Best of Macronympha

[totalblack]

Arguably one of the best noise groups of all time, and true pioneers of sound. The discography is vast, with more than 250 releases, and there are many different periods, with their own qualities. I have my own personal opinions, but I'm curious to hear people discuss which recordings resonate with them, and why?

my personal list:

Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania (Praxis Dr. Bearmann 1995) - Obvious entry. The first "album" and an undisputed classic. After years and years of listening, I don't think that it's "the best" that they did, but for some reason I always come back to it- and grab from the collection when entertaining at home.

Melting Softly Into Time (Hospital Productions \ Self Abuse 2005) - Stimbox + Mlehst on this one with Joe, burned into my mind because it's the first thing that I picked up from Macro, and I distinctly remember listening to the first side at age 19 and thinking "Household Appliances? what is going on here?"

Intensive Care (Self Abuse 1998) - Currently I believe this is the best release Macro release- this one has it all, incredible artwork, all-star lineup of contributors, loud as fuck. I consider this a perfect noise CD.

Whorechestra (MSNP 1995) - There are a lot of great tapes from these guys, but this one is an absolutely savage rip of an hour. Classic Japanese bondage artwork, completely blown out and brutal sound, composed of shorter tracks- which helps to pace this one out compared to some of the other tapes that don't stop.

Slash \ The Comfort Zone collab with Grey Wolves (Sol Niger\many labels 1993) - This doesn't sound like most other Macro material, and if I had to guess was probably edited by either Stella or Grey Wolves (or a combination of the two). But it's a combination of two of my all time favourites, and it's a really interesting collaborative release that doesn't exactly sound like either party. I think it's also the release that I've had the most different editions of, at one point I had 5 unique versions of this, since there were so many variations made.

Sex And Death \ King And Crown (Hospital Productions 2007/2005) - I put these two together because they are both very short releases that feature Dom Fernow in the lineup, and are memorable as being some of the last good releases from Macronympha (in my opinion). Brief and fierce tracks, with Hospital Productions artwork elevating classic MSNP themes, along with spicy and comedic track titles.

I know there's plenty of other fan favourites, so curious to hear what everyone else goes back to the most

[theworldisawarfilm]

Excellent list/topic.

No time for anything but a shortlist from me at the moment. Definitely the group which got me interested in Harsh Noise-proper and inspired me to begin producing my own work. The Mom Savage sound of the 1990's is revered for good reason, and satisfies like little else. Bad vibrations. Pitch-black humour and ecstatic psychedelia working in perfect lockstep to produce maximum stimulation.

Amplified Humans
Physical Chaos
Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Grind
Ultimate Vibrator
Slash/The Comfort Zone (w The Grey Wolves)

[Capers]

I must have listed my favorite Macronympha at least ten times by now. Forums, conversations, in my notebook... Tedious shit so many, of course, but then the list is everchanging. As for March 2022, my favorites are:

Grind C60 (Old Europa Café, 1995)
Had the Stella reissue for a long long time. Then a couple of years ago I was watching my neighbor's (Mr Arv & Miljö/Discreet Music CEO) cat while he was strolling with shoes on on some danish beach. While playing with the creature I spotted an original Grind, dusty as hell, on a shelf. I texted him.
"So, an original Grind eh? What's up with that?"
"Yeah. The tape doesn't play. Don't know what's wrong. Take it if you want."
One of the spools seemed stuck. Took it home and had a look at the tape. Put my finger into one of the spool and turned it like one millimeter. Voila.
Anyway. Stella's mixing and editing skills are wellknown, and this is a very good example. Noise to get seasick from.

Crack C62 (Mutter Wild 2010, orig. 1995)
Realize I haven't played this in a few years, and I desperately have to asap. But it won't be tonight. Anyway. Always thought of this as their very personal tribute to C.C.C.C. It sends me off in precisely the same direction C.C.C.C. does, but the ship is unmistakably Macronympha's.
I'm not the kind who desperately needs the original, but I can't deny it bugs me that I'm still stuck with this reissue, as perfectly fine as it may be.

