Japan has long been one of the world capitals of hellacious noise, and
Kazuyuki Kishino (aka
K.K. Null, frontman for
Zeni Geva) has long been one of its most distinguished practitioners. Although he made his name as a skronk-metal guitarist,
Oxygen Flash is made up primarily (or maybe even completely; there's no way to know for certain) of electronically generated sounds. The album's nine tracks are unnamed, and it wouldn't really make sense to call them "songs" -- each is characterized by semi-structured, mostly arrhythmic, and barely even pitched sonic sculptures, and most are impossible to describe except by explaining the mental images they conjure up. At various times on this album you'll hear the following: the revving of spaceship engines; a slow-motion argument between two tired but angry cyborgs, complete with sporadic laser-gun fire; bare feet running down a deserted hallway; a high-speed Morse code discussion in a beehive; muted thunder with tiny glitches scattered around like points of grey light; bass cabinet feedback; rain falling on a bunch of rusty xylophones. When deliberate pitch does occur the effect is startling; when a groove emerges from the squelchy murk (as it tries to do on the fourth track), it's downright shocking. This kind of music effectively defies critical analysis, but those who might like this probably already know they're going to purchase it.