Pulse Demon

Pulse Demon is a studio album by the Japanese noise musician Merzbow, released 28 May 1996.[3] The album was reissued on vinyl in May 2018 by Bludhoney Records,[4][5] and again in November 2019 by Relapse, with a bonus track.[6]

Pulse Demon
Studio album by
Merzbow
ReleasedMay 28, 1996 (1996-05-28)
RecordedOctober–November 1995
StudioZSF Produkt Studio, Tokyo, Japan
GenreNoise
Length73:20
LabelRelease
ProducerMasami Akita
Merzbow chronology
Music for Bondage Performance 2
(1996)		 Pulse Demon
(1996)		 Spiral Honey
(1996)
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[1]
Pitchfork8.7/10[2]

Background

The holographic, shiny silver artwork is a homage to the 1970s Prospective 21e Siècle imprint of Philips Records,[7] in particular the albums of Ivo Malec.[8] However, the art is most similar to the work of Bridget Riley, "Fall" and "Current" in particular.

Basically, this shiny silver is the color of Heavy Metal. I mean it the way William Burroughs said it. My basic idea is I think this idea has been approached in the past by Heldon and King Crimson.

— Masami Akita[7]

The title was inspired by the 1970s afro-rock band Demon Fuzz and Akita's use of a fuzz box as a pulse generator.[8] Some song titles were inspired by Jon Appleton's Appleton Syntonic Menagerie LP.[7]

Reception

Critical reaction to Pulse Demon was mixed. Pitchfork gave the album's 2003 re-release a score of 8.7/10, their highest rating out of their eight reviews of Merzbow albums. Calling it an "incomparable classic", the reviewer describes the album as "simply pure sound, viciously unadulterated static", going on to state that "music cannot get much more extreme than this. Maybe John Cage's 4′33″, and that's so far to the limit, it's probably cheating. This is the edge of music, of sound in general." Also praised was the album's packaging, being called "more valuable than some people's lives."[2] However, AllMusic's dismissive two-line review from Jason Ankeny simply said "Merzbow's second American release offers more of the deafening white noise that is his trademark, mastered for maximum loudness. Not for the faint of heart, but ideally suited for the hard of hearing."[9] Being given only 2.5/5 stars, Pulse Demon is one of the four lowest rated of AllMusic's 31 (solo) Merzbow reviews. The A.V. Club, in their review, described the album as "genuinely extreme, downright torturous sounds that are strangely compelling in their shredding intensity."[10]

Track listing

Original version

All music is composed by Masami Akita

CD track listing
No.TitleLength
1."Woodpecker No. 1"6:42
2."Woodpecker No. 2"3:37
3."Spiral Blast"4:30
4."My Station Rock"4:54
5."Ultra Marine Blues"11:29
6."Tokyo Times Ten"11:09
7."Worms Plastic Earthbound"24:53
8."Yellow Hyper Balls"6:03

Remastered version
Side one
No.TitleLength
1."Woodpecker No. 1"6:43
2."Woodpecker No. 2"3:37
3."Spiral Blast"4:30
4."My Station Rock"4:54
Side two
No.TitleLength
1."Ultra Marine Blues"11:29
2."Yellow Hyper Balls"6:03
Side three
No.TitleLength
1."Tokyo Times Ten"11:08
2."Extract 1" (bonus track)5:01
Side four
No.TitleLength
1."Worms Plastic Earthbound"24:52

Notes
  • All composed by live noise concrete. No over dub.
  • Mastered at SAE Mastering, Phoenix, AZ, January 1996.

Personnel
  • Masami Akita – metals, EMS, audio generator, shortwave, noise electronics, tape, voice
  • Colour Climax – visual
  • Bill Yurkiewicz & David Shirk – mastering

Release history
Release history and formats for Pulse Demon
Region Date Label Format Quantity Catalog Notes
United States 1996 Release CD 3,000 RR 6937-2 Holographic sleeve
1998 unknown Jewel case
May 11, 2018 Bludhoney 2×LP 500 BLUD-20 Colored vinyl
Cassette 100 n/a Only available with LP bundle
November 29, 2019 Relapse LP 1,950 RR6937 Includes bonus track
Italy March 2023 Old Europa Cafe CD n/a OECD 333 Remastered, includes bonus track

References
  1. Pulse Demon at AllMusic
  2. Linhardt, Alexander Lloyd (September 10, 2003). "Merzbow: Pulse Demon / Animal Magnetism Album Review". Pitchfork. Retrieved 12 May 2018.
  3. "Merzbow - Pulse Demon (CD, Album)". Discogs. Retrieved May 24, 2012.
  4. "Merzbow - Pulse Demon | メルツバウ". ele-king (in Japanese). May 8, 2018. Retrieved 12 May 2018.
  5. "Merzbow's legendary Pulse Demon finally gets a vinyl reissue… and sells out immediately". Japan Vibe. Retrieved 12 May 2018.
  6. "MERZBOW – Relapse Records To Reissue Remastered Edition Of Pulse Demon Album". Bravewords.com. Brave Words & Bloody Knuckles. 1 October 2019. Retrieved 24 October 2019.
  7. "Corridor Of Cells - Interview - Merzbow". Corridor of Cells. 1997. Archived from the original on November 30, 1999. Retrieved May 24, 2012.
  8. "MERZBOW - interview". Neural Therapy. Archived from the original on January 27, 1999. Retrieved April 22, 2013.
  9. Pulse Demon at AllMusic
  10. Thompson, Stephen (March 29, 2002). "Merzbow: Pulse Demon". The A.V. Club. Retrieved 12 May 2018.
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