Pittsburgh Pennsylvania LP (Praxis Dr Bearmann, 1995)
Like so many have said, perhaps not their best per se, but just a perfect album, with a proper Album feel to it. And the easily digestible length, 41 minutes, is another factor. At least to me. I've read now and then how the CD reissue on Trash Ritual had a flat sound sort of, but that version went out the door the same week I stumbled upon this, six years ago. Would be interesting to compare them back to back though.

Super Oxide CD (Ljud & Bild Produktion, 2011)
This one appeared at a time when I had just found my way back to noise after a circa three year break, and I think it might have been my first Macronympha record. I'd heard them before, but for some reason I waited until a swede put something out. It's very early material, edited by Stella. Just brilliant, and a great summary of their various 1990's leanings: the harsh, the psychedelic, the complex, the simple...

Baroque C46 (Less Than Zero, 1996)
This might just be the favorite here. That it's easily the one I've played the most, and still do, speaks for that, at least. It has everything AND more, but the weighs heavily into the mind-melting/stretching end of their spectrum. And those drums! An album that, as I wrote in the "PR text" fot the Ultimat Vibrator reissue, "cracks open sonic chasms". Baroque really does, and even more so than UV to be honest, but you can't pick 'em all here!

Honorable mentions:
White Music - Might just be the hardest of them all?
Relentless Agony - It's not that great "musically", but it's easily their most sinister to me. Literally sinister. Genuinly unpleasant, and thus not played very often. Iäm rarely in the mood for it.

The Stimbox era... I do love what I have from that era. Priapus, Intensive Care, Membranes And Black Holes and a couple more. It's a different beast for me though. There's a sharpness to the sounds, cuts, incisions etc. If I listed my ten favorite Macronympha, I'm sure a couple would find their way in there.

Present day Macronympha. It's not utter shite in itself. But compared to pretty much anything they did up until and including Sex And Death, it is. And yeah, need to revisit the Sex And Death 7" as well! Good one. I have two copies for some reason, and I don't need both. 10€ ppd to anywhere. Hit me up.

[Scream & Writhe]

Melting Softly Into Time was the first for me as well. Amplified Humans and Grind are the ones I revisit the most, but there are still some certifiable bangers that my slow ass has yet to hear.

[_IS_]

I've read now and then how the CD reissue on Trash Ritual had a flat sound sort of, but that version went out the door the same week I stumbled upon this, six years ago. Would be interesting to compare them back to back though.

I've heard the exact opposite of this, which is why I have been reluctant to pay what the vinyl version has been going for. I'd be interested to hear comments if someone has access to both versions!

Agreed on Super Oxide CD. One of my top favorites from them!

[sarinDK]

Absolute top one for me is Amplified Humans. The sound textures and howling feedback, metal bash mania, perfect length for the two sides/tracks as well.
Close up is Baroque and Relentless Agony from the classic era. Pittsburgh PA somehow never really grew on me.

I almost exclusively read negative comments (if any at all) on the LS/Roemer releases and while most of the countless split material is quite forgettable I have enjoyed the "Burdens of ideology" double cs set and "Golden Gutter Blood" tape a lot.

Great to see reissues coming like Grind and Ultimate Vibrator, because goddamn is it hard to track down originals. Only ever managed to picked up a genuine Whorechestra copy throughout the past decade (also a massive tape, albeit not as unique as the top 3 i mentioned imho)

[Haare]

I've read now and then how the CD reissue on Trash Ritual had a flat sound sort of, but that version went out the door the same week I stumbled upon this, six years ago. Would be interesting to compare them back to back though.

I've heard the exact opposite of this, which is why I have been reluctant to pay what the vinyl version has been going for. I'd be interested to hear comments if someone has access to both versions!

I've also heard that the cd version is better? My fave Macro anyway, and also an album that rekindled my love for harsh noise after a long diet of drone & doom.

