Merzbow
Masami Akita was born in 1956 in Tokyo, Japan. Akita is a graduate of Tamagawa University, Art Department, and majored in Painting & Art Theory. Akita formed the premier Japanese Noise group Merzbow in 1979. Merzbow have released over 300 recordings, on tape, LP and CD, to date, working with many different media such as video, film and CD-ROM, both in the directorial and soundtrack role.
Masami Akita was born in 1956 in Tokyo, Japan. Akita is a graduate of Tamagawa University, Art Department, and majored in Painting & Art Theory. Akita formed the premier Japanese Noise group Merzbow in 1979. Merzbow have released over 300 recordings, on tape, LP and CD, to date, working with many different media such as video, film and CD-ROM, both in the directorial and soundtrack role.
Fantail Vision
Slowdown Records will release a box of six new Merzbow albums. The box "Fantail Vision" consists of six new Merzbow albums from 2020-2022: "Mukogenerator","Mukomodulator", "Mukotronics", "Hinawave", "Animal Mukomodulator", "Magnetic Rain". The recordings include not only recordings that are being released for the first time, but also some that have been digitally distributed on Soundcloud and Bandcamp. Merzbow has released five original albums on Slowdown Records to date, "Kaoscitron", "Indigo …
Amlux
** Limited edition of 300 ** Certainly Amlux is a very cohesive and well-constructed piece; starting more softly than usual, the record slowly builds into the chaotic harsh sound that Merzbow is well known for, but this time adding some actual recognizable music elements (like rhythms), and constructing various surprisingly well-texture soundscapes, that made of this album a more focused and immersive piece that effectively keeps engaged during 40+ music of primal noise. Records like this are t…
Slowdown Records Box Sets bundle
"Merzbow's unpublished/excavated archive series by Slowdown Records began to be released in 2018, and so far 15 chapters have been published. This "35 CD Box" contains chapters 11-15 of this archival series, with the addition of "2017-2020" (5CD), a collection of five original Merzbow albums released on Slowdown Records from 2017 to 2020. These chapters are presented in chronological order of when the recordings were made, and each chapter was compiled with some concept or musical feature in min…
New Ear Control
"The Merzbow Archive Series from Slowdown Records is a collection of unreleased or unearthed Merzbow recordings. So far, fifteen series have been released, each series distinguished by recording period and musical theme. Each individual series consists of six albums. This "New Ear Control" is the 16th in the series and is comprised of six albums: "Nil Cluster," "Lacrima," "Bluedron," "Orthogenesis," "450Q," and "Noise 5706". This archive series by Slowdown Records began in 2018 and has compiled …
After Hours
"The Merzbow Archive Series from Slowdown Records is a collection of unreleased or unearthed Merzbow recordings. So far, fourteen series have been released, each series distinguished by recording period and musical theme. Each individual series consists of six albums. In its 15th series, six albums were released, "Purple Fish", "Janus Guitar", "Beetle", "Seven Sides", "White Bird", and "Persimmon Mask", containing material from 2014 to 2015. This box set "After Hours" is a compilation of those s…
Flesh Metal Orgasm
*Limited edition of 300 copies.* Out via Old Europa Café in early September is the CD re-edition of an ultra-rare Merzbow tape, “Flesh Metal Orgasm”, which was originally released in 1989 on Nihilistic Recordings and then re-released in 2010 by Blossoming Noise. Both editions are long time sold out and this is the first time this album is released on CD format.
Recorded live at the ZSF Studio in September 1988, the tapes and CD hold 2 tracks, “No-1” (21:50) and “No-2” (24:14). The material for t…
Peace For Animals
*Limited edition of 300 copies.* Music by Masami Akita. Recorded and mixed at Bedroom in Tokyo, August 2007. Originally this album was released by Quasi Pop Records in 2007 in Ukraine. Full of ice-breaking analogue feedbacks over dense overdrived textures, some beasty, pulsing rhythmic elements on the background and rollercoaster's LFO spazmes of analogue synth. This is the bright example of modern "post-analogue-post-laptop era" sound of Merzbow: these compositions are wild at heart as the wild…
Victoriaville Mai 2011
*2022 stock* A collaboration of the legendary Richard Pinhas (of Heldon fame) and Japanese noise artist Merzbow would be worthy of note. Add in Wolf Eyes, the trio of Mike Connelly, John Olson, and Nathan Young, and you have the potential for a truly chaotic sonic assault. But that doesn’t happen. Instead, this quintet provides a symphonic soundscape that maintains a slow boil.
