Quetev Meriri - _Quetev Meriri_
(GushPunkA, 2008)
by: Quentin Kalis (6.5 out of 10)
Israel has a strong noise / power electronics scene for its size, centered around Vultures, Lietterschpich and others, but less harsh experimental expressions also feature. The members in this project have been in the Illiane Pansensoy's Tropical Orchestra, River Styx and Six Happy Musicians. They recommend this for fans of Six Organs of Admittance, Dead Raven Choir or Wolfmangler. Nope, haven't heard of them either, nor do I have a clue as to what they do.

Not that these could be considered as psalms to the horned one or any of his minions; this is an experimental improv album that was recorded in one night. There are no lyrics, just recitals of poetry by Yair Horwitz and Vasko Popa, the latter translated into Hebrew from Serbo-Croat. The instrumental works bear the names and are dedicated to Jewish philosophers such as Walter Benjamin and Jacob Frank.

The first two songs are brief, off centre pieces with an acid flair, serving as an aperitif for "Seeds", the Popa poem. At over fifteen minutes, it is the longest song, consisting mostly of the same notes struck repetitively, gaining stridency in the second half, as it builds towards a climax before receding. "Franz Rosenzweig" is grounded by a punkish bass line overlaid by a resonant lead; "Rosa Luxemburg" is a morose number, while "Emmanuel Levinas" is another repetitive and discordant number. On closer "Dispersed City", the Horowitz poem sees the return of vocals, but it is essentially a continuation of the preceding track.

This is a hard album to evaluate: positives include its experimental nature and at times ambient atmospheres; negatives include a feeling that it is too self-consciously arty, and with some tracks overstaying their welcome, focusing on repetition rather than composition. It's unusual and I'm hard-pressed to think of a similar album, so I've given it the benefit of the doubt in my rating, but the reader is cautioned that the album takes a highly experimental approach that most definitely will not be everyone's chalice of mead.

Contact: http://www.myspace.com/quetevmeriri

(article published 15/1/2009)


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