[k.p.g]

Grind and Intensive Care were both mentioned plenty already, both are amazing. Other titles I have yet to see mentioned:

- Recycled tape
- Deep Reeds
- Arthur Shawcross 7"

[xIncorruptibleCorpse777x]

Ha, I contacted someone about this very thing late last night or early this morning! Forgot that there was already a thread about it... lol

[Greg]

Personally:

Whorechestra - Undeniably one of the best noise releases ever. Argue amongst yourselves, but this just does it all. A perfect example of the "tearing paper" sound I've tried to explain to people.

Intensive Care - Probably the best representation for me of Macro in a release "off of tape" (Along with next). Certain moments of this are really inspiring. Epitome of the "Joe/Tim-era" (for me).

Membranes And Black Holes - Another burner of a CD. Not really talked about, but mentioned below as well. Another Joe/Tim-era classic. Great almost murky sound too without loss of essence.

Pittsburgh - Both the LP & CD. Don't find the CD version to be flat at all as referenced earlier. Chris did a great job with it. Probably "the" Macro release most people know and love. "Rusted Steel and Rotting Flesh" is classic.

Bulk Density - One of my favorite noise albums to pop on if I have a long drive.

[Chris]

Lots of great releases listed by the previous posters. Every one of these is worth a listen.

Any fans of "Notes from Underground" on Self Abuse? I love how buried and almost "thin" that one sounds in sections compared to some of the other Macro releases from that era. It might not be their best, but it certainly is a favorite of mine.

[Scream & Writhe]

Just revisited this classic Roemer interview https://youtu.be/REKYfU5hTUw

[xIncorruptibleCorpse777x]

Amplified Humans is indeed good. Listened to it for the first time very early this morning.

[Petishkeh]

Grind
Intensive Care
The Tentacles of the Octopus...
Arthur Shawcross
Pittsburgh, PA
Priapus
Amplified Humans

Though, as with everyone else, it changes all the time.

Those first three were among the first HN I ever heard, so I’m more partial to them, because they stick out more poignantly in my mind.

However, I will state that Grind and Intensive Care are definitely the top two for me all-time.

I could be mis-remembering here, but I think it was Dan Johansson in ALAP stating something akin to him thinking Grind was amazing, but one of Macronympha’s lesser-known releases (my apologies if I am remembering that wrong). Now everyone seems to have a hard-on for it. Awesome and probably due to the CD reissue (which I do not have).

[xIncorruptibleCorpse777x]

I've heard the reissue of Grind.

It bangs. Hard.

[xIncorruptibleCorpse777x]

Got this email a day ago or something...

TWENTY​-​FIVE​-​YEARS​-​OF​-​MACRONYMPHA “THE CALCULATION FORMULA” √25 x 2 – 5 x 105 = M2 box set (2016)

https://bizarresdigitalantientertainmen ... x-set-2016

This box set release is to commemorate and celebrate that 25 years have passed since the first Macronympha recordings. However, these tracks represent the future - and a new way of going forward. We may create these sounds with a healthy respect for past projects and methods...but all the noise contained on these discs...and all Macronympha work to come - are fresh, new recordings exchanged between Roemer and Sabatto.

-Joseph Roemer/2016
credits
released June 28, 2022

[Capers]

Sigh... Isn't it a good time to put the Macronympha name to sleep? I can't imagine anything worthwhile coming out of those two continuing whatever it is they're doing. If the best they can do is still nowhere near the least good of the prime era Macronympha, what's the point? And why do people bother checking out the new stuff?

[xIncorruptibleCorpse777x]

Sigh... Isn't it a good time to put the Macronympha name to sleep? I can't imagine anything worthwhile coming out of those two continuing whatever it is they're doing. If the best they can do is still nowhere near the least good of the prime era Macronympha, what's the point? And why do people bother checking out the new stuff?

There's nothing wrong with continuing to make music or another form of art, regardless of its quality. And people will pick up on whether it's worth spending money on or not.

