Jott fortysixandtwo: Many Small Steps…

“My goal is to build atmospheres that allow the listener to tell his or her own story.”

Once again, Desert…Mountain…Dust…travels to Germany. This time on our list is Walsrode, a town in Lower Saxony where young Ambient / Drone / Noise maker Jott can be found. 

Despite balancing music with becoming a father, Jott’s nonstop flow of creativity has paid off handsomely, with him already making a mark on the US...

Jott’s former primary project How I Met Lauren first caught my attention a few years back with the fantastic  ‘//////sixsixsick//////’ originally released on Kansas based label Big Pharma Records back in March of 2016 (BPR would later appoint Jott the head of their sub label Big Pharma Europa in early 2017). 

To me, it still holds up as some of his most ambitious and amazing work. Resulting in the successful merging of Brian Eno's positive energies with a much darker, indescribable force. Listen below:

Jott then hooked up with the New York based Ben Hudgins, and released a strew of material via Ben’s highly praised tape labels Endless Landscape of Decay and Zero Sum Recordings (under the banner of Machine Tribe Recordings).

The rest of 2016 and most of 2017 saw many collaborations for HImL, including the elaborate storytelling audio experiment in episodic form ‘the_cyberpunk:episode zero’ with Endless Chasm, and the more Wall Noise orientated release ‘Void’ with Melinoe and See Through Buildings. 

But the biggest team up had to be ‘With the Blessing of Satan’ - which saw contributions from Armor Breach, hallwayss and Black Sheet Servitude to name a few, resulting in a unique, multifaceted extreme music experience.

Soon after, Jott joined forces once again with one of the participants - Ben Rehling of See Through Buildings - to form the noise / soundtrack duo ‘a wet palace’ who released an EP entitled ‘[]’ on Analog Cowboy Records and their debut cassette on Machine Tribe.

The following September, MT released the cassette ‘Todallem’ (Death to Everything) an EP by Jott’s Metal band “Dovahkiief” which featured stellar remixes by such artists as Lorenzo Abattoir (Mare Di Dirac) and Jack Lynch as well as bonus Dovahkiief tracks. 

As well as the title track, the highlights of the release for me include ‘Schluss Machen Bei McDonald’s’ which is rather an out of body audio experience with haunting vocals that truly stealing the show. 

Then ‘Satanic Death Ritual’ personifies a powerful conjuration with thunderous tribal drums and low guitar rumbles, the blackened ceremony reaching it’s climax with a wash of feedback as the drums change up their pace to the fadeout. 

Finally the tape closes with the simple but effective guitar delay run of ‘-’ It’s a stripped down and sleepy sound but remains one of the most memorable tracks on the release. In short, Todallem’ balances Jott’s love of metal and more eclectic electronic pallette brilliantly. 

Purchase a cassette copy of Todallem HERE

In late 2018, Jott took another step forward and formed a new solo project entitled ‘Kummer' which saw a release on LSD Induced Nightmares Records in Texas. As well as the creation of a new Ambient duo with his other half ‘K8’ entitled ‘MOMOFUKU’ that fuses both analogue and digital software who were gifted a debut tape release via Chicago based label Lurker Bias ‘Blessed By The Algorithm’ a perfect modern yet minimalistic  dream…drift…scape. Listen below:

I caught up with Jott to find out more about his musical beginnings, the happenings of Big Pharma Europa and what the future holds for him and his other projects…

DMD: What artists and bands had the biggest influence on you growing up?

J: ISIS (the band). They are by far the biggest creative influence I've ever experienced. Other people that influence me are The Mars Volta, Tim Hecker and The Boats. 

DMD: Where did you first hear drone / ambient / noise / experimental music?

J: I was always interested in audio plays and therefore listened to a lot of ambiences and noises as a kid. I got fascinated by how some noises can give you real shivers.

‘Carry’ my favourite track by ISIS has a heavy drone intro that I listened to on repeat when I was younger. It was used as music in a video about parachuting. 

A year later, YouTube added the feature that tells you the song playing underneath the video and that's how I found my favourite band of all time.

DMD: Please tell us the story of How I Met Lauren so far, I am particularly curious as to how you came by the name…

J: How I Met Lauren was the name of my personal music project because I became friends with an exchange student named Lauren from the USA in 2009. She was not the only reason I chose to express myself with music but certainly the biggest at that time.

How I Met Lauren started with a lot of shit songs and evolved into this ambient/drone thing it is now. I had never thought to get into this scene when I started making music at first.

I have put How I Met Lauren on hiatus for now because I felt like I had to leave something for later on. I will return to this project and make some violent ambient again (in the future) but I personally want to focus on more structured music at the moment.

DMD: Is there a strong noise scene in Walsrode?

J: There is none.

DMD: What recording gear do you use?

J: I used to have a studio/rehearsal room with my band Dovahkiief, the hyaenidae. It was a great spot and for two years I recorded most of my music there. 

We had to abandon it after moving to another city and now I make most of my music in my bedroom studio. 

