Liber Null and Total Black celebrate their Filth III event in Berlin (June 9-10, 2017) with a compilation entitled Filth, containing seven exclusive tracks from contributors to the live show.

    End of The Line by Venerence gets us started in a very serious fashion—a progressively layered construction of electro ambiance is punctuated by leaden distorted FX, the textures thickening all the time as they intensify; cold, drone-y pads and sharpened synth lines resembling detuned strings complete an intense and contemplative opener. On Hidden ID by MXM, the atmosphere builds slowly and darkens, considerably ramping up the tension, wicked bass drums tripping over each other with just a little distortion—the sound brings to mind an industrial jackhammer in slow motion, add to that pitch black synths which are positively scary and this makes for a quite unsettling 6 minutes. Sirio Gry J is up next with the aptly titled Morbid Carnage, where exhausting militaristic percussion and the harshest of harsh computer noise join a loose but ferocious bandy kick drum, which conspires to form a fluctuating, but constant wall of sound that will make your ears bleed.

    Cries of There's No Escape on Fear by Teatro Satanico is unsettling to the last, with its lo-fi, grainy and distressed vocal treatment, reminiscent of Alan Vega on his collaborations with Mika Vainio and Ilpo Väisänen, this is surely a prime cut of industrial darkwave. Aktion Mutante perfectly executes off-kilter breakbeat electro experiments in Inno Dell'Elefante, with simmering acid constantly threatening to boil over; one false move and you're going to get burned. EBM/punk excursions in penultimate track Sovergein by Unhuman: prickly hats spark off fizzing electronic noises which are then thrust into a sparsely populated, but heady atmosphere with synths that neither drone or buzz but somehow do both, the flattened kicks and distorted vocals throughout make for a chilling vibe. Finally, Entertainment treads a fine line between minimal industrial techno and rhythmic noise: Yellow Flag leads with Japanese dialogue and concrete/found sounds before being joined by throbbing noise and scouring, ghostly drones that mimic harsh arctic winds across frozen tundra.

    Deep dark, and not surprisingly, ritualistic in tone throughout, Liber Null and Total Black deliver an arresting and varied collection, one would hope the first of many Filth Series compilations. Some 50 copies of the cassette will be offered to attendants of the venue, and those that aren't lucky enough to get to this event and pick one of these up in time—don't despair, a digital version is available at Total Black's Bandcamp page.

Release Type: VA

Release Date: 9 June 2017

Release Format: Digital • Cassette

Record Label • Catalog: Total Black • 83

Purchase Links: Bandcamp