The Atrocity Circus is a transatlantic collective featuring Dan Dolby (Mastiff, Catafalque, Sulphur Nurse), Thomas Ott (Gnarl, Catafalque, The Dead Yesterdays), and existent/nonexistent. Malpractice (Cursed Monk Records) is their debut full-length release, following an EP released in 2022.
The music here is uncomprimisingly noisy, harsh, and abrasive. Comprising elements of noise, power electronics, and death industrial, the pieces here are based around dissonant, cacophonous, and dense synth textures out of which anguished and distorted screams often rise. Slowly pulsating and immensely powerful electronic beats also feature on some tracks. The music is generally atonal, with the focus being on atmospheric noise rather than traditional harmony or melody. Occasionally, a sub bass drone provides a harmonic centre-point around which the noise swirls and churns. The sounds emanating from the tracks on Malpractice are otherworldly, mysterious, and terrifying. To immerse oneself in the soundscapes here feels akin to waking up in a dystopian future and then being forced to watch hideous acts of sadism be carried out.
The record works well as a full 35-minute journey, but there are nevertheless some notable highlights along the way. These include the beginning of “The Abattoir Artist” with its interplay between throbbing bass, bludgeoning percussion and warped screams; the mystifying ambience of the title track; the tortured and ever-building synth noise onslaught of “The Perpetual Ruination of Purity”; and the grating, wave-like beats of “Dreams of Self Immolation”.
Malpractice is in many ways a difficult listen, but that’s surely part of the point. Some will find the record too incomprehensibly dense to appreciate. However, those well-versed in the most earsplitting and discordant music will find a lot to latch on to in this frightening and unearthly record. Indeed, if the idea is to assault and disorient the listener with sheer sonic force, then Malpractice is undoubtedly a success.
Buy the album here:
https://theatrocitycircus.bandcamp.com/album/malpractice
7 / 10
DUNCAN EVANS
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