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.
A Perfect Pain
LP version. 180 gram vinyl; Includes printed inner sleeve with lyrics; Includes download code. Repressed; 1999 release. A Perfect Pain is a manifestation of the incredible power created by Genesis Breyer P-Orridge (Psychic TV/Throbbing Gristle) -- the founding father of the industrial world, and Merzbow -- the undisputed king of Japanese noise. Recorded exclusively for Cold Spring, A Perfect Pain has been hailed as an important album and an extremely successful collaboration.
"a long overdue c…
Scissors for Cutting Merzbow
Limited edition of 200 copies. First ever official vinyl re-issue of this classic 1988 Masami Akita side project. Originally published on LP in 1989 by Masami Akita own label ZSF Produkt. Re-issued in an expanded version on CD as part of the Merzbow in the year 2000. This re-issue includes the expanded version on 3 LP and also on 2 CD. Remastered from original tape. In an interview with Arthur Potter, Akita explained that the album "is an attempt to cut up and mix all of the Merzbow sounds I've …
Noisembryo
Hospital Productions present a vinyl reissue of Merzbow's Noisembryo, originally released on CD by The Releasing Eskimo in 1994. Noisembryo is a holy grail, not only of Merzbow's obsessive discography, but of the entire '90s noise movement. You've heard the stories surrounding the infamy of this release, but beyond that stands the depth and wild energy that Noisembryo encapsulates over two decades later. High-speed loops, roving automotive bass, and cacophonic drum machines gel together with the…
Fuckexercise #2
In the continuing onslaught of Merzbow releases, the Japanophile Italian label Menstrual releases a new CD from everyone's favorite Japanese noisemonger, the mighty Merzbow. This is very early period Merzbow. Originally released as a private tape and distributed in a very few copies.Remastered from original cassette tape in 2017 at Munemihause, Tokyo.Masami Akita : Prepared Guitar, Tabla, Synare-3, Junk Percussion, Drums, Radio and TapesOrgan and Piano source material by Kiyoshi Mizutani.Recorde…
Lowest Music & Arts 1980-83
Limited edition of 99 copies, includes an extensive booklet of artwork and a hand-numbered official certificate. Housed in a black varnished and silkscreened wooden box. This is the friends edition with an additional 7", a cassette, and a long sleeve T-Shirt. The records are pressed on red vinyl. This 10Lp-Set in a black varnished and silkscreened wooden Box is a comprehensive Anthology of the „Godfather of Noise“ early works, carefully selected and mastered by Merzbow himself. Is there anything…
Pornoise
An epic 1984 masterpiece from Masami at the peak of his creativity. & CD set plenty of hectic and lumbering rhythms, weird vocal warble, frantic noise, fucked up grooves, spooky synth ambience, droning chant ranging from silly to sublime, musique concrete, and echoing psych weirdness. Despite the seeming chaos, Merzbow has structured into 24remarkably cohesive individual tracks identities. Recorded and Mixed at ZSF Produkt Studio in 1984 and published in tape format in 1987 by ZSF Produkt. I…
Musick From Simulation World
Another Merzbow re-issue for salivating Japanese noise junkies, recorded and Mixed at ZSF Produkt Studio in 1983. Merzbow blasts out of the gates with volcanic noise eruptions with all of the violence we can hear in these analog recordings from the early 80s. Mechanical grindings, claustrophobic scapings, train-wreck rhythms...Harsh energy indeed!! Limited edition of 200 copies.
