In the few years I’ve been writing for VW, I’ve mentioned Radboud Mens twice. Once because was as a contributor to a sampler CD and once with a release on a DAT tape from the label Now DAT’s What I Call Music. Which was also run by Frans de Waard, by the way. But feel free to browse the archives, which have improved significantly since we transitioned to the current service.
So, a new release by Radboud Mens. Way, way, way back, I think I have seen Hyware perform live somewhere in a basement in Amsterdam with a vintage oscillator and distortions. It was loud as f_*_ and from that moment on I knew I had to remember that name. But through the years, there haven’t been many Hyware releases. Between 2008 and this year, there was exactly one – relax, that’s just as Hyware. As Radboud Mens, he released a lot. But one Hyware release is not a lot if you hear what he has to bring musically.
The names of the tracks are weird, and I can’t see any correlation between tracks to get to the origin or meaning. The musical styles are as diverse. There is a track called “TR605” recorded with Nathalie Kuik in which they are banging on an oil drum, and they’re playing with the resonances of the setup. There are a few harsh noise explorations, for example, “Hyperdition” and “404_No_Technoise_found”. “Hypercieve” is closer to power electronics with a touch of death ambient, and “Snaarwiel” and “47_CEM01” are more sound experiments. So the release is all over the place, and for its 90 minutes, that is a lot to take in. The closing “53_604” with its 20 minutes of noise, including loads of feedback and high-pitched noises, isn’t making digestion any easier, by the way.
With somewhere between 40 and 45 years of experience, Radboud created this album. For a listener new to the genres of noise and experimental music, this is about the same as trying to read the complete works of Shakespeare when you’re in primary school. Sure, you can hear (read), but do you understand? So, my verdict is that this is a fantastic release, but it has moments that are so intense you shouldn’t try to digest the full 90 minutes all at once. Amazing.
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