At least one of the members of experimental duo tētēma should require little introduction: Mike Patton, Faith No More / Mr Bungle front man, Ipecac label chief and the man behind myriad weird and wonderful musical ventures, including some of the strangest solo releases on the market is one of those people who can be depended upon to be idiosyncratic and awesome at the same time. Anthony Pateras may not be as well known, but the Australian composer’s 18-album back catalogue including releases on Editions Mego have earned him respect and acclaim as a significant artist in the avant-garde world.
‘Geocidal’ presents a wonderfully dark, warped sonic world. Barely audible vocal utterings, speaking in tongues, against heavy, howling drones and frenetic tribal percussion all appear inside the album’s first track, and from thereon in, things only get weirder: from the dislocated industrial din of ‘Pure War’ that would be enough to terrify even fans of acts like Merzbow and Prurient, via the calamitous drum-driven racket of ‘The Hell of Now’ to the woozily weird ‘Ten Years Tricked’, it’s abundantly clear that the pair have gelled to create something compellingly odd, and oddly compelling.
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‘3-2-1 Civilisation’ is a mental mash of drum ‘n’ bass and snarling industrial metal, a brain-bending assault on the senses. ‘Kid Has Got the Bomb’ hints at the bombastic groove of FNM on top of a mashed-up backing that sees a collision of dubstep, clanking metal, big band and world music. And yes, they actually pull it off, making ‘Geocidal’ a brilliant work of oddball genius.
tētēma Online
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