In terms of software I was using Cubase and Audacity but made the switch to Logic Pro X last year. Recently I got into randomised step sequencing using a digital step sequencer with two oscillators, letting it generate chords within set parameters. 

I'm also working with an elektron digitakt at the moment to realise randomised breakbeats and chance-based triggering with samples. I got the digitakt to work less with synths and more with samples but found myself quickly adding synthesisers to the setup since the digitakt has elaborate midi features.

I like to use gear that other people have thrown away. If I have to climb inside a dumpster to get it, it makes it more interesting. I like to use broken gear and I use a lot of circuit-bent stuff. 

If I need a certain effect I'd rather let one of my more able friends build it for me to suit my needs rather than buying an expensive pedal everyone else already has.

DMD: Speaking of which, can please you elaborate on any pedals that have been custom made for you? 

J: The metaldrone is a hardcore bend by simon the magpie. It's patch bay enables you to connect the bending points yourself. the barbed wire is functional and serves similar to a Thermerin in some settings.

J: The Endless Chasm made by abraxas devotionals (AKA ZS Lawrence from the Futuristic Ambient project of the same name) is a delay pedal with a feedback loop that allows you to process only the wet signal with outboard gear and create feedback with it, for the purpose of creating washes of sound.

J: The phase of the sun (also made by abraxas devotionals) is a circuit-bent phaser that glitches and mangles the input sound then routes it through an echo to create washes and waves. Both the EC and SP are custom build for my needs and basically the only two in existence.

DMD: What’s going on with Big Pharma Europa? 

J: Big Pharma Europa has been releasing free music since May '17. All of our releases are free for everyone from everywhere. Since my personal life has gotten more busy lately this project isn’t that active at the moment. We've had a small hiatus since my life got a bit busy but we are back on track and have just released a new split between MOMOFUKU and Dakota Snaketail's project The Flesh, Full of Black Sand which you can listen to here

DMD: What is your favourite release from How I Met Lauren? Also will there be any more releases in the sixsixsaga?

J: My favourite release is //////sixsixsin///// and yeah there will be more.

DMD: Tell us about your other projects and bands:

J: Kummer is my main focus at the moment. I want to combine ambient music with a more structured, approachable track concept. It’s basically a blend of Drum ’N’ Bass elements and Ambient / Drone atmospheres. 

My first full album with Kummer is still in the process of recording at the moment.

‘a wet palace’ is an experimental collaboration between californian noise artist ‘See Through Buildings‘ and me. We’re burying real instruments in walls of terror. We’ve got an album out on MTRec and we’re working on a new EP at the moment.

'MOMOFUKU' is my newest project. In a phrase, it's complicated Ambient. I’m doing this with the Mother of my Daughter. It’s better than couple's therapy, trust me. MOMOFUKU blends digital possibilities like chance based triggering, randomising sample slices and random chord generation with experimental analogue gear that's in part custom build for our needs.

We are two people behind the hardware but we often feel like randomness is our third bandmate as it's the essential part for creating interesting artefacts and sonic environments that feel organic.

‘Dovahkiief‘ is a stoner/sludge band project I founded in 2015 with a good friend of mine. since we had to abandon our studio, this project is on hiatus until we find a place to shred again. The next tape is currently in the mastering stage though!  

DMD: Could you please explain the meaning behind the name Dovahkiief?

J: ’Dovahkiin' is the main character in the video game 'Skyrim'. there it means ‘Dragonborn’. 'Dovahkiief' is a word that I came up with, figuring it would translate to ‘Dragonbong’.

'Dovahkiief' also sounds a hell of a lot like 'Doofer kifft' which is german for 'dumb person who smokes reefer’. ’Todallen' would really translate to 'death to all' but it’s actually 'Todallem' which means 'death to everything’ it's a made up word made from 'Tod' and ‘allem'.

DMD: Tell us some of your favourite albums

J: Isis - Oceanic

Tool - Lateralus

Cypress Hill - Black Sunday

Denzel Curry - Imperial

Arsonists get all the girls - Portals

Bob Marley - Exodus

Billy Talent - Billy Talent II

DMD: Any plans to play live with How I Met Lauren?

J: I’m working on a proper live setup but it's not a main concern at the moment. 

You can check out my 'Magpie Metaldrone' video (see below) for a How I met Lauren live experience.

DMD: If you could work with any artist living or dead who would it be?

J: Isis or Aaron Turner

DMD: Was there a concept behind ‘NORSEFIRES’ and the ‘A Wet Palace’ albums?

J: Many artists try to tell a story in their concept art. My goal is to build atmospheres that allow the listener to tell his or her own story.

NORSEFIRES was a 'study piece' for me because it is the product of me figuring out a steady effect chain for my guitar setup.

With a wet palace, my partner Ben and I were trying to take this DIY niche music we already make to the next level. Not in terms of popularity, but in terms of production value. 

The album definitely tells a story but I am sure mine differs from yours, a wet palace is by far my most complicated album to date.

