It’s Monday and Mondays suck, so let’s grind it out with Sources of Human Satisfaction, a collaboration from Transient and Bastard Noise.
You know, it’s been awhile since we heard from Portland, OR’s Transient. Not that this column has been going on since their 2013 debut, but the band has been quiet for the last three years. Though they began sometime in 2008, they’ve only put out a handful of records; mostly splits (w/The Communion, Elitist, Hummingbird of Death, etc.). However, their brutality in the grind genre has always been top notch. Now pair that with some noise from poweviolence/grind/noise legend Eric Wood (a.k.a.: Bastard Noise) and you can bet your ass this release is gonna have some teeth.
If you’ve heard Bastard Noise collaborations before, you know what to expect. While Transient settle right back into their tough-as-nails grind, Bastard Noise weaves its way into the songs in bursts, sometimes hovering afterwards, sometimes cutting in and leaving. “Mother’s Day” opens with a bit of noise before Transient kick in. What you’ll notice about Transient this time around is that they get a lot more mileage out of their tracks. Their debut was sixteen in twenty-minutes, this time around they blast through eleven in twenty. Christ, they’re gonna be a progressive band soon.
I kid, but, well, I don’t, if you get my drift and excessive comma usage. Transient have become a lot more structured this time around. Oh, they blast like the dickens; it’s glorious. But their songs are more distinctive this time around, but they’ve taken more of a likeness to heavier sounds and some slower sections to break things up. So, the merciless grinding/punk beating that was Transient has seen a shift, but it isn’t for the worse. If anything, they’re only getting stronger.
It’s often during the slower sections that Bastard Noise really punch through, accentuating the mood and making the music seem a lot more dangerous. Tracks like “My Voice” and “Night Ass” have ghostly, wailing noise hoovering over more powerviolence-ish/grinding sections that feel haunted. And really, that’s how you could describe a lot of this album: haunted. In fact, as “Night Ass” transitions into trading “Cave Mouth” some noise follows it in like an apparition attached to its victim. But Transient often clear the room, not ever letting the mood linger too long, especially during faster sections. This is still a grind record after all.
Anyone that likes their grind noisy will be into Sources of Human Satisfaction. Listening to Bastard Noise weave into Transient’s grind is mesmerizing at times and jolting at others. Transient, as I’ve already expressed but can’t express enough, bring their A-game to this one. It’s easy to want to replay this one over and over once it’s run its course. So get grinding on this one and get ready for some brutality, blasts and noise.
Transient Facebook
Bastard Noise Website
I'm here.
