Corephallism / Gnaw Their Tongues – Split 10″ 2012

Corephallism / Gnaw Their Tongues - Split 10"What a disturbing little 10” this turned out to be, split between Corephallism (featuring a member of Boston based noise/grind project Twodeadsluts Onegoodfuck) and the omnipresent power electronics/black metal pioneer that is Gnaw Their Tongues. Before receiving this vile slab of wax, Corephallism was an unknown entity to me, a little bit of digging revealed Mr. Broderick’s connections and I braced myself for what I expected to be earsplitting noise complete with frenzied grind vocals akin to his other musical endeavors. Instead, the introduction to this E.P totally blindsided me with its rich analogue tones that rise and contort before subtle shards of noise enter the mix, gradually building in intensity, yet never tipping over into the realm of true harsh noise. The piece is surprisingly evocative, albeit drenched in bleak and suffocating atmospheres, creating a feeling of dread deep in the pit of your stomach; however that feeling is quickly quashed as the piece is over before delving any further into the abyss, a short but meticulously crafted opener.

Enter the second track ‘Rapes of Convenience’ and any suggestions of subtly are blown right out of the water as a huge swathe of noise hits you square in the face, topped off with whispered, strangulated vocals that hypnotically weave their way around the main body of sound. The main problem here is that the tracks are really short, just as you are getting sucked into their dismal sonic tapestry; the trip is abruptly brought to an end…however the music that is put across here is genuinely un-settling stuff and certainly sparks an interest in hearing a full length effort from Corephallism in the future.

Flipping over to the B-side and you are faced with the legendary one man holocaust that is Gnaw Their Tongues, aka Maurice De Jong (although he generally credits himself as just ‘Mories’ on most recordings), with the track ‘A Moral Guide To Self-Castration and Necrophilia’. Taking up the entirety of the B-side, the track creeps in with samples of old, industrial machinery, whirring and clattering away, before shards of noise start scratching away on the surface. As the noise gradually envelopes the underlying industrial elements, Mories adds his trademark black metal influenced vocals to the fray, off set by disconcerting subsonic frequencies and harsh disjointed tones that jolt your senses and makes you feel altogether uncomfortable and somewhat delirious at the same time. Again, as experienced with Corephallism, just as the track begins to peak, the madness slowly fades away leaving you wondering what the hell just happened…

As far as the Gnaw Their Tongues contribution is concerned, it is certainly not his best piece of work to date, but serves as a good (even though somewhat subdued) introduction to his particularly grim sonic vision. The Corephallism side is certainly the better of the two, showcasing a real talent for creating some truly harrowing dark ambience which in turn is well worth your attention.

Label: Lascivious Aesthetics
Corephallism: www.myspace.com/corephallism
Gnaw Their Tongues: www.gnawtheirtongues.com

Scribed by: Todd Robinson