seven

mick harris has been around for a long time, and i am sure that almost everyone of you would recognize him for his participation in acts like napalm death, scorn, lull, etc. my first exposure to scorn was quite a while ago and frankly, it wasn't a pleasant one. at that time i was a napalm death fan and to hear this kind of music (labeled by some as “ambient dub”) from mick harris was quite a surprise.

now i can only admire the diversity of this musician, and this was one of the reasons why i decided to pick up this ep (the second reason was that so far hymen has not released a single bad or even average disk, and i grew to trust this label's opinion over the course of almost two years).

starting with the first track we are presented with simple rough breaks that slowly pulsate surrounded by atonal high-pitched noises. bass-filled, deep and simple atmosphere is quite interesting at first; slowly moving dark tech-step is quite fitting hymen's profile. oversaturated threatening, abrasive and incredibly heavy beats backed by simple repetitive drum loops are the main building blocks of every track. cut-up atmospheric sweeps, small bleeps and sparse atonal keys are randomly placed on top of seemingly unchanging rhythm.

i cannot place it yet, but there is something strangely attractive in this repetitive sound. maybe its darkness and heaviness appeals to me, or maybe it is an unusual mixture of simple elements - this is yet to be determined. if you are in the mood for something bizarre and atmospheric (to an extent, of course), you might want to check it out.