Martin Tetreault/Otomo Yoshihide

The first in a series of three discs featuring live turntable improvisations, Grrr is the thrash punk equivalent of vinyl manipulation. Not that vinyl is used exclusively or at all in some cases. Industrial noise in the style of Merzbow is generated by the collision of surface and electricity. In some places this may be stylus on vinyl, elsewhere copper coil grinding a hand cymbal finds its way onto the turntable. Tetreault and Yoshihide explore levels of distortion and saturation frequently in the red, but frame the noise with beats and pulses to enclose the impact. Recorded during a week of shows throughout France, the pieces become more brutal and blunt as the tour progresses. The recording is superb and in early tracks minute details of sound can be isolated within the overall squall. Grrr is to be followed by two other collections titled Tok and Ahhh, featuring other aspects of their live collaboration.