DMD: How did the record ‘With the Blessing of Satan’ come to be? Are there more plans for another huge collaboration like that in the future?

J: I made WTBOS over the course of 2016, I had so many collaborations going that I found it more a curse than a gift, hence the name of the album. It’s a collection of tracks I made with a lot of great friends.

WTBOS Part II will be a thing at some future time but other things are more important at the moment.

DMD: In the past did you play in any other musical projects / bands? Also how many different instruments do you play?

J: Before going on hiatus, How I met Lauren was my musical outlet since 2009. I didn’t switch from the name but I have switched genres a lot, always doing what I wanted to do. 

I’ve played with some bands, mainly keyboard in a metalcore band and vocals in another metalcore band after that.

I own a violin and trumpet next to a variety of synth equipment and my bass / guitar setup but I don't claim to know how any of this works.

DMD: Apart from music, where else do you find inspiration?

J: Movies, people, trash and nature.

DMD: What music have you been listening to recently?

J: I dug up my stoner rock vinyls and got those spinning in the last few days…

At the moment I’m trying to avoid any and all radio music. I tend to stick to Amenra and Old Man Gloom these days.

DMD: Do you have a favourite HImL release?

J: //////sixsixsin//////...However the ////// series is currently on hiatus, as is the rest of HImL. But there is already new material recorded for part four.

DMD: Do you have any plans to play live?

J: it was never my main focus but I am working on a live setup at the moment to be able to play my music in front of an audience.

DMD: Anyone you want to give a shout out to?

J: SHOUTOUTS!  

I think I would have stopped making music if i haven't been 'picked up' by my buddy and mentor Benjamin Joseph, the head of Big Pharma Records. What they did for me when they believed in me and my music and challenging me to create a whole album that they would like to put out on CD was the push into the right direction I needed. 

If I had to name one person that influenced my music more than anyone else I would name them.

s/o to the three Benjamins, (Hudgins / Joseph /Rehling) who each had their own way to support me and my music. 

s/o to the moorstrassegang for being the local support I need.

s/o to Dakota Snaketail for their endless creativity and powerful spirit. The brightest diamonds really are made under the highest pressures. 

s/o to K8 and every friendly noise fire out there. You know who you are!

Everyone who put me on his or her label, everyone who collaborated with me, everyone who waited days for me to send over files I promised. You are what makes me an artist after all. Thank you.

LINKS:

Kummer / How I Met Lauren Soundcloud

How I Met Lauren bandcamp

Big Pharma Europa bandcamp

If you'd like to hear more of Jott, click HERE for a mammoth 3 hour MOMOFUKU YouTube mix!!!

Endless Chasm - Dweller at the Threshold Review

For those not so familiar with Wellington, Kansas sound mangler Zachary Lawrence and his musical outlet Endless Chasm here’s a brief catch up.

By now quite a well known face on the US underground Ambient / Drone / Noise / Experimental Electronic scene, it wasn’t until after a small collection of bandcamp singles that the ‘official’ debut Endless Chasm record exploded onto the scene in the form of a 2015 EP, an all out noise assault entitled ‘A Pedantic Critique of Modern Cultural Discourse’.

Keen not to kill any momentum, the following year saw plenty of activity from the project including two albums, ‘The Myth of Sisyphus' and ‘We Cannot Keep This A Secret Any Longer’ both released on Kansas label Big Pharma Records, run by fellow noise-heads RAGK and Contraktor.

Spreading across the states to various cult tape labels, New York's Endless Landscapes Of Decay put out a cassette titled ‘Sorcery is the Rich Man’s Curbstomping’ that was warmly received while the Chicago based Lurker Bias released ‘Harm Health' which sold out almost as quickly as the tapes could be dubbed! It presented a glowing if not slightly scatterbrained example of EC's progress and potential. 

One of it’s most notable contents was the title track, which I stumbled across one day in the YouTube video linked below. Filmed in a decrepit Kansas tavern, Zach clad in smart shirt and trousers works away over his pedals, manipulating dials to twist the chilling words of American Psycho’s Patrick Bateman into a frenzy of cacophony. 

Bringing us back to the present day, Endless Chasm returned to another Kansas based label, this time Wichita’s This Ain’t Heaven Recording Concern to release ‘Dweller On The Threshold’ making it’s arrival back in July 2017.

The physical release opts for a simple layout with a few token extras. After breaking the seal stretched across the cassette’s case, it’s front cover splashed with some delightfully entrancing glitch art, I spy tucked behind the colourful tape a translucent plastic card sporting the EC logo, as well as a free download code written upon a small strip of paper that I happily help myself to. 

Looking at the tracklist, with titles named after locations in David Lynch’s Twin Peaks series you'd be right to expect an abstract audio experience as opposed to some easy listening. 

-Although for those still yet to indulge in the addictive surrealist TV series, the ‘White Lodge’ is a place of purity and all things good while the ‘Black Lodge’ is a darker, more evil spot. (Which must certainly mean that we are due a ‘Red Room’ themed release sometime in the future). 

