I could find little on this artist, although the link listed is to a French site that simply describes it as “harsh noise from Belgium.” The bio states that "PRURIT is making noise not music with custom fabricated machines, toys, circuit bending, modified Walkman, feedback, contact mics, signal generator, tapes with homemade sound sources, distortion, fuzz, voices." Sounds like a good time, so let's dive in and see what the cats have in store for us.

The album opens up with “Dusk,” which is 12 minutes of ear cleaning harsh noise. If you enjoyed listening to the white noise static of a TV after broadcast had concluded for the night, there will be a bit of nostalgia at the opening. But this is not harsh noise wall, where the static nature takes over. No, Prurit is an artist after my own heart, giving us what I call "kitchen sink noise," where you throw in everything including the kitchen sink into the composition. It's harsh, it's noisy, but it certainly isn't boring because there is so much going on in this track. Tone generators, pulsing static, crackling noise, and a touch of feedback to top off the noise sundae. Definitely a good time. The other track, “Empty Hour,” lures you in with a false sense of security, opening up with subdued crackling noise, like listening to noise from a distance. Prurit then unloads with both barrels, unleashing a feedback-laced noise tirade that is a lot crunchier than the previous track. If you like high frequency noise, this will be right up your alley.

Overall, this is some excellent harsh noise. If you like it harsh, Prurit delivers. When I find myself thinking, "I would like to do a split with this person," I know I have found something interesting. Well worth checking out. This album weighs in at 20 minutes.

Substak is the work of Kostas Staikos, who hails from Athens, Greece. I have reviewed several of his releases on Inner Demons, and they all have different feels, so it is interesting to see what he has each time. The liner notes state that “Nexus Ep focuses on darkness not as a destination, but as the constant environment through which light must travel.” Sounds interesting, so let’s step into the shadows and see what we find.

This album opens with “Morning's Edge,” which is some mellow drone with a light hi-hat cymbal beat throughout. Rather peaceful. If the idea is to evoke the idea of a sunrise, this seems like a good representation. “Chasing Shadows” keeps the drone going, but with a slightly less peaceful feel. “Perpetual Dawn” closes it out with pulsing drone with some sweeping noises thrown in for good measure. This is the most interesting track on the album.

The entire album seems to be an exercise in drone, which works nice as background music. If there is a criticism to be had here, it's that they are similar and I would have liked to see it developed a bit more. On the other hand, they are short enough to enjoy without wearing out their welcome. If you like drone, this would be up your alley. This album weighs in at around 9 minutes.

Substak is the work of Kostas Staikos, who hails from Athens, Greece. I have reviewed several of his releases on Inner Demons, and they all have different feels, so it is interesting to see what he has each time. The liner notes state that “This EP explores the eerie intersection of technology and humanity, with two tracks that build a world of distorted communication and corrupted systems. It's a journey through droning soundscapes where noise feels like whispers and glitches reveal a broken but beautiful order.” I spent the better part of 15 years studying this intersection, so I was quite interested to see how Substak approaches it. Let’s dive in.

We open with “Static Communication,” which is like listening to a train in a tunnel, rumbling along. Peaceful and hypnotic. “Corrupted Algorithm” gives us the same rhythm without the echoes and drones before kicking in some bass drones to go along with it. Where the previous track was gentle and soothing, this one is more abrasive in that the repetition becomes annoying, but I suppose that is the point. About two thirds of the way in, we have some staticy noise bursts, like a radio tuned to the space between frequencies.

Overall, it is an interesting concept, but I feel that Substak would need to delve more into the idea to make the concept stick. This is a weighty concept and it's hard to pull off in just over 13 minutes. The music itself is interesting though, so it can stand on its own regardless.

I knew nothing about this project before getting this release, but Black Plumes is the work of one Alexia Grind. The label describes the project thus: “Black Plumes is the worker breaking her chains, filtered through amplified rage. Black Plumes is burning gunpowder in guerilla full metal jacket. Black Plumes is a strained voice that screams out, ‘No.’” Sounds like a timely album, so let’s see what we have here.

This album consists of one 16 minute track titled "Black Plumes," which kicks off with a sample of Cyrus' monologue from "The Warriors," stating "I say the future is ours if you can count" and ending with "can you dig it," which I always associate with Pop Will Eat Itself. This then kicks into blistering crunchy bass noise wall with high pitched feedback squalls throughout. And feedback. So much so that I was listening to this at work with headphones and my colleague came over to see what the heck I was listening to because he could hear the feedback from across the room. But there is a lot going on here, both with frequency and quiet passages that keep the listener engaged. Really well done.

I’m generally not a fan of high pitched noise, but this release manages to pull it off. If you like it harsh with a lot of variety, this is well worth checking out. This album weighs in at around 16 minutes.

I could find little about this artist, but the artist link is the Less Than One label, so I suppose that they are related somehow. There are also no liner notes to go on. However, I am a huge Lovecraft fan, so I immediately made the connection with the Plateau of Leng from At the Mountains of Madness and other works by Lovecraft, so I recognized Pestzone as a kindred spirit. Anyway, let’s open this forbidden tome and give it a listen.

We open up with “Black Galleys,” which is droning and stark, like standing on a cliff as the winds attempt to blow you off the edge. There is a high-pitched drone that is almost dissonant, but not quite. The track is not just drone though, as there is a lot happening within the track to keep it moving and engaging. “Rubies and Slaves” is more drone, but this time it is covering crackling noise, like an old record playing. This is punctuated by tonal blasts and other noises throughout to keep it interesting. “Gate to the Abyss” is a bit grittier, with warbling bass synth and whining drones and other incidental noises. The effect is ominous but not harsh. “The Plateau” is a bit more rumbly with high pitched droning noise over the sounds of mountains being ground to dust. “The Unmentionable Monastery” is mentioned in Lovecraft's "The Dream-Quest of Unknown Kadath." This is a slow moving track with a methodical synth line that is the equivalent to a chant. This is done over background noise. “Hideous Paws” is one of the more complicated tracks on this disc, with what sounds like guitar and synth with lots of reverb laying down a track full of melancholy. The feel is dreamlike, but not a pleasant dream nor a nightmare. Rather, this evokes a sense of foreboding and unease, like waking from a dream in which you had been warned of something important, but you can't seem to remember what it is, and the consequences of ignorance are dire. Finally, we have “Corpse-Eaters,” likely referencing the corpse eating cult mentioned in Lovecraft's "The Hound," closing out the disc with more heavy drone. This is noisier than the others, with grinding noise and other incidental noises and machine-like clanks. This would make an excellent soundtrack for your next haunted house.

Overall, Pestzone manages to evoke a sense of existential dread without resorting to cheap gimmicks like horror movie samples or jump scare noises. This is the noise of malevolence that can wait eons for your demise, so there is no need to rush things. It will just wait until the stars are right. Very well done. This album weighs in at around 86 minutes.