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SUN RA | MERZBOW - 'Strange City'

Officially licensed from Irwin Chusid of the SUN RA estate, Cold Spring negotiated rare and unreleased tracks from the SUN RA archive to be remixed and treated by Masami Akita (MERZBOW). The tracks incorporate the jazz power of SUN RA, carried into brutal excess by the legendary Japanese noise artist, MERZBOW.

Originally released by Cold Spring a decade ago and long sold out, the music was spread across vinyl and CD, with completely different music on each format. The tracks are now collected together here for the first time, from the original masters and presented in the order originally intended (the vinyl format dictated the order due to optimal sound quality restraints).

Also included (for the first time on any release) is the bonus two minute track 'Granular Jazz Part 5', a special composition created for the Stuart Maconie's "Freak Zone" (BBC Radio 6), which was only broadcast once, ahead of Merzbow's show at Manchester's legendary FAC251, September 2016.

2CD with expanded artwork in a 8-panel double digipak comes with an 8-page booklet featuring a new essay by Gydja. Orders from Cold Spring come with 2 free stickers (one Merzbow, one Sun Ra).

Tracklisting:

CD1:
1. Livid Sun Loop (32:11)
2. Granular Jazz Part 1 (17:50)

CD2:
1. Granular Jazz Part 2 (34:03)
2. Granular Jazz Part 3 (13:22)
3. Granular Jazz Part 4 (5:05)
4. Granular Jazz Part 5 (2.00)

REVIEWS:

"The constant and destructive waves of noise make this decisively a Merzbow record, but its cosmic mood and rhythms prove that Sun Ra lives in its DNA... Many of the strengths Akita has developed over roughly four decades of noise devotion are put to use here. He creates relentlessly forward-moving music with so much going on that it feels three-dimensional... You could call Strange City a Merzbow victory, but it couldn’t have happened without Sun Ra on his team." (Pitchfork)

"Strange City is a transformative, cyclical work that rewards repeated listens. As Sun Ra’s dextrous compositions shift and flex somewhere beneath Merzbow’s thick clumps of abrasion, like muscles encased in steel wool, the effect is somewhat unsettling... a remarkable, difficult and disquieting record" (The Line Of Best Fit)

"Strange City” gives me the impression of sonic lava, which is progressively covering your imagination with images of terror. The totally transformed jazz elements are a rather weird, but exciting aspect of the work... I can imagine noise freaks will fully enjoy this opus while jazz lovers will maybe experience this work as pure blasphemy." (Side-Line)

"Recorded music is able to generate a fistful of dreams and this is one of them... Instead of being a noise release using the name of Sun Ra as smoke and mirrors, it tries to fuse the two language and it's a reminder about some jazz purists called free jazz as noise". (4/5, Chain D.L.K.)

"By balancing out [Merzbow's] chaos with Sun Ra’s sense of exploratory wonder, the songs possess much of Sun Ra’s original intention and spirit... Over the course of each piece Merzbow tries to ensure that the original piece remains in awe of its incredible journey and masterful blend of styles." (The Beach Sloth)

"Purely a labor of love and a must-have for fans of both artists... Noise and avant-garde jazz have long shared common sensibilities. While this certainly isn't the first such undertaking, it's certainly one of the best" (Big Takeover)

"The overall achievement is the strange sense of balance Strange City radiates with. While Merzbow's sonic razors are sharp and appear to be all over the spectrum, the presence of Sun Ra lies in the core of this work. Despite its disfigurement and tempering, it dictates the progression of the record, through modes of granular synthesis or extravagant processing... the explosiveness of Merzbow in its purest form, while the underlying structures of Sun Ra provides the lucidity to this chaotic narrative" (Scene Point Blank)

"Given the influence and massive oeuvre of both artists, it stands to reason that two of the giants of noise would come together, even across time and space... Merzbow’s noise seems well-tuned and finely placed – at times obscuring the action, but more often than not, complementing Sun Ra’s intergalactic explorations" (Forestpunk)