sound chaos, to anywhere in-between those two states. Utilizing drone craft, electronic hiss and whoosh, creepy cinematic undertones and wavering synth tones. With long stretches of weird found sound, backwards dialogue, wind sounds, chattering ect. All to making a wonderful disorientating sound stew, where you really don’t know what will happen next. A rewarding and strange piece of audio-visual art, that deservers the time of those interested in challenging sound art and art in general. All to be taken with a pinch of humorous salt, Whether it all actually means anything is another thing or maybe that’s the point?! Roger Batty
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