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May 12, 2015 Blanck Mass By Tom Fenwick

As one half of the Fuck Buttons, Benjamin John Power has spent the best part of a decade challenging our expectations of modern electronica. But when he’s not redefining genres with collaborative partner Andrew Hung, his extra-curricular activities have proven him equally adept in crafting dense, fluttering ambience as Blanck Mass. But unlike previous releases under that pseudonym, Dumb Flesh sees Power finally unite the two sides of his career; layering dense atmospherics over imposing beats.

The bulk of Dumb Flesh thematically alludes to a hinterland between the organic and the inorganic; these songs are peppered with unnerving squelches (“Atrophies”), wildly distorted vocals (“Cruel Sport”), and the occasional disturbing, orgiastic abnormalities (“Lung”). A mass of sound that bonds with electronica, the apex of this fusion is reached on “Detritus” and “Dead Format,” the former closing proceedings in waves of terrifying drone and distant orations, the latter seesawing over an ocean of unrelenting sonic abnormalities. Dumb Flesh is a vast leap forward for Power’s solo career, which peels back flesh from bone to reveal a throbbing, palpitating polyrhythmic masterpiece.

(www.blanckmass.bandcamp.com)

Author rating: 8/10