MYSTIFIED/BONEMACHINE split C90

MYSTIFIED/BONEMACHINE split C90
WAR PRODUCTIONS 2008
Here we have split between two artists, long too, a full 90min, not one of these single sided shenanigans. It comes packaged in a plastic bag with hard stock cover, no tape case. The tape itself is a brand name with each bands name printed and taped to each side. The bag itself is kept closed with a band aid sticker.

Mystified starts off side A with “Burner”, a steady reverberating shimmering wall of ambiance. The tape starts to cut out on the right ear, not entirely sure if this is supposed to happen, though after a couple of seconds, it comes back in and I am engulfed in harsh ambient bliss once again. As the ambiance drifts about like an airplane flying circles around a construction site inside a cave, a lower end drone holds the fort down then slowly everything fades away into nothing as the track concludes.

“Verge” concentrates mostly on the lower spectrum, sounding at times like a propeller in the wind. Perhaps the plane from the last track has moved on and is heading someplace else now. The track continues this formula for the duration of the track. Very soothing and relaxing in its steady nature.

The third track on side A, “Revisiting” starts off with heavily reverberated clattering like someone fumbling with a microphone as an almost unchanging hum, again almost sounding like a fan running in another room or the air conditioning cranked up high, ties everything together. About every 30 seconds or so, a drone appears then fades away shortly thereafter then repeats.

Track four, “Static Pulse”, for sure now I know, airplanes are everywhere. Though I am not sure if it because perhaps of his use of flangers, though that’s just a wild guess. As I mentioned in a previous Mystified review, the flangers, or what I am guessing to be flangers is never really super in your face. They’re used often but with restraint as far as the control/settings are concerned. There’s what sounds like a train sound accompanying everything, in a steady rhythm over the tracks. The track ends with a fade out.

“Level Three” consists of some more reverberated flanged static mystery sound, reminding me at times of perhaps a speeding car late on a quiet night, a couple blocks away, barely audible. A looping drone keeps things uniform. Some other reverberated rumblings come in here and there, almost missing them at times, blending in with the reverb.

The last track, “Idyll” is a fair bit different from the last 5 tracks. There’s this ringing, almost like a sustained wind instrument of some kind, while dreamy synth sounds random notes, looping in a pattern. I didn’t really feel like it belonged beside the rest of side A, didn’t fit, though it is the shortest track and serves as quick send off.

Side B, begins with the first of two tracks from Bonemanchine, entitled, “Friendly Fire”. I would have to call this style ambient/drone, though at times there are most definitely some rougher/harsh moments, though I wouldn’t say the sounds get any harsher, more along the lines of how higher in volume it gets at times. For example; there are moments when the reverb builds up too much and things get a little crackly. For the most part we have some airy drones shifting about, as some harsher textures appear here and there, reverberating away into cohesion. Some percussive elements begin, ringing away. The volume begins to rise again for short while, clipping here and there. A filter can be heard fluxing as some ambience triggers it. The steady percussion loop, like a boat hitting a dock helps to give the piece a brooding eerie vibe and ties everything together. As the track reaches the end, everything quietens a far bit, allowing the listener to hear much more of what is going on. Let us hope the 2nd track continues this volume change.

The track begins (which I wasn’t sure it did until the tape ended, the two tracks blend together well) with some metal beating while a pad dances in the background, the metal clanging delayed in cycles, fading away into complete silence, then coming back along with drone, it does this for a bit, missing some fine moments to end the track, seems to just keep on looping the pattern over and over again. Though once I think the rest of the tapes is going to be this over and over again, some more traditional, almost Native American drumming can be heard, very quiet as the metal drumming delays away. Then something happens that I didn’t expect at all, a laser synth sound appears creating an actual rhythm with the two drum loops. More rhythmic sounds begin to join the fray, one sounding Asian, the other Australian. A somewhat large change considering this is a noise release. Everything comes together to create a relaxing though somewhat lazy beat (at times the synth sounds and percussion sounds don’t exactly line up). As the track nears its end, the percussion elements are removed and the synth and ambient fades us out to stillness.

By Jake Vida