Listen below:

SIDE A: White Lodge

With ethereal whooshes whose harshness could only be found in the coldest, deepest point of space, a descending two note intercom like mantra plus some sparkling audio residue that twinkle like distant stars, White lodge gets itself well underway. 

To me, these sounds resemble life onboard a travelling hotel space ship, and it’s continual journey through the cosmos observed through a port side window. 

For a brief moment everything cuts out, and we are left with nothing but the isolated whooshing and sparkling, illustrating the emptiness of the cold, dark spacial void. Just past the track’s mid point a soft synth passage glides into view, it seems to want to detune itself into oblivion but it keeps rolling on. In the meantime, the housekeeping impatiently fire up the hoover.

A haze of feedback makes itself known, causing the huge space cruiser to groan as if on it’s last legs while the hum of the vacuum cleaner seems to combine with the engine’s thrusters for maximum velocity and maximum cleanliness. An electronic bleeping quietly hints at some approaching sinister space beings but the primary synth part is reprised and calm is soon restored. The ship speeds on.

It is when beheld, a very well layered soundscape with various effects that could have been lifted from some long forgotten sci-fi motion picture soundtrack (think Dr Who meets Stanley Kubrick) now it’s over to Side B.

SIDE B: Black Lodge 

This is where our imaginary traveller aboard the hotel space ship finally decides to get some rest, he lays down his head and begins to dream. Backwards loops lead the way along a path of toasty synths illuminated by the hypnotic echoing of soft cymbal hits.

As the track progresses deeper, it builds in thickness, as if closing in around the listener, like some kind of psychedelic beginning to take a firm grip of our protagonist, who is now unable to shake off the trip. 

At one point, an icy layer of drone noise gains vast momentum, reaching a raucous level that borders on harsh, it sputters indignantly but doesn’t manage to break away. The shrieking fizz is eventually drowned in the tide of backwards sonics that lap over it like the waves of an uncaring ocean, crackling into nothingness as it expels it’s last. 

While the track may dip it’s toe in the abyss, there is no wandering off into the darkness that the title would suggest, instead remaining as a trance induced, meditative slow burner that makes for an exquisitely beautiful listen. It’s pure abstract theatre for the musical mind.

Conclusion

Like many an Endless Chasm release, ’Dweller…’ brings together both the vintage and modern sonic worlds, brilliantly showcasing the duality and ever expanding consciousness of the Chasm. 

The project’s ability to transport the listener into far away musical dimensions is remarkable and undeniable as always.

Caving helmets on, it’s time to begin the descent into the Endless Chasm once again.

Special thanks to Zachary for sending me a physical copy of the album.

You can order the cassette here

Also try:

Phantom Burn

Phantom Burn

And a formidable collaboration with How I Met Lauren

The Cyber Punk Episode Zero

SOCIAL MEDIA LINKS

Endless Chasm bandcamp

Endless Chasm Soundcloud

Endless Chasm Facebook

RAVEN: Edgar Allan Punk

For not the first time, DMD finds itself in Serbia. This time in Čačak, a city located in the valley of West Morava to converse with Djordje Miladinovic, a 31 year old noisemaker best known for his harsh noise outfit Raven.

Damaging our hearing since 2011, Raven has released splits with some of the biggest names in the scene including Merzbow, Agathocles and Richard Ramirez as well as appearing on a multitude of labels such as Analog Cowboy, Depressive Illusions, Grey Matter Productions, Endless Landscapes of Decay to name but a few. 

With his frustrations at the world around him channeled furiously through screaming soundscapes which include topics such as anarchy, pacifism, human and animal rights, Raven's output of angry, brutal societal reflection sees no sign of decline.

I conducted a quick Q and A with Djordje through a brief exchange of emails to find out more…

Listen below to Raven's split with Richard Ramirez (Black Leather Jesus, Werewolf Jerusalem etc) 

DMD: As a child, what music did you grow up listening to?

Djordje Miladinovic: Punk rock music was my first exploration into the underground scene and I keep myself to the roots with a few exceptions such as harsh noise, noise, drone, ambient and other music and non-music genres. 

I always liked the aesthetics of punk, so I tried to implement them into everything I do. It's important to stay open minded when it comes to the music and I am always interested to listen to new stuff.

DMD: What instruments do you play?

DM: I have been playing guitar and bass for a very long time, but I would love to learn other musical instruments. Especially ones that give out much more strange vibes and sounds.

DMD: How did you first discover noise / experimental music?

DM: Through zines. A lot of them wrote about noise and experimental music at the beginning of the new millennia, so I managed to get some tapes from Hanatarash, Merzbow, Prurient... mostly harsh noise stuff and I was hooked on it.

DMD: Who are your current favourite noise artists?

DM: Lots of them. I really dig what most of the French, Japan and US noise artists have been doing in the past twenty years or so.

