MERZBOW - Lowest Music & Arts 1980-1983

2012 release. "Limited edition of 500. Includes large booklet with images. This ten-LP set in a black varnished and silkscreened wooden box is a comprehensive anthology of Merzbows early works, carefully selected and mastered by Merzbow himself. Merzbow has been actively recording noise music since late 1979, releasing over 100 solo recordings and numerous collaborations since. This set focuses on Merzbows very early works from 1980-1983 on his first tape label, Lowest Music & Arts -- the predecessor to his famous ZSF Produkt label. Some of the selected material was reissued in fragments and extracts as part of the famous 50-CD Merzbox, but none of it has previously been released on vinyl. LP 1 contains Hyper Music 2, a previously unreleased recording from 1980 in the style of Metal Acoustic Music. LP 2 contains Metal Acoustic Music, originally released as C-90 cassette in very limited edition in 1981. While the A-side of this recording was featured and released on Merzbox, this LP features the B-side of the original tape, previously unreleased in any form outside of the original tape edition. LPs 3 and 4 feature the highly sought-after tape Merz Collection 007, recorded in 1980 and released in 1981, as well as the tape Tridal Production from 1981. Some parts of these recordings appear in the Merzbox, but this is also the first time that these recordings have been reissued in their entirety. LPs 5 and 6 cover Mechanization takes Command, originally released as a C-90 cassette in early 82. Again, some parts appeared in the Merzbox, but this is the first reissue of the complete set. LPs 7 and 8 are committed to the two highly sought-after tapes Solonoise 1 and Solonoise 2. While Solonoise 1 can also be found in the Merzbox, Solonoise 2 is reissued here in its complete original form for the first time. The word "solo" means "solar" and is a reference to Georges Batailles Solar Anus. LPs 9 and 10 contain Yahatahachiman and Escape Mask, two recordings from 1983 of which Merzbow is extremely proud. Both recordings represent an almost hidden side of Merzbow and show his flexibility in the variation of noise. They are a true hidden treasure of Merzbow music. Merzbow had dismissed them for years due to their guitar rock appeal and rhythmic drive, but it is exactly this style and its sound-wall of psychedelic atonal guitar-noise in combination with the technoid drum machine that catches the listeners ear decades later." - Vinyl-On-Demand.