Altar Of Flies / Mirrors Are Black

Just spent a pleasant while listening to the latest split release from Swedish masters Altar Of Flies & Mirrors Are Black. The untitled LP on Tamed Records. Or "Split" as i have had to call it for filing purposes.
I have recently been discovering Altar Of Flies thanks to recommendations from ARKHE and BBBlood. What I have heard so far has been very varied...and I like that. The Altar Of Flies side comprises of two pieces opening with "Attention Please". The sound is "old school industrial". Progressive - not dated just reminiscent of the old sounds from the school of "industrial". (Past student from the Industrial Training College in Wakefield?). "Attention Please" has the feeling of abandonment, it is the soundtrack to encountering the Marie Celeste. SOLAS. Waving synth sounds with bass rumblings hit a "Gristle" chord and add a dimension of unease. Deep in the background there is metal and earth...superb opener that leads into "Fragments". "Fragments" is like a diary ~ a day in the life kind of piece. Field recordings, botanical gardens, a children's playground (as opposed to?), planes, bi-planes fly overhead..it is pleasant listening. Audio reportage that drifts into electronic chaos, crumbling synth and venomous voices and I think...bloody hell...how did it get here. Excellent.
As mentioned Altar Of Flies (here) have a very 70's electronic feel. Loads of reverb and (space) echo. So far and what I have heard Altar Of Files are reminding me of Column One.
Mirrors Are Black is the solo project of Amph member Peter Henning. I mentioned before that Peter is ex-Amph....I apologise, Amph are still going strong and releasing. I have sacked my researcher.
Mirrors Are Black provide three pieces that play as one. "Tesco Days" has a martial sound. Percussive. I think it is the sound of the gong that makes it martial. That is gong as in percussive instrument not 1970's psychedelic rock band....although....I don't know. "At Bethania" is the main opus of the side. A great astral drone work with kosmiche synth and voices hidden behind the wall of drone, the piece moves on with the slow introduction (through collapsed metal) of a high pitched frequency, a pulse, developing into HNW. (or what I believe to be). The side ends on the superbly titled "Girls Who Like Camel". A great guitar loop, the sound of an acoustic guitar being hit rather than strummed! The effect gives it a strange "Middle-Eastern" feel. Mirrors Are Black present one hell of a journey...a journey on an edge.

Classic album that stands out because of the use of real instrumentation. "I could be wrong, I could be right" but I don't think computers were used during the making of this LP.
Buy. Buy Now! www.tamedrecords.com