Nundata, Ecoute La Merde, Hanatarash, Vasectomy Party, Lord Gonzo, Hijokaidan, K2, Astro...just to name a few, but there's a lot of great noise projects that I listen to depending on my current mood.

DMD: What other projects do you have?

DM: Raven is my main project and for those who are not similar with the sound, it's a darker harsh noise based on anarchist, vegan and pacifist propaganda. 

A Disease Called Man is a dark ambient / drone project and I am currently working on the second album. Also, I have two harsh noise projects with Srđan Eftimovski (Nundata / Fecal Vomit) called Bhagavad Dita (harsh noise with mantras) and Vegan Fox (harsh noise). 

Desolation is my visual project based on avant garde artworks made of various textures, with the aim of reflecting decomposition and chaos. 

This year I published the first issue of Herbivore, a fanzine about veganism and animal rights. In my spare time I design cover artworks for bands, projects and the rest of the folks who dig my art.

DMD: What is your recording set up?

DM: BOSS GT-10 guitar processor is my weapon of choice for most of my recordings and live sessions. I am also using lots of Behringer distortion and delay pedals, because I find them effective, affordable and perfect for the sound I am looking for. As for effects, I prefer delay, sub wah, wah, chorus, harmonizer and pitch shifter.

DMD: What are your 15 favourite albums?

DM: Tough question since I listen to a lot of music, but here's something I've been listening to constantly for decades:

Bad Religion - Suffer

Ripcord - Defiance Of Power

Oi Polloi - Fightback

Dropdead - S/T

Detestation - Unheard Cries

Aus Rotten - The System Works For Them

Doom - Fuck Peaceville

Poison Idea - Kings Of Punk

Dead Kennedys - Bedtime For Democracy

Wolfpack - Lycanthro Punk

Uncurbed - Ackord For Frihet

Crass - Feeding Of The 5000

Rudimentary Peni - Death Church

Discharge - Hear Nothing, See Nothing, Say Nothing

Good Riddance - For God And Country

DMD: Have you played many shows outside of Serbia? 

DM: I've once played in Budapest, Hungary and twice in Slovenia at multiple venues. 

There were a lot of invitations from enthusiasts from across Europe and United States, but somehow time was always a problem to set up a tour.

DMD: What made you choose the name Raven? Edgar Allan Poe?

DM: I love Edgar Allan Poe a lot. He's my all time favourite writer but there are multiple reasons why I picked Raven as my alias. 

Raven symbolises anarchism, freedom, wisdom, longevity, tragedy and so many other things in a political and mythological sphere. 

A few of my friends thought that was not such a bright idea since there's a lot of artists who use Raven as a name for their projects and bands, but I felt it kinda suits the things I do with my own project.

DMD: What is the music scene like in Čačak? 

DM: It's kinda lame, because there was a lot of talented hard working bands and individuals in the past, but they couldn't get any attention, because the local public hates diversity and doesn't understand that underground music can be much more creative and smarter than music for the masses.  It's a very sad thing, because the people in the other spheres of creative art are getting the same treatment. 

DMD: How long have you been making noise?

DM: I’ve been recording noise for six years now. It's much more interesting than recording music, so I will continue to record it as long as I can. It's very important to have ideas for each release, so as long as I have ideas for new releases, I will record it and publish my work.

DMD: How long have you been vegan and what was it that made you become vegan?

DM: I've been vegan for 10 years and my decision to become vegan came after I realised how much harm meat consumption does to all living creatures, the planet and to ourselves. I always listened to music inspired by animal rights movement, so I got all the informations about it by reading the lyric sheets and bulletins that came along with those records. 

DMD: What do you do when you’re not making noise?

DM: I do alot of artwork for bands and projects, so I’m into graphic design, drawing... In my spare time I play guitar, read books, zines and comic books, but mostly I listen to music all the time. Also, my big passion is Star Wars collectibles. From books to comics.

DMD: Describe some of your favourite releases from Raven and your other projects.

DM: It’s very hard to pick a favourite one, because I put a lot of effort in all of them. It seems that each of my albums connect certain periods or events so they are all important to me.

DMD: Do you have a favourite book or movie? Also who are your favourite authors and directors?

DM: I am into dystopian, sci-fi, horror, criminal literature, so I mostly read something from Lucas,  Huxley, Burgess, Orwell, Lovecraft, King, Doyle, Christie, just to name a few. If I had to pick just one book that would definitely be a ''Clockwork Orange'' by Anthony Burgess, but of course there's a lot more. 

As for the movies, my favourite movie directors are Alfred Hitchcock, Stanley Kubrick, Sergio Leone, but I would definitely pick Star Wars as my favourite movies.

DMD: What can you tell us about your old noise blog Deadtones?

DM: Deadtones was a blog about avantgarde music genres which I worked on for a couple of years until Wordpress deleted it without a reason. It was a very popular blog at the time and I guess I will never achieve that goal with any other blog. 