Recorded live at FIMAV 2011, the release consists of a 48-minute performance, followed by a 9-minute encore. Unlike som…
Patterns and Mechanisms
** Edition of 300 ** "Patterns and Mechanisms", Eraldo Bernocchi and Merzbow's first album together, was written and recorded during the lockdown. Both artists exchanged audio files and ideas fascinated by the phenomenon of urban wildlife where wild animals decide to relocate, or establish home in our cities, the album is just two long pieces. Despite being dense and noisy, "Patterns and Mechanisms" has a 'melodic' approach to composition, with Merzbow's noise assault conjugating with Bernocchi'…
Magnesia Nova
**Limited Edition of 299 copies.** Merzbow stands as the most important artist in noise music. The moniker of Japanese artist Masami Akita was born in Tokyo in 1979. Inspired by dadaism and surrealism, Akita took the name for his project from German artist Kurt Schwitters's pre-war architectural assemblage The Cathedral of Erotic Misery or Merzbau. Working in his home, he quickly gained notoriety as a purveyor of a musical genre composed solely of pure, unadulterated noise. Embracing technology …
Aqua Necromancer
Tip! "Expect the unexpected. Masami Akita, corrupt mastermind behind the bound and gagged and tossed into the jet engine noise of Merzbow has, over the last years, really begun to stretch the limits of what he sonically does. Seems, with releases (Tauromachine, Hybrid Noisebloom, 1930...), there has been more variety within the choppy slabs of noise that he designs. What we have here is, quite possibly, the most varied Merzbow release to date. Why? Because, amidst the stalk and squeal noise,…
Material Action 2
First time on CD for this classic Merzbow duo album from 1983. Material Action is a favorite among early Merzbow free-music, junk-noise workouts. Psychedelic improvised instrumental energy abounds on this essential early recording that is Pure Merz. Masami Akita plays tapes, percussion, electro-acoustic noise, organKiyoshi Mizutani overdubs tapes, synthesizer, violin, machine noise
Merzbeat
*20th anniversary reissue!* Merzbow's Merzbeat is one the most unique and legendary titles in the artist's vast archive. This 20th anniversary reissue is being issued at the same time as CD reissue of his 1983 album Material Action 2 and a brand new collaboration with Arcane Device, all on Important Records. Originally released in 2002, Merzbeat contains over 50 minutes of aggressive, psychedelic, organic, analog beat oriented Merzbow compositions. Drummed rhythms, massive looping samples, a pun…
s/t
Japan's leading noise luminary Merzbow meets American electro-feedback artist Arcane Device as they mix and manipulate each other's work.
Merzbeat
* 20th anniversary edition gatefold reissue on pink vinyl. Limited to 300 copies * Merzbeat, a beautiful and distorted dream of drum samples, jazz, swing, noise and bliss, by Harsh Noise giant, Masami Akita (Merzbow), last press issued by Aurora Central.
Amlux
** Limited edition of 100 tapes, 50 on original colored version (this one) and 50 on blue colored version cover. ** Certainly Amlux is a very cohesive and well-constructed piece; starting more softly than usual, the record slowly builds into the chaotic harsh sound that Merzbow is well known for, but this time adding some actual recognizable music elements (like rhythms), and constructing various surprisingly well-texture soundscapes, that made of this album a more focused and immersive piece th…
Door Open at 8 A.M.
** Limited edition of 100 tapes, 50 Copies with yellow coloured cover artwork (this one) and 50 Copies with pink coloured cover artwork ** Introducing Masami Akita's homage to free-jazz. Door Open at 8am is one of the most adventurous outings made by Merzbow. Recorded during the same era as Aqua Necromancer, this new recording also incorporates the use of sampled sounds. However, this time Akita is paying homage to his love of free jazz, free-jazz drummers to be precise. It includes tracks such …
Hybrid Noisebloom / Masonna Vs. Bananamara
This bundle includes the newest Urashima vinyl releases:Merzbow "Hybrid Noisebloom" (2LP)Masonna "Masonna vs. Bananamara" (LP)Merzbow "Hybrid Noisebloom" (2LP)**Limited Edition of 299 copies.** When it comes to Japanese noise, few projects have pushed boundaries or risen to a more iconic status than Merzbow. The mutant child of punk and experimental music, the project’s blistering sounds - as singular and wild as they are unique - are among the movement’s most important, definitive statements, c…
Hybrid Noisebloom
**Limited Edition of 299 copies.** When it comes to Japanese noise, few projects have pushed boundaries or risen to a more iconic status than Merzbow. The mutant child of punk and experimental music, the project’s blistering sounds - as singular and wild as they are unique - are among the movement’s most important, definitive statements, continuously laying the groundwork for countless artists who have followed in its wake. Like so many artefacts of Japanese noise, Merzbow’s output - often relea…
Cat's Squirrel
Cat's Squirrel is a live recording of Masami Akita & Oren Ambarchi's performance in Sydney, Australia in May 2012. Although Akita & Ambarchi have known one another since 1993 & performed together as part of larger ensembles, this was their first performance as a duo. Together they create a massive wall of sound that moves from the cavernous to the blisteringly psychedelic, laying down shifting low-end structures over which pointillist details ricochet across the stereo field. Akita & Ambarchi's …