Noise Aholic – Narcissistvärld CS (Elitbolaget)

Those who know me well know that crust punk sound is a must at Thoughts Words Action headquarters. That’s the main reason why I was eager to hear a new album by Noise Acholic, a solo crust punk project of Owe Inborr (Ondfødt, Dispyt, Wolfthrone Studios). Still, this project includes various guests from the extreme underground music scene, such as Mathias ‘Vreth’ Lillmåns (Finntroll , Dispyt, …and Oceans, …), KjellHell (Bob Malmström), Jacob Björnfot (Kvaen), Dario Kåll, Otto Kaalikoski (Bob Malmström, S.A.A.B.), Matias Löfman (Bob Malmström, Varoshan, S.A.A.B.), Marco Lindholm (Marco Luponero and The Loud Ones), La55e Dog (Dogshit Boys, Trashcan Dance), The Dogshit Boys and Bob Malmström. Elitbolaget plans to unleash a brand new full-length album on cassette and a digital compilation of early works that includes about fifty tracks. It may sound like an insane task to do in the first place, but if you’re into crust punk, then you know projects like these always turn out well.

Narcissistvärld is a debut album by Noise Aholic that contains ten blistering crust punk tunes, enhanced by various elements borrowed from other extreme underground music genres. Of course, there’s plenty of noise involved, but this recording sounds much cleaner than plenty of other contemporary crust punk recordings I heard in recent years. You may stumble upon lots of d-beat, hardcore, and various incarnations of metal music. These combinations always work to the advantage of the crust punk base, so Narcissistvärld sounds superb from scratch to finish. The impressive list of guest musicians delivers versatility and diversity to the sound of Noise Aholic, but the primary direction remains the same throughout the entire release. Each composition carries loads of powerful guitar shreds, energetic riffs, and fast-paced beats, and the best part of this material is that it doesn’t get boring after countless listenings.

The sound quality goes beyond crust punk standards. I have to admit I am impressed with how each instrument is hearable during the entire material. It is impossible to find any mistake while listening to these songs. Every instrument is equally present in the mix, even besides a generous amount of noise delivered through heavy dosages of distortion or continuous splashing over the cymbals. Sound engineers usually have the difficult task of restraining noise coming from cymbals, mainly because they usually overwhelm the remainder of the instruments in the mix. However, that’s not the case on this particular recording. Everything sounds top-notch, and you’ll hear every orchestration delivered on Narcissistvärld without any difficulties. This album is also flawlessly arranged, and you will immediately notice that Owe Inborr paid a lot of attention while writing, composing, recording, and producing this material.

Therefore, if modern crust punk is your jam, give Narcissistvärld a chance. I am positively sure you’ll love it. The album is currently up for pre-orders at the Elitbolaget Bandcamp page, so head over and grab this gem.