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 Review archive:  # a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v w x y z

Ataraxy/Clive Henry - XVII [Self Release - 2014]

This split CDR release brings together two euro walled noise acts, and they come in the form of Germany’s Ataraxy, and UK Southampton based Clive Henry.  Both parties offer up a thirty minute track- the Ataraxy track is a dense ‘n’ brutal wall-craft, while Mr Henry’s is an equally intense yet more progressive take on wall-making.

This release appeared around April 2014, as a private release by Mr Henry, and as with any release put out by Clive the packaging here has a nicely pro & arty look to it- taking in his house style of 5 or so art cards, which feature texts & artwork relating to the each projects track.

First up we have Ataraxy track, and this is entitled “It Seems Like Yesterday”. This track is a dense mixture of thundering ‘n’ rumbling low-end, which is edged with slight thinner ‘n’ crisp yet no less brutal juddering ‘n’ jittering. The low-end remains very firm & overwhelming through-out, while the juddering ‘n’ jittering elements do shift slightly in their pattern make-up & denseness. This track is no great departure from what I’ve heard Ataraxy do in the past, but  that’s not to say it bad- it’s rewarding enough in it’s meeting of low-end battering’s & subtle shifting jittering ‘n’ judderings.

Clive Henry’s track is entitled “This Is A Life”- I seem to recall reading  that this tracks was based on Mr Henry’s first ever attempt at HNW from 2010, but that he modified & added into it’s sonic setting. The track opens with this dense matt of crackling, and slightly descending static texturing, this seems to have a slight burrowing element running through it- which gives the sensation that it’s moving though your head like a mass a soild static worms. At around the six minute mark I detect a eerier circling element, which could either be the looped sound of insect chatter or some kind of looped night bird call.  As we progress on from this point Clive really pulls you deeper & deeper into the track, as he subtle shifts & alters the wall . By around the 9th minute the static has become thicker & more crunchy in it’s crackling feel, and now the background drone sounds like a continual turning stone wheel. By around the 12th minute things seem to have become even more stone age like, with Clive adding in subtle layer upon  layer of circling stone on stone, stone wheel on earth, and stone crackling like detail. The rest of the track sees Clive keeping things very dense & enclosing yet still moving along in the subtle shifts of noise layers/patterns. It only really thins down to a more dizzying shift of bike spoke like textural weaves in its last few mintues.  Simply put is “This Is A Life” is another excellently thought-out & conceived bit of wall-making from Mr Henry, the progressive elements are more subdued than some of his work, but they are  still present.

So in summing up this is another worthy self release split from Mr Henry. I enjoyed the Ataraxy for what is was, but I’d say Clive’s track is my favourite of the two tracks here as he mangers to put so much subtly shifting & highly rewarding detail into such a dense & overwhelming piece  of wall-making.

Rating: 3 out of 5Rating: 3 out of 5Rating: 3 out of 5Rating: 3 out of 5Rating: 3 out of 5

Roger Batty
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