Noise from Beyond the West

Primary section for noise and noise-adjacent discussion.
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Tarkamt
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Noise from Beyond the West

Post by Tarkamt »

On Extreme Music from Africa William Bennett didn't want to do the legwork, so he just invented what he wished he could find. But that doesn't mean there wasn't anything to find.

Let's share some brilliant noise from unlikely places: Africa, Middle East, Asia, Central & South America, etc. We might have to stretch the standard definition of noise in some cases... There are so many hidden gems waiting to be found. Let's discover some masterpieces that never had a chance.

I'll start with an all-time favorite artist a lot of people aren't familiar with.
Halim El-Dabh (1921-2017, Egypt)
Actually invented tape music in 1944 (predating Pierre Schaeffer) with Wire Recorder Piece or The Expression of Zaar. This piece and many of his other early electronic and tape works are collected on the excellent compilation CD from 2000, Crossing into the Electric Magnetic.
Last edited by Tarkamt on Fri Feb 11, 2022 12:29 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Third World Noise

Post by Atrophist »

African Imperial Wizard is pretty great.

You’re going to get in trouble for that thread title BTW.
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Re: Third World Noise

Post by Tarkamt »

Atrophist wrote: Thu Feb 10, 2022 11:28 pm African Imperial Wizard is pretty great.

You’re going to get in trouble for that thread title BTW.
That's nitpicking, but anyway I changed the title from "Third World Noise" to "Noise from beyond the West". Honestly not even sure if that's any better.
All blanket terms meant to divide people into categories are inherently offensive, and each contains it's own historic baggage.

But to get back on topic, I have severe doubts that African Imperial Wizard is actually African (Angolan). Just doesn't smell right.
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Re: Noise from Beyond the West

Post by W.K. »

Amen.
Last edited by W.K. on Fri Feb 11, 2022 6:21 pm, edited 2 times in total.
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Re: Noise from Beyond the West

Post by W.K. »

nvm
Last edited by W.K. on Fri Feb 11, 2022 2:37 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Noise from Beyond the West

Post by Joie de la Blumpy »

W.K. wrote: Fri Feb 11, 2022 7:39 amfucking jokers.
Agreed. But the cover art is pretty cool.
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Re: Noise from Beyond the West

Post by holy ghost »

https://utechrecords.bandcamp.com/album ... the-sirius

Vagusnerve - Go Back to the Sirius - weird electronic noise with laptop and guitar from China. I really like this one. Haven’t heard it in a while, I’ll have to dig it out of my CD boxes tonight.
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Re: Noise from Beyond the West

Post by Buried_slag_debris »

Tarkamt wrote: Thu Feb 10, 2022 11:09 pm I'll start with an all-time favorite artist a lot of people aren't familiar with.
Halim El-Dabh (1921-2017, Egypt)
Actually invented tape music in 1944 (predating Pierre Schaeffer) with Wire Recorder Piece or The Expression of Zaar. This piece and many of his other early electronic and tape works are collected on the excellent compilation CD from 2000, Crossing into the Electric Magnetic.
Listening to this today as I work. Really liking so far - was unfamiliar with him.
Looking forward to posts on this thread.
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Re: Noise from Beyond the West

Post by Tribe Tapes »

Seconding (or thirding?) Halim El-Dabh with this taped obscurity. Granted, I do not know enough about his techniques to know how they play into this material, but the end result is a sort of “skeletal folk musik.”

Blogspot / Download:
http://1000flights.blogspot.com/2016/1 ... tless.html
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Re: Noise from Beyond the West

Post by adult human »

Yeah another one here for Halim El-Dabh. I had to do a bit of research on that early piece for a written project and found the background on it very interesting.

