Astma / Meanza - Raw Volumes [Aut Records 035]

Coming in from the Aut Records label these days is the May 2k17-released album "Raw Volumes"  which is a Berlin-recorded collaborational effort of the free improv duo Astma, consisting of Alexei Borisov and Olga Nosova, and producer Michele Pedrazzi who's working here under his musical nom de guerre Bob Meanza. Together they're shaping an approx. 38 minutes long body of work of seven tracks, starting with "Tetragonal" which is a deeply scientific sonic effort incorporating  highly digital sounding elements reminiscent of Clicks'n'Cuts, (Neo)Cosmic-remembling swamp synths and a strangely seductive percussion groove accompanied by eardrum-wrecking high frequency Noize for experts before "Monoclinic" brings us quirky, yet playful Industrial Electronics, a highly catchy lo-fi bassline and loads of abstract, anti- to poly-rhythmic layering which comes down to a futuristic take on extraterrestrial FreeJazz. With "Rhombohedral" more Clicks'n'Cuts meet rhythmic chirping and tense, eerie scores from the outerworld until bass heavy chaos breaks loose and languishing vocal distortion adds up to the tunes atmosphere, "Hexagonal" starts out on a clumsy, yet funky percussion approach to fuse faded echoes of skeletal, instrumental PostPunk, a steady flow of mid-frequency Noize modulation and a overall feel of decay whilst "Orthorhombic" feels like a field recorded drum rehearsal of a postapocalyptic RoboJazz group for a reason. Finally there's "Cubic" a glitched out, IDM affair paired with elements of revolting, brutal HarshNoize, ecstatic African drumming and psychedelia induced electronics as well as the concluding cut entitled "Triclinic", probably the most haunting cut on this album with its Film Noir-like slow motion vibe and dense, dangerous DarkJazz atmosphere.  Intense!