Namazu Dantai - Nocturnal Veils [No Visible Scars - 2010]The “Nocturnal Veils” title may suggest lulling and grim ambient expanses, but there’s nothing darkly soothing or grimly subtle about this C30 tape- instead it ties you down & then gives you a detailed/thick noise battering. On offer here are two sides of raging and shifting Harsh noise with some very wallish like dwells taking over large sways of each side long track. Namazu Dantai is a Berlin based Harsh Noise and walled noise project that’s all the work of one Sascha Mandler whose other projects include the jarring harsh noise meets Japanese folklore themed sonic’s of Izanami's Labour Pains and Death Industrial/ Power Electronics of Mazakon Tactics. Both tracks here are made using a mixture of violin, cither and electronics which creates the detailed, shifting, rip ‘n’ roar sonic storms that Mandler lets loose with-in these two sides of tape. Side ones untitled track seems the most twisting, turning and shifting of the two sides here with Mandler mixing together: juddering 'n’ thick harmonic textures that may once have been violin or cither, bucking road drill like throbs, deep roaring engine like dwells, squalling & melted electronics locked inside cavernous judders, and caught ethnic like percussive drips mixed with junk metal like rips and hammers. Side two seem to concentrate more of roaring, crashing, tearing and thick sonic bombardments, and it gives you the feeling that Mandler has managed to harness the sound of ten or twenty thunder storms to play the track. This side is certainly the more set and wallish of the two tracks, through I’d still say this is deep ‘n’ thick psychedelic harsh noise with lengthy wallish dwells.
Of the two sides I’d say the first is my favourite as Mandler pulls you through so much dramatic and crushing harsh noise matter. Side twos track is fine, but I don’t’ think it really stands as one of his best tracks because at times it almost feels like he’s treading sonic water and re-using similar noise storm & wall texturing tricks he’s used in the past. It’s hardly a bad track, I just expect a bit more from Mandler. So on the whole another good and brain melting release from this project that sits somewhere between Harsh noise & HNW. Roger Batty
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