Moving into more contemporary and less NOISE (more noises) material, there seems to be a wealth of very interesting sound art practice and curation going on in Beijing at the moment. I can’t cite too many specific artists because my listening has not yet been all that deep but check out the Zoomin’ Night label for a good start https://zoominnight.bandcamp.com/

The breadth of styles housed by the label ranges from relatively straight up field recording and improvisation to hyper focused sound experiments/documents but usually with a firm conceptual thread running through everything. From what I gather the label is also big on soliciting releases from people who do not have any prior experience working with music or sound, leading to some incredible documents of very raw, unspoiled-by-influence artistry. I think there are also a few releases from a band of 12-15 year olds making totally weird rock music. Like half the band is trying to be a covers group while the other is trying to be velvet underground and every member is playing a different song. Perhaps my favourite release on the label and the one which captures what I like most about it is ‘Deconstruction of Wind’ by Xiang which is nothing more than straight recordings of a broken electric fan in various combinations of its speed settings.
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Re: Noise from Beyond the West

Post by Atrophist »

Never mind.
Last edited by Atrophist on Fri Feb 11, 2022 12:34 pm, edited 1 time in total.
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Re: Third World Noise

Post by Atrophist »

Tarkamt wrote: Fri Feb 11, 2022 1:02 am
Atrophist wrote: Thu Feb 10, 2022 11:28 pm African Imperial Wizard is pretty great.

You’re going to get in trouble for that thread title BTW.
That's nitpicking, but anyway I changed the title from "Third World Noise" to "Noise from beyond the West". Honestly not even sure if that's any better.
All blanket terms meant to divide people into categories are inherently offensive, and each contains it's own historic baggage.

But to get back on topic, I have severe doubts that African Imperial Wizard is actually African (Angolan). Just doesn't smell right.
You’re almost certainly right about AIW. I was being a little prickly when I wrote that, I must admit. Regarding the thread title, I don’t really care one way or the other, but there are a lot of people in the West who insist on policing the speech and though of non-Westerners. You may even have had some experience of it yourself.
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Re: Noise from Beyond the West

Post by Tarkamt »

W.K. wrote: Fri Feb 11, 2022 7:39 am Maybe we are de-mystifying too much mysteries here on this forum but African Imperial Wizard is as much African as Muslimgauze is from the middle-east. However great the music is I think the project is done in poor taste.
If you want mysteries my friend, there are infinite mysteries in this world, and maybe the art / science of sound should be enough to ignite this sense of wonder. Truth is stranger and all that. But let's just call this what it is: "exoticism" only plays into (and profits from) people's willful ignorance about the rest of the world.
Atrophist wrote: Fri Feb 11, 2022 12:04 pm ...there are a lot of people in the West who insist on policing the speech and though of non-Westerners. You may even have had some experience of it yourself.
Wow.

Really glad so many are digging into El-Dabh's work.
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Re: Noise from Beyond the West

Post by D345 »

Rampokan by Raja Kirik
https://nyegenyegetapes.bandcamp.com/album/rampokan
this is great. Sounds like what Cut Hands is trying to sound like. Don't know if this is more "beat shit" than "noise" but you can beat me up in the alley.
But he was always more concerned with making his guitar sound like a dying horse, more than anything else.

https://ruputapes.wordpress.com/
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Re: Noise from Beyond the West

Post by Tarkamt »

D345 wrote: Fri Feb 11, 2022 1:27 pm Rampokan by Raja Kirik
https://nyegenyegetapes.bandcamp.com/album/rampokan
this is great. Sounds like what Cut Hands is trying to sound like. Don't know if this is more "beat shit" than "noise" but you can beat me up in the alley.
YES. Big up to Nyege Nyege, they are doing god's work in a big way. Have you checked out Duma? Sheer depravity! No idea what to even call their style. And I love that.
https://nyegenyegetapes.bandcamp.com/album/duma

Also really looking forward to any material by Fulu Miziki. To sum it up, it sounds like Konono No.1 with a sheet of acid shared between the members. Check out their videos on youtube.
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Re: Noise from Beyond the West

Post by adult human »

Yeah! Nyege Nyege is a really important and FUN thing. We're headed into more specifically dance music driven territory now (who cares) but the Tanzanian singeli stuff they're issuing recently is just insane. Sometimes it feels as though these oddball, hyper localised takes on club music are some of the only true, organic DIY music happening on earth.

