Skin Crime – “Ghosts I Have Been” – [Hospital Productions]

whngr   7/24/2020   A Library, CD

Crunchy crackling, skittering swells, humming, pulsing, peels of feedback and drone with rumbles, shimmers, thumps, and carefully controlled chaos manipulated for meditative sojourns through inner space. It’s atmospheric, it’s noise, it’s brooding and pensive but it isn’t harsh, more S9K than #6 but basically sounds exactly like KFJC. A little spooky, a bit hypnotic, with some worry and some irritation but the scope of these relatively sparse sounds is varied and no sound stays around for very long, no vibration is left alone. Much like I often prefer to be. Nice and alone. A bonus half tear for the literary cover art which appears to be a modern rendering but seems to venerate antiquity. 

Skin Crime is Patrick O’Neil (and sometimes cohorts) who runs Self Abuse (New Hampshire), and sub-labels: Murder Series, Solipsism, and Terminal Ward. While represented in the library on a few collections including the RRRecords 500 compilation (Locked Groove #356), it is curious that we don’t have quite a few more recordings as they have released at least forty-two (42) to date.