LIMBS BIN – Pure Punishment CS

ABSURD EXPOSITION

When I received copies of the first LIMBS BIN 7″ in the mail from Josh Landes back in 2012 I honestly wrote it off after one listen, although the closing track, a cover of ‘Fix Me’, would have fit nicely on the ‘This is Good: A Tribute to Black Flag’ compilation tape from 2010 (on which the tracks from CLIMAX DENIAL and PUSDRAINER far outshine the doom-heavy acts filling out the rest of the tape). Listening back to the aptly-titled ‘Primitive Response’ now, 6 years later, I can still see what turned me off of it: I’m not very into noisecore, grindcore, noisegrind or any further combination of the two, I’m not very into bleeps and bloops, and I used to instantly respond to any remark in regards to calling something ‘power violence’ with a very succinct “No, it’s not.” However, I can also now see that even from the first release LIMBS BIN had a certain vision and focus which over the next 5 years would shape the project into something I became quite fond of by the time I tuned in again. It took the ’18 Rack Demo’ (Torn Light, 2017) to get me back into the game.

On ’18 Rack…’ there is no longer any sign of fumbling around, the drum machine has become firing power rather than a simple mechanism for beats, and Landes gets right into it with some longer extended tracks of incessant high-pitched feedback, at times holding only a thin, warbling line, assaulted with spastic full-on, low-end blasting and a barrage of vocals reminiscent of early BASTARD NOISE, albeit smothered in dirty distortion. These lengthier tracks are where the project shines and serve to counterbalance the ones that are merely short, violent blasts of power which can perhaps be seen as the trademark of the project. LIMBS BIN undoubtedly takes influence from not only the masters of higher-frequencies and those resonsible for the filthy, rumbling carnage that is 90s Americanoise, but also from units synonymous with a different side of “90s” “American” “noise” a la AGORAPHOBIC NOSEBLEED and SUPPRESSION. But remember, this is purely a one-man harsh noise crusade, not some boring band.

The two live recordings collected here showcase each side of the project. The A-side, recorded in February, is largely comprised of short blasts of chaos supplemented with incredible stage banter while the B-side, recorded in March, documents one long effort of THE RITA-Approved™ high-gain pleasure. Both sides were recorded direct from the board by yours truly in Montreal, QC. Video documentation of both events can be seen here.

True dedication and humble passion are not often found in this world. Landes embodies both. His wit and esteem are key elements in the LIMBS BIN effort. While I am a bit ashamed of not keeping up with this project throughout the years and thus not being able to hear its progression in real-time, I am mostly excited for what the future has in store for Josh as he makes his way into the annals of the underground as America’s Second Greatest Living Noise Artist.

If you don’t know, you should.

The debut LIMBS BIN LP, “One Happy World”, drops next month on Torn Light Records.

This tape is an entry in Absurd Exposition’s unofficial ‘Foreign Policy’ series.

Stream/download.

C22. Edition of 102 copies pro-dubbed on matte black tapes.

Wholesale and trades are available with this item.