Duma is cool too, really fun visuals too.
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Re: Noise from Beyond the West

Post by murmur »

Saint Abdullah are really great.

https://saintabdullah.bandcamp.com/albu ... -have-eyes

Drago Katzov, a Filipino artist, put this really weird album out:

https://lownoiseproductions.bandcamp.co ... -plundered
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Re: Noise from Beyond the West

Post by 33033 »

murmur wrote: Fri Feb 11, 2022 2:53 pm
Drago Katzov, a Filipino artist, put this really weird album out:

https://lownoiseproductions.bandcamp.co ... -plundered
Really stoked on this. I'll be issuing material with his work on it this year!
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Re: Noise from Beyond the West

Post by D345 »

Tarkamt wrote: Fri Feb 11, 2022 1:51 pm
D345 wrote: Fri Feb 11, 2022 1:27 pm Rampokan by Raja Kirik
https://nyegenyegetapes.bandcamp.com/album/rampokan
this is great. Sounds like what Cut Hands is trying to sound like. Don't know if this is more "beat shit" than "noise" but you can beat me up in the alley.
YES. Big up to Nyege Nyege, they are doing god's work in a big way. Have you checked out Duma? Sheer depravity! No idea what to even call their style. And I love that.
https://nyegenyegetapes.bandcamp.com/album/duma

Also really looking forward to any material by Fulu Miziki. To sum it up, it sounds like Konono No.1 with a sheet of acid shared between the members. Check out their videos on youtube.
Yes Duma is amazing! I'm watching Fulu Miziki videos now, at least this looks amazing! Really need to dig deeper into this stuff.
But he was always more concerned with making his guitar sound like a dying horse, more than anything else.

https://ruputapes.wordpress.com/
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Re: Noise from Beyond the West

Post by shrouded.in.antiquity »

adult human wrote: Fri Feb 11, 2022 2:26 pm Yeah! Nyege Nyege is a really important and FUN thing. We're headed into more specifically dance music driven territory now (who cares) but the Tanzanian singeli stuff they're issuing recently is just insane. Sometimes it feels as though these oddball, hyper localised takes on club music are some of the only true, organic DIY music happening on earth.

Duma is cool too, really fun visuals too.
Incredibly excited to see Duma on their US tour, in my hometown no less!
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Re: Noise from Beyond the West

Post by no_baizuo_allowed »

I literally used to think latinamerican noise and Persian BM were the hardest, until I saw this thread
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Re: Noise from Beyond the West

Post by Kenny »

Not noise is the strictest sense,
But some good stuff here from Iran.
https://opaltapes.com/album/emergent-errors
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Re: Noise from Beyond the West

Post by Tarkamt »

Kenny wrote: Fri Feb 11, 2022 9:44 pm Not noise is the strictest sense,
But some good stuff here from Iran.
https://opaltapes.com/album/emergent-errors
Shahin! I shared a bill with him (in his other duo project Temp-Illusion) in Russia last year. Really immersive stuff.
Also gotta shout out the maestro, Sote. All of his albums are worth exploring. Recently he's been doing more electroacoustic based composition, but then occasionally he'll slip and absolutely demolish you, your speakers, and the concept of space-time.

Iran is absolutely inspiring and has been brimming with anomalous artistic activity (despite everything) for years.
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Re: Noise from Beyond the West

Post by Kenny »

Tarkamt wrote: Fri Feb 11, 2022 11:20 pm
Kenny wrote: Fri Feb 11, 2022 9:44 pm Not noise is the strictest sense,
But some good stuff here from Iran.
https://opaltapes.com/album/emergent-errors
Shahin! I shared a bill with him (in his other duo project Temp-Illusion) in Russia last year. Really immersive stuff.
Also gotta shout out the maestro, Sote. All of his albums are worth exploring. Recently he's been doing more electroacoustic based composition, but then occasionally he'll slip and absolutely demolish you, your speakers, and the concept of space-time.

Iran is absolutely inspiring and has been brimming with anomalous artistic activity (despite everything) for years.
Must have been ace, yeah I really like Temp-Illusion too. Thanks for the Sote shout, will definitely give him a go.
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Re: Noise from Beyond the West

Post by Tarkamt »

Abu Lahab (Morroco)
What can I say about Abu Lahab... A total engima. I know almost nothing about this individual, yet I worry for his well being. Though something tells me this person has actual power.

Find what you can by him and dive in. All of his releases are unique, and I've yet to find my way through his entire discography, but if you're looking for pure hellish abstraction executed with a steady hand, look no further than He Who Is Illuminated with the Brightest Light Will Cast the Darkest Shadow (2011). Blackened electronics, field recordings of alien atmospheres, crumbling world views, an almost supernatural sense of dynamism and command of vision. This is an all-timer for me.

And if you're feeling especially reckless, Humid Limbs Of The Torn Beadsman (2012). I'm just gonna let it surprise you.
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