DMD: Please tell us your favourite Serbian bands and noise projects 

DM: Most of the bands I love are disbanded right now, but there are a couple of noise projects who are still active and I love what they do, such as Fecal Vomit (Nundata) and Third I.  They've been my friends for a very long time and their projects have put out tonnes of good releases.

DMD: What does 2017 hold for you and Raven?

DM: The brand new split album with Crank Sturgeon is due to be released by Human Cross Records, the same label that will publish my brand new album entitled ''Freedom Has A Price''. 

A split release with Richard Ramirez was also one of my latest releases and it's available through Forever Escaping Boredom records. I'm planning a lot of other recording and live activities for the future, but sometimes everything depends on the time and effort of other people, especially if we're speaking about live performances.

Raven Links:

Raven Soundcloud

Raven Facebook

Raven Official Site

For more of DMD in Serbia click here to read an interview with Serbian HNW/ANW artist Dosis Letalis

Destruktionsanstalt: The Extremity Exhibition

“It’s the whole idea of doing some kind of soundtrack music that reflects the world we live in, a harsh reality that we in the western world choose to ignore on a daily basis.”

We head to Viborg, Denmark to meet with Per Najbjerg Odderskov, Post Industrial sound sorcerer and a fellow journalist.

Part of the old guard for nearly 20 years now, he rose to prominence as the brains behind experimental electronic / dark ambient outfit Lidane Livering, (which has been recently resurrected) and since 2015 he’s been building Destruktionsanstalt. 

A furious monster of a project described by Per as “Back to basics death-industrial with atmospheric psychedelic overlays”.

Per also keeps himself busy with other projects God Cancer and Left Hand of God, 

as well as exploring his funny side with The Gordon Ramsey Orchestra.

I had a quick chinwag with the man himself to find out his thoughts on current events, themes behind latest Destruktionsanstalt release “Ex Bello Volaptus” and how he is worming his way into the art world…

Listen below and you can read my thoughts on the album after this interview.

DMD: How did Destruktionsanstalt get started and from where does the name originate?

Per Najbjerg Odderskov: Destruktionsanstalt was an attempt to get into more extreme sounds, whereas Lidane Livering lies within the boundaries of ambiance and electronics. 

As for the name, I think I read it on the side of a truck driving by full of dead, stinky farm animals.

I remembered seeing a cow’s leg hanging over the side of it. A Destruktionsanstalt is a place where you burn dead animals which have died from a sickness. 

DMD: How is the scene in Denmark? 

PNO: Depends on where you are in Denmark, most of the stuff is happening in the capital (Copenhagen) and a few things are happening in Aarhus and Aalborg. Otherwise, it’s quite dead. 

Right now I’m living in Viborg, which was the capital in the really old days. 

I think I’m the only one here doing this kind of music. 80% of all people in Denmark doing some kind of "extreme" music make some kind of death /black metal mostly, 15% of which are doing Electronic / Industrial live in Copenhagen and the last 5% are spread across the other parts of Denmark.  

DMD: Growing up, what music did you tend to listen to?

PNO: Back in the late 80s as a kid I grew a general fondness of electronic based music, it was just way cooler than someone with a guitar. 

Why I had that view is beyond my understanding. I guess one of the reasons was growing up with a Commodore 64, and listening to the music coming from there. 

We had cracked games for it. These software pirates would leave their musical demos with the games. I fondly remember these low-bit cover versions of Kraftwerk, OMD and Depeche Mode. 

When I got older in the early 90s, early techno and house music were where my interest was. I think my first real influential idol back then was Aphex Twin, later on, I stumbled upon LFO, Orb, Biosphere, Model 500. 

There were the first artists who gave me the idea of producing my own music, so I had my first creations on my Amiga with a sampler. It was just some hardcore techno rhythms with a sample of Margaret Thatcher on top of it! 

All of a sudden I got fed up with the rave and love issues that were around techno and house music, and one day a good friend of mine got hold of this tape with a band called Skinny Puppy so that probably changed my direction at that time. 

This band blew my mind since I was already heavily into cyberpunk-based roleplaying games and of course horror based like Call of Cthulhu. 

To actually hear an act, which made this sort of in-your-face soundtrack thing just blew my mind. 

All of a sudden I was creating my own sounds on my newly bought PC. I was heavily inspired by the likes of Throbbing Gristle, Brighter Death Now and Scorn. That was in the mid 90’s when I made Fragments vol.1 (Lidane Livering).

DMD: How did you first discover the darker side of experimental with genres such as Dark Ambient / Noise /  Death Industrial etc?

PNO: When I decided that the extreme stuff was way more interesting than electronic body music and industrial rock, I was searching for whatever act that reminded me of Throbbing Gristle.

I stumbled upon this website/mail order underground thing, which sold all these weird-sounding acts which I didn’t know. 

They sounded interesting so I bought a couple of em, turned out that they were all released from Cold Meat Industry. It was Brighter Death Now, Raison D´être and In Blind Embrace (Controlled Bleeding side project). And again, it blew my mind. I was just thinking why the hell was I wasting my time on industrial-techno with guitars haha! 

