Customer Reviews

Assume Power Focus

5 star:		(2)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

Assume Power Focus contains only two tracks that the average music fan would consider "listenable" in the conventional sense of the term, A Debris of Murder and Leed's Ripper, both of which are mostly early drum machine. The other tracks consist primarily of noise and Genesis' ramblings with distorted instrumentation. What A Day! is a definite high point.

Suburban middle school students who listen to nine inch nails and think themselves hardcore will not enjoy this album, however industrial they may like to be, but PTV and Throbbing Gristle enthusiasts will want this one for the collection.

I have spoken.

This CD is not the collection of early tracks that it claims to be. Rather, it is a transparent cash-in consisting of tracks already available. The first and last "dancey" songs were actually made in the 90's using samples from TG tracks. Don't believe it? Check out the "Fractured Garden" album by Genesis's project Splinter Test. Many of the other songs on this CD are lifted directly from TG's live series. That said, it's not a bad CD. There is some great material there, but be aware that the liner notes are not to be trusted.

I give this CD a four star rating,mostly due to it's collection of extremely rare tracks,that to me sounds like most of them were mastered off a vinyl lp.A few scratches here and there,but that MAY very well be part of the appeal of this compilation.What first drew me to 'Assume...' is the fact their vocalist Genesis P-Orridge,of course had gone on to be in Psychic TV.The tunes "A Debris Of Murder" and "Leeds Ripper" were recorded in 1979 as the other tracks were laid down in 1975.I believe this was the basic idea that bands like Ministry,Chemical Brothers and perhaps Nine Inch Nails may've been shooting for when they first started playing.Check it out for yourself as Throbbing Gristle displays their own brand of industrial-like sonic noise.As for the disc's earlier cuts,I liked their obscure "What A Day!","Propaganda" and "Dead Ed".

Like the first annual report of throbbing gristle, this compliation was also recorded waaay back when gristle first came about in 75 (two track were made in 79). The album has it's more dark and noisy side with Last exit being the main offeneder, in which GPO takes life form as a woman and starts to explain how he got sexually offened. It's some really sick crap. Dead Ed is another disturbing piece that may just be even worse then last exit, maybe we just can't hear GPO half the time for our on sake. The best track here has to be the 10 minute What a Day! Unlike the mix on 20 jazz funks, this one has a 5 minute buildup into GPOs screaming, the public speaker guy during the building noise is another highlight. The tracks recorded in 1979 feel like they belong on 20 Jazz funk greats when it comes to sound. Both track are just more exprimental dance(?)-like tracks like Leeds ripper, which is a good way to use the synth/drumachine right for once.


Worth buying if you can handle last exit.

This is probably the most listenable of the TG albums that I have yet to hear. "What a Day" is clearly one of the highlights of this album, mainly because it features an excellent sample of an inmate at some penitentiary talking to adolescents about the rigors of prison life (a la Scared Straight). "Leeds Ripper" is also a perennial favorite as is the first track on the album and "Her Arm Was Her Leg". Whatever anybody has to say about TG in terms of musical ability/talent will always sound a bit presumptuous to me (especially if the criticism happens to be negative or derogatory). TG seems to have been first and foremost conceptual art/cultural terrorism interested in exploring/exploiting conventions and cultural mores in an attempt to discover what lies beyond the frontiers of acceptability. Music just happened to figure into the equation as a means of achieving specific ends. Well, if you're interested in the TG sound I would recommend this album and also Dimensia in Excelsis.