Whitehouse: Asecticists 2006 (Susan Lawly) - CD
My introduction to Whitehouse was purely accidental (I seriously doubt anyone would have the nerve to force it on you). It was somewhere in the north, either Birmingham or Manchester. Tagging along with friends who were into 'arts'. I was clueless, being of Pakistani origin, I had very little knowledge about European Modernism and I had no desire to gain any.

Ended up at some arts event. Displaced rooms playing music that I'd label 'mostly harmless'. We found ourselves in a corridor with what sounded like a detuned ghettoblaster going through meltdown. It was Whitehouse. Friends scowled and headed to the main room. I'd like to think it was for some really rubbish mutation of free jazz, but I'd probably be lying.

Out of all the music that was on, that sought to engage and include. It took two guys screaming obscenities against a tidal wave of high end feedback before I could interact. Needless to say I was transfixed. But going back to their recorded output, nothing really matched what I'd heard that night. Not until 2003's 'Bird Seed' and now this. The tracks with Bennett brood, the tracks with Best confront.

Tujiko Noriko: Shojo Toshi + (Editions Mego) - CD
Compiling the original 2001 album with additional tracks results in a near perfect introduction to the world of Tujiko Noriko. The cover has her battling the forces of mediocrity and commerce, comic book style. This cut'n paste method fits perfectly with her music: disparate textures held together by her voice.

Like organic, saccharine sweets with serrated, pixellated edges. Best demonstrated by the awesome 'Bebe'. Funnily enough the best description came from the genre my iTunes decided to place this in: Pop.

Venetian Snares: Cavalcade of Glee and Dadaist Happy Hardcore Pom Poms (Planet Mu) - CD
To most people with normal music tastes, they'd wrap this up and say "well, it's totally ridiculous music, it might as well have a ridiculous title." But for the rest of us who seem to get off on what Venetian Snares does....

It was always gonna be difficult to top his last album. 'Rossz Csillag' fused strings and amens and wrapped it up in an edible, narrative concept. Needless to say it was pretty hype and resulted in his most 'accessible' work yet. Well on his latest (and tenth!) album for Planet Mu, he goes back to basics.

Loaded with light-speed melodies and inwardly collapsing rhythms, it might not have the orchestral grandeur of 'Hajnal' nor the sheer brutality of 'Befriend a Child Killer'. But it's a thoroughly enjoyable audio buggering nonetheless.