Brighter Death Now was the most frightening and challenging shit I had ever heard, Raison d´être was incredible, beautiful and dark at the same time and In Blind Embrace combining powerful classical opera inspired music with harsh industrial aesthetics. 

That kind of stuff was soo fucking unique, so I kept my primary focus on this scene for many years!

DMD: What is your recording setup?

PNO: Following off whatever I learned from software on my Amiga and PC. 

Using Soundforge, Audacity, synth emulators, fields recordings and grabbing samples from movies etc.

DMD: Name 15 records you couldn’t live without

PNO: Aphex Twin - Selected Ambient Works vol.1

Throbbing Gristle - 20 Jazz Funk Greats

SPK - Leichenshrei

Brighter Death Now - Pain In Progress

Joy Division - Unknown Pleasures

Autechre - Amber

Ministry - Twitch

Caberet Voltaire - Code

Earth - Hex

Klinik - Time Plaque

Front 242 - Geography

Tangerine Dream - Stratosphere

Jean M. Jarre - Equinoxe

Atrax Morque - In Search Of Death

Megaptera - Extended Chaos

DMD: Tell us about your other projects God Cancer, Lidane Living and Left Hand of God

PNO: Lidane Livering explores heavy raw ambiance and cold rhythmic brutalism. The themes are mostly dealing with human-made atrocities to real life horrors. Otherwise, it deals in various post-industrial soundscapes. It was my first project, and it kick-started all my projects more or less. 

Left Hand of God started as an occult based esoteric ritual ambient act. Drawing ideas from NON, Archon Satani, and Ain Soph. 

Today, we´re dealing with a religiously inspired act which gets its ideas from the scene of HNW.

I’m thinking, the voice of a judgemental and all knowing god would probably sound to the human ear like a wall of some kind. That’s what I’m trying to do. 

God Cancer is a free based improvisational project which explores sounds and moods without boundaries. Not focused on any sub-genre or anything. 

DMD: What can you tell us about the new Destruktionsanstalt tape Ex Bello Volaptus?

PNO: It´s a more brutal, raw and heavy then former releases. 

The themes of the album also work within shocking taboos connected with death in one way or another. 

Victims of a serial killer, biological weaponry and its experimentations on humans, necrophilia etc…

Whereas former releases worked with sickness and the loss of a close family member. 

In lots of ways, it´s the heavier brother of Vivens Monumentis (released through Craneal Fracture records), which had a slightly more psychedelic approach I think. 

DMD: What inspires you to make music? 

PNO: Whatever I read or experience in the news mostly. It’s the whole idea of doing some kind of soundtrack music that reflects the world we live in, a harsh reality that we in the western world choose to ignore on a daily basis.

DMD: Back in August 2016 you released a cassette of two Destruktionsanstalt and Lidane Livering live performances what was your experience recording these? Do you have any plans for more live releases in the future?

PNO: This was without a doubt the best experience I have ever had, it was actually a music concert in classical terms. It was part of an art venue, where it all concerned sound and installation art. I was so lucky to know some insider people, so I managed to squeeze myself into the art-world. 

The audience was satisfied and bought some releases from me, so I was satisfied too. 

As for the moment, there are no plans for live performances. But I am keeping an eye for another opportunity. 

DMD: What can you be found doing when you are not making music?

PNO: Doing family man work. Cleaning, changing diapers, cooking, shopping etc ... And when I’m not doing that, I spend most of my time being tired at night while watching a supernatural or sci-fi themed series on Netflix over a beer or two. 

Besides that, I read a lot and am trying to find the time to listen to all of my records and tapes and stuff. 

DMD: What does Ex Bello Volaptus mean and what made you choose this title?

PNO: It means the results of war, whatever happens afterward if it all chooses to end which it sadly doesn’t.

A monotonous continuation which carries on like the constant bombardment of information overload.

All about being constantly fed with news about tragic and war, almost to the point of getting numb. 

Something which has been going on in a western democracy. "If we’re comfortable, then why should we concern about others. We have soldiers to do that kind of dirty work".

To me it´s also a reaction against being in the company of people being like that, just being "normal" and being unconcerned about everything. I find it frightening!

While young moms are drinking their caffe latte in a nice and fancy cafe, someone is having their kids ripped apart by militias. I just find it sickening. 

The only tracks on the album that don’t concern this are the last 2 tracks on the album. 

They work more or less like a 2-track EP. These tracks are about the connection between love and death more or less. I also used a sample/recording of a necrophilia trial that I got approval to use. 

DMD: What music do you enjoy listening to these days?  

PNO: These days. Always depends on my mood .. Think I’m still stuck with the dungeon synth and noise wall tapes .. Re-listening to Con-Dom and Grey Wolves, some moody post-punk bands from the 80s like Magazine, Gene Loves Jezebel and Fields of the Nephilim sort of stuff.