Le Cuisinier
This album consists of improvisations between Masami Akita and Kiyoshi Mizutani, who began his career working in Merzbow (when Merzbow wasn't just Masami Akita alone, but he began as the duo of Masami Akita and Kiyoshi Mizutani, who met Akita in high school It was recorded on July 3, 1983 at Music Studio Kichijoji, Tokyo and mixed at Merz-Bau. It was released by Stratosphere Music in 1983 on a cassette, and at some point was reissued on cassette re-released in few copies by Lowest Music & Arts /…
Alessandro Cortini and Merzbow
Alessandro Cortini (Nine Inch Nails) and Japanese noise legend Massami Akita (Merzbow) bask in their mutual love for the EMS Synthi, a British synthesizer from the early 70's notorious for it's patch matrix, portability and distinct tone. Astonishingly, these two disparate artists meld into a single sound as they flex the analog circuitry of the EMS Synthi in new ways; giving this classic synth a modern workout and proving that, in capable hands, a 40 year old analog synthesizer is a tool for th…
Storage
First ever vinyl re-issue of this classic Merzbow album. The first two track were originally published on LP on the ZSF label in 1988. Masami Akita creates in Storage a very experimental and atmospheric album with a masterful use of scraping sounds and metal percussions but also with a very effective use of silence. A strongly hypnotic and creepy sounding early analog Merzbow album. The third track was published as an extra track for the CD reissue issued in the Merzbox is re-issued here for the…
Remblandt Assemblage
Remblandt Assemblage was recorded and mixed at home in 1980 and originally released on cassette the following year on own label. For the recording of this tape Masami used wide range of instruments: tapes, prepared acoustic guitar, tabla, junk percussion, microphone, radio, egg cutter & noise. Also this is the very first Merzbow album to use tape manipulations
Only a few copies were made and distributed on cassette in 1981, but otherwise it was not widely available until being partially re…
Lowest Music n. 2
Merzbow stands as the most important artist in noise music. The moniker of Japanese 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' pre-war architectural assemblage "The Cathedral of Erotic Misery" or “Merzbau”. Just as Schwitters attacked the entrenched artistic traditions of his time with his revolutionary avant-garde collages, so too would Akita challenge the contemporary concept of what is cal…
Material Action 2 N·A·M
First ever re-issue Lp re-issue of this classic Merzbow recording originally released on Chaos. Originally issued in 1983 in Lp format by Chaos in Japan. Masami Akita is aided here by Kiyoshi Mizutani. Classic old school junk noise for an intense and quite psychedelic album! A must have.Cover and labels are a near exact replica of the originals. Includes a 30 cm x 30 cm cardboard insert with cover artwork. Clear / white / yellow splatter vinyl! Edition of 302 numbered copies.
Atsusaku
Atsusaku is the collaborative output of Gareth Davis (Oiseaux Tempete, Scanner, Elliott Sharp, Machinefabriek etc) and Japanese noise mastermind Masami Akita aka Merzbow. A massive wall of sound over two tracks that moves from the shifting low-end structures and the ricochet of howling reeds to the blistering haze of dense white noise and rapid-fire electronic tones. The title Atsusaku, suggests pressure or mechanical compression and it was from this starting point, the idea of Davis' reed sound…
Ecobondage
Originally released in 1987 and first reissued in the mid 1990s on CD, Ecobondage is one of Merzbow’s seminal works, and also one of my earliest experiences with his vast discography. Presented as a double LP reissue (with included CD), the album feels like an appropriately deluxe edition that captures a high point of Masami Akita's too often overlooked, but superior junk noise era. As I have surely mentioned in previous reviews of his albums, my first exposure to Akita's work was Venereology. L…
Flying Basket
Flying Basket is a double album of avant jazz, discord and deconstructed rock by five master practitioners. It also marks the debut collaboration by a pair of Japan's legendary transgressors -- saxophonist Akira Sakata and noise pioneer Masami Akita, aka Merzbow. For the past ten years Sakata has rededicated himself to fiery free jazz alongside guitarist Jim O’Rourke and the monstrous rhythm section that is Chikamorachi -- Chris Corsano (drums) and Darin Gray (double bass, percussion). Sakata's…
Antimonument
Antimonument was recorded in 1986 and shows a large use of loop based material and a great deal of harsh metal noise sounds in all its analogic greatness! Antimonument was originally issued by ZSF produkt in 1986 in an edition of 225 copies picture discs LP. Copies of the original are now very rare and very expensive. This re-issue was remastered in 2014 by Masami Akita and contains extra material for a total of 61:55 in lenght.
Merzbow meets M.B.
This strictly limited premiere release comprises a vibrantly coloured LP on green/blue/yellow splatter vinyl, plus an additional seven inch, the fuchsia coloured seven inch is a noisy split with a with a xeroxed cover, with a numbered insert included.
Partikel III
The third and final part of the Partikel trilogy is finally here! Another beautifully constructed collaboration from the two noise giants - Japanoise King Masami Akita (aka Merzbow) and Swedish Overlord Henrik Nordvargr Björkk (MZ.412, Folkstorm, Toroidh). The styles on ÔPartikel III' range from total noise barrages, to intelligent electronics, to subtle dark ambient pieces. Essential! Presented in a luxurious matt laminate digipak.
Grand Owl Habitat
For The Death Of Rave, Masami Akita aka Merzbow submits two petrifying pieces of psychedelic, technoid sturm und drang. Harking back to the feral attack and pulsing rhythmic disciplines of his early work (recently collected on V-o-D's excellent 'Lowest Music & Arts 1980- 1983' boxset), the howling 12 minute pummel of A-side 'Grand Owl Habitat' appears on vinyl after release on Handmade Birds' Dark Icons series. An ecstatically abusive, furious maelstrom of coloured noise is rail-eroded by…