Bruce Russell – Demonstration Record [LP]

"What you see before you, “iffy” cover and all is a solo project from noise-rock pioneer and The Dead C veteran Bruce Russell. Recorded on a mobile phone in the southern summer of 2023-24. This collection of live performances, sound collages, and solo improvisations have been pressed into a black slab with an “unfinished” cover.

Bruce Russell, “Mr.Noisy”, the man that’s been “giving rock'n'roll a prison haircut since 1984” is letting us in, providing an “open-house” into the sonic alchemy of one of the most interesting minds of the NZ noise-rock scene. With an Android mobile, slight “linear editing”, and a strict dismissal of any stereo-imaged, mastered sound, much of the listening here is quite revealing, and provides expansive sonic palettes despite its minimal setup.

Tracks like Quattro Pezzi Su Due Note and Holly Springs #2 appear first as sparse guitar centered numbers, but quickly open themselves up to the listener, with shimmering modulation pedals and jumping, scattering, slide guitars creating synthetic textures with as much detail as s wavetable or granular synthesizer. Dirty, snarling tracks like Metal Pedal and Modulationism produce maximalist rhythmic growls and sweeps with just a distortion and modulation box, demonstrating just how much of a savant Russell really is at just creating engaging beautiful music. Showcasing the vast amount of compositional and thematic directions on this project, the Climate Study tracks provide a more laid-back window into Russell’s creative patchwork, the slowed down overlay of pans, door hinges, and machinery creating ecosystems of industrial sound."

Carbon Records, 2024