Lungwash – II CD

Void Seance

Lungwash’s II is the latest entry in Void Séance’s (with releases from groups such as Churner, Werewolf Jerusalem and Ritual Stance) Fortress series, and it’s no wonder as the labels website states that releases in this series are “concerned with concentration, focus, and texture.” II is an album that doesn’t really deviate from its own formula. While fans of simple, reflective and nihilistic noise will appreciate this approach, listeners looking for lots of variation are bound to be disappointed.

What Lungwash do on II they do well. The entire album consists of one track (aptly named and spanning the time of 57:49) of scratchy, grinding, crusty noise that can be called wall noise at its most basic. Here you will not find high frequency squeals or synth driven interludes; II is an hour of pure distortion at the most primal level. Focus and concentration are what the Fortress series is going for; Lungwash brings that forth with their unyielding dedication to a sound and texture.

While Lungwash don’t really deviate from their sound too much, they definitely provide some variation within it. 57:49 is a constant ebb and flow of grainy sounds ranging from a wall of crushing abrasion to a near ambient rumble with occasional outbursts of aggression. Lungwash occasionally incorporates a Merzbow-esque bout of loop track psychedelia but the variation here is pretty limited. While the difference in sounds isn’t really present, the moods that Lungwash play with is what gives this album strength; they manage to switch off between sections quickly and effectively. Overall, though, any buildup and release present on this album is rather short lived.

Lungwash keeps things pure and simple on II, and the album is easy to get lost in. Unfortunately, mediocrity is a word that comes to mind when listening to this album. We’ve all heard this before. The texture and focus is definitely there and the minimal use of sound variation is immersive, but the lack of originality doesn’t do much to help this album to stand out.

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