DMD: Tell us about your blog (kalteldur.blogspot.dk)

PNO: My Blog…Well, whenever I feel like reviewing a tape release I put something together. It’s focused on obscure electronic based tapes mostly, and moody stuff with an atmosphere, kind of dungeon synth and noise wall releases.

DMD: What does the rest of 2017 hold for you? 

PNO: So far, there is work to be done with God Cancer. I have some cassette releases with this project in the near future. I’m also holding an art exhibition in July at Aarhus artspace 2017, regarding a video and sound /art piece I’ve put together called ‘10000 Fahrenheit - Traffic Collisions’. 

DMD:  How did that all come about?

PNO: Well. At one point I was living somewhere in the sticks. I lived quite close to a road which had high levels of traffic and there was a lot of noise from lorries and trucks driving by. 

I wanted to document that in one way or the other, so I just laid my mp3 player up close to the road.

Afterward, I manipulated the recording and added some extra distorted layers to it. 

I downloaded a 60-minute video about car crashes in Russia, removed the audio, made it black and white and laid my own recording into the video itself.

Then some people I know mentioned that I ought to send it in to Aarhus Artspace, which I did and to my surprise they approved it. 

I’m going to show this installation on a big screen, in a pitch black room with the volume at total maximum. So it’s pretty much bound to overload your senses!

You can watch 10000 Fahrenheit - Traffic Collisions here

Lidane Livering Facebook

Destruktionsanstalt Facebook

Destruktionsanstalt bandcamp

Soundcloud

Mixcloud

My thoughts on Ex Bello Volaptus

Moving swiftly away from the enthralling dark ambient work of previous album Swedenborg (which comes highly recommended if you haven’t already had a listen) Ex Bello Volaptus marks the combination of a slight return to the classic Destruktionsanstalt sound with rabid experimentation that looks to the future of the project. 

A difficult balancing act for sure, but can it be done? Let’s find out!

The sampling is back in a more prominent position, right there in plain sight on first track ‘Caedes' (the slaughter).

The record begins with an infamous clip taken from the 1969 movie Easy Rider, where Jack Nicholson pulls out a bottle of Jim Beam and declares “Here's the first of the day fellas, to ol' D.H. Lawrence” takes a swig, and well, you can hear what happens next…

Nicholson’s madcap reaction is quickly breached by a flood of heavily distorted synth stuck in a droning loop. The mass of gurgling sound is expanded by a handful of field recordings that have been laid about the place and some more unsettling noises also get added to the melting pot.

It sizzles loudly like a dish being prepared and at one point even replicates a computer mid dial up that someone has set on fire, when it reaches it's peak the gas is turned off and it all cuts back to the main ‘gurgle’ which suddenly whooshes off out of earshot.

Next up, Tacet Occidere (killing is silent) quickly changes the scene to a news report describing President Assad’s use of chemical weapons in the Syrian civil war.

Musically, the track’s base is full of low rumbles while the top layer features anxious sounding synths cut in and out and the use of delay makes them dash off into the distance which all helps to give the track a very frantic edge, matching well with the current mood of the war torn Middle East.

Cranking up the decibels, the intro for Salo (based on the film of the same title) offers a near deaf experience with a series of eerie tinnitus inducing sounds.

These are joined by an ethereal effect and a grating metallic hum, along with a children’s choir and a brass movement that all mingle within it’s patchwork, resulting in a well executed soundscape but it's one that your ear doctor would probably advise that you avoid. 

Centrepiece ‘Agony of Plasma’ is an extended reinterpretation of the same track by Australian Industrial giants SPK (which appeared on their 1982 album Leichenschrei).

Those already familiar with the track will instantly recognise the looped breaking glass and bloodcurdling screams, although in this case they haven’t been lifted from the original. There is good use of dynamics on this track and in my view does the SPK version justice, making it one of the album’s highlights.

Imperium Suffocatis (control of suffocation) kicks off with the use of pitch shifted helicopter blades manipulated into a brisk, unpredictable pulse that shape shifts rapidly while field recordings of background chatter that help to fill out the space.

Semper Amare (always love) brings back the dark ambience of Swedenborg this time with some very fine isolationist drone entombed in a glitchy static shroud. Left with it’s remnants to loiter ominously at the track’s end it’s a ghostly presence that makes for a spine tingling listen.

Final track Suggero A Mortuis (provides a dead) begins with samples a group of people discussing the actions of a necrophile before igniting a bristling wall of sound that rises and falls in tension, constantly hinting at some more ear damage that doesn’t arrive. Almost personifying that Destruktionsanstalt is a project that doesn’t thrive on predictability.

Overall it’s a punchy, diverse release with a strong creative flair running throughout it’s 37 minutes that continues Destruktionsanstalt’s ongoing evolution.

Being at an age where some critics would consider his musical contributions nothing more than desperate attempts to remain relevant, it’s excellent to see that this album proudly displays Per's never lacking enthusiasm for creating music that is all things uncompromising, unnerving and challenging.

Ex Bello Volaptus will be made available in physical form on the 6th of August.