Martin Kuchen - The Lie & The Orphanage
[MTHK01]
Format: CD
Label: Mathka Notify Me ( ? )
It could be a walrus. Some very large, ungainly, semi-aquatic creature expelling air through a hole layered with tissue and fat and hairs. But then multiple apertures open at once and the creature just spouts information, chaotic from one angle, streamlined from another. Effluvia momentarily expelled, the beast lies down and breathes in short, percolating gasps, quiet but insistent. The pressure builds, however, surging in near-regular waves, causing the organ-walls to quiver, liquid to shudder, wind-drying them, forcing them to grind to a stuttering halt. Gasping again, more desperate and asthmatic, the inhaler partially blocked by fibers, the meager air whistling as it's sucked in, exhaled. At last, the whole bubbling, churning, motoric organism shifts into gear, half-beast, half-machine, navigating through viscous fluid, eating, excreting, copulating as it makes its way from pool to pool. These were my initial thoughts on hearing Martin K¸chen's solo album, before seeing the cover image! I was pleased that my imagery at least resided in the proper class, mammalia. K¸chen's work had always connoted something extremely organic to me, combined with a strong sense of ground, of dirt and well-trodden floors. On "The Lie & The Orphanage", he evokes both of those sensations in spades, grinding, wheezing, gutturally rumbling with extreme corporeality and determination, eliciting sounds that, even in this age of post-saxophonic exploration, are startlingly new. Much more importantly, they read as true, as deeply felt expostulations, all building to the astonishingly visceral, multi-tracked finale. Strong, vital work.

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Customer Reviews

On 2013-03-09 00:00:00, 'Don Poe, EAR/Rational Staff Reviewer' gave the following review:
I am pretty enthusiastic about this disc. I feel like it is a nice mix of found/location sounds and constructed sounds that make me feel like I am in a woodshop for ants. Lots of little details and crunchy bits. Saws. Odd sharp sounds. It isn't too dense, though - no walls of noise here. This is closer to musique concrete than Merzbow. I almost feel the last track broaches into ethnic territory with it's insistent rhythm, but the sound is generated by clapping on the top hole of a PVC pipe, so this is one weird ceremony. The sounds are challenging overall, not really a pleasant listen, it will keep your ears moving and not let you drift to sleep. Nice work. CD that comes in a 7" package.

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