Benekkea is a netlabel based in Italy, releasing all kinds of music, from ambient to noise. They’ve just had their 10th release, Icore in Sani Apophis by Splinter vs Stalin which encompasses analogue and digital noise, as well as the more guttural range of ambient textures and glitch aesthetics.
Most of these elements can be heard in Platone e le fragole…, the opening track. It’s a dark track, using feedback and glitched vocal sounds. The vocal processing and vinyl-like pops and cracks form something quite unique, with searing feedback in the middle. Interesting vocal sounds find their way into a few of these tracks, appearing again in the second track Giardini di Giganti, where we can make out a discussion of global catastrophe, amidst a drum beating like a heart that leads into sustained feedback.
As the name suggests, it’s as if there’s two personalities at work here. Each track is a split personality, whether it’s glitchy ambient vs feedback, or analogue distortion vs digital experimentation. Y i daai lei hung maau tiu contains most of these elements, typifying Splinter vs Stalin’s approach.
Necrocake in Norway is more subtle than the other tracks, with layers built up of various types of distortion and sustained noise. It gives way to field recordings at the end, and this transition comes as quite a surprise.
The beating of the drums at the start of Dugongo and the subdued cassette hiss makes way for an atmospheric track. After such a dense collection, it makes way for a natural departure. The label notes say this is the duo’s second album. And based on what I’ve heard here, I’d like to see where they take their glitch and noise laden compositions next.