[adult human]

Sigh... Isn't it a good time to put the Macronympha name to sleep? I can't imagine anything worthwhile coming out of those two continuing whatever it is they're doing. If the best they can do is still nowhere near the least good of the prime era Macronympha, what's the point? And why do people bother checking out the new stuff?

There's nothing wrong with continuing to make music or another form of art, regardless of its quality. And people will pick up on whether it's worth spending money on or not.

Yeah I'm not sure...the Macro name means so much that you kind of want it to stop so it can remain this iconic, cemented moment in time. But then we probably all agree that artists should in the end do what the fuck they want and if they're driven to keep it up who are we to argue? Perhaps it's a rare case that Macro can be this legendary old thing with a comparatively weak contemporary version of itself that bubbles away in the background for those who want it without its reputation being tarnished by doing so. Who knows.

I noticed recently that Roemer is involved in a project called Cancel Culture which I think just has digital releases. In many ways it feels like it could be this continuation of lots of Macro ideas - almost what he SHOULD be doing now. But sadly, it sucks. Take from that what you will.

[Tribe Tapes]

Logging on S&W forums in my bathrobe talking about modern Macro like it’s The Simpsons - Season 33

[Ascitic]

Awesome to see love for Baroque and Whorechestra

[xIncorruptibleCorpse777x]

Oh shit, I forgot that that new-ish Macro release is of new material. Whelp, that saves me some money... Also reminds me to not bother subscribing to "BizarreShampoo", because most (or all??) of the Macro on there is new material. On that note, I wish it was possible to do a subscription deal for Richard Ramirez material on bandcamp. Would pay fifteen bucks just for new releases and pieces of the digital back catalog each month and nothing else. Same goes for Nurse With Wound and Current 93 - those discographies are impossible to afford all of.

[Lactating Tardigrade]

Pittsburgh Pennsylvania LP (Praxis Dr Bearmann, 1995)
Like so many have said, perhaps not their best per se, but just a perfect album, with a proper Album feel to it. And the easily digestible length, 41 minutes, is another factor. At least to me. I've read now and then how the CD reissue on Trash Ritual had a flat sound sort of, but that version went out the door the same week I stumbled upon this, six years ago. Would be interesting to compare them back to back though.

I finally acquired the CD version of Pittsburgh after procrastinating when it was first released. I'm going to do a side-by-side comparison to the tape edition when it arrives. I think it's a flawless album, but I am curious how the CD mix compares to the tape mix. Will report back soon.

It's too bad the Trash Ritual boxset never materialized because even though there have been a number of CD reissues in the last few years, there are a number of classic albums still yet to be reissued. Grind, Pittsburgh, and Crack are top 3, and now all out on CD, but surprised White Music, Relentless Agony, and Physical Chaos haven't been reissued yet. Looking forward to the Whorechestra reissue from Dada soon, however.

Also, Super Oxide is one of those rare occurrences where the unreleased material is up there with some of the classics. Anyone who skipped out on that CD should try to track it down.

[Capers]

I'm sure I've read it many years ago somewhere, but someone please remind me; what was supposed to be in that Trash Ritual box set? The three 6xC46 boxes Stella released years ago are great, and I'm wondering if that was it? Mostly unreleased and some just super rare old recordings. It's not all zenith quality stuff, but as a whole it's quite the treasure.

[Lactating Tardigrade]

This is what he wrote on the Special Interests board back in 2012:

Should mention that a multiple CD box set of the early Macronympha tape releases has been in the works for quite some time and should hopefully see the light of day this year? Set will include the best of all the early tapes as well as a large amount of unreleased material, rehearsal sessions, various test mixes, etc. Currently linear notes for the set are being worked on as well as layout. Will be worth the 5 years of sweat put into it.

And it looked like Mikko had some additional information that it was supposed to be a 10xCD set with contributions from both Joe and Rodger. He had posted this about a year after the post above:

I believe MSNP box was basically all done. Obstacle is not between band members, but simply having release put out & distributed. As far as I know, both members have contributed their best masters for box to happen. But who knows when TR re-activates. Hopefully sooner than later.