Customer Reviews

Shizuo Vs Shizor

5 star:		(8)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(1)

 

 

I love this album. I played it for my epileptic grandma and she had a seizure.

Shizuo was the most brilliant of all the DHR artists, and that's saying a lot.

His music is not noise. It is a reductionist take on a variety of musical genres - most obviously hardcore techno but also punk, new wave, no wave, hip hop, industrial, jungle and musique concrete. Unlike more obvious artists who Make It Known that they're Eclectic, Shizuo subtley shifts from dancehall djungle to percussive blownout static to a funky Contortions-esque beat with childlike enthusiasm. Hardly the trainwreck that it sounds like, Shizuo finds common rhythms and traits from disparate sources and assembles them in a most natural way.

He can make an "accessible" track like "Sweat" that makes A-list indie stars cream in their pants. But when he goes off the deep end, he loses their endorsement, and that's fine. His DNA is more valuable than the combined gene pool of all leftfield American IDM producers to date. That he's German and makes *gratifying* beats is probably why people aren't talking about him... but rather, boring and predictably quirky artists like Kid 606.

That and his sonic association with the "political" and verbose Atari Teenage Riot prevents Wire-magazine-worshipping "music intellectuals" from identifying with someone who might actually get laid. IMHO, I can see Shizuo getting laid plenty.

Life after "Shizuo vs. Shizor" is way better than life before it. Someday this disc will be pulled from obscurity and recognized as it should be - the blueprint for post-punk (in attitude, at least), aggressive yet populist electronic music.

Its rare to find an album that ages so well in elctronic music. I dont like atari teenage riot but find alec ampire somethimes pleasing...however this record is so imaginative an noisy its worth to buy. It has suprises waiting at each 10 sec.

If you love digital hardcore--you must have this! Shizuo Vs. Shizor is one my favorite albums of all times--it's perfect from start to finish and leaves nothing to be desired. It's sounds are muted and uses quite static in rhythms, so on first hearing they may not seem as "loud" as some of the other DHC stuff--but its beats are some of the fastest hardest out there and are just as fun as Atari Teenage Riot. The songs do have a foreign feel to them, reflected perfectly by the cover art--although I can't quite put my finger on what does it. But BEWARE--this CD is addictive! I've listen to it hundreds of times and every time I hear it I hear something new--and can't wait to hear it again. This music's great to get your blood pumping without adding a headache to it. Unlike much of the other DHC CDs, there hardly any screaming in this--but it doesn't lack it in any way. It makes up for it by massive sounds overlayed so the end results blow you away while making you want to have seizures to its ultra-fast rhythms. If you love digital hardcore, you really must add this to your collection--and anyone who likes hard fast music but minus the obligatory screaming nonstop will find it refreshing. This CD is absolutely awesome!!!

there's not much more to be said. if you like making your eardrums bleed and punishing your neighbors, buy this disc.

I like it, although I think it is just a mess of noise. He's not the most talented artist on the Digital Hardcore label, but he's still fun and this album is way more accessible then some of his other EPs and singles. He shows he has real potential on tracks like Sweat but on tracks like Punks your left wondering what the hell was that afterwards. New Kick is cool, sounds like a drugged out hippie singing but it's awesome. Some of the songs just sound like his drum machine is breaking down or exploding or something along with his sampler spitting out nonsense but there are some other really good songs too like the 60 second long Chill. Blow-Job is a highlight too. If you like noise, sex, violent beats and static buy it. I reccomend it.

Shizuo (A.K.A. DJ Hammer), the sonic prankster of Alec Empire's otherwise very angry Digital Hardcore Recordings (DHR) label, has a way of making extremely violent sounds come off as well...fun. He cites violence (primarily violent sex) as his biggest infuence, and it shows. Right of the bat Shizuo brings in a campy horn sample, and a dirty old man asks: "Have you ever been kissed by a girl like this?" Shizuo's reply to this question sounds similar to an explosion at a drum factory. The rest of the album continues in this vein with high points being: "Shizuo", "Braindead pt. 1", & "New Kick". He even works a Blondie cover in there. However, the magic of this album lies beneath the violence and chaos, where you realize what a rhythmic genius Shizuo truly is. There are some very refreshing, original beats locked deep within Shizuo's aural torture chamber. Buy this album, your ears will be pleased, and its always fun to see the look on your friends faces when they see you are actually enjoying all this noise. -JJ

I cannot figure out how this album was created-its got to be one of the most abstractly wonderful sonic creations ever made. It simply exists as this mysterious landmark in modern music. The unenlightened may not be able to listen past the "noise"...but the patient, layer obsessing listener will have found the holy grail of future music. This record melds Minor Threat's stabbing speed with The Avalanches alchemical swirl in textures you could not imagine in your wildest dreams. Prepare for the most exciting album you have ever heard.

at a distance this sounds like you are renavating your house. i am going to play it real loud so my neighbors can hear it. i love this album because there is not a real beat and you never know what to expect, no matter how many times you listen to this album you allways ndiscover somthing new in it. another use for this album is driving your parents nuts, my parents absolotly hate it when i play this album real loud all day long(ha ha).

"Sweat" was the only good song on the album. The rest just sounded dull.