Out of print
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With Burning Heart |
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Universal Peace |
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INSTITUTION D.O.L. 17 Shameless Years
The return of Institution D.O.L.! "17 Shameless Years" is the first new album by D.O.L. since 2007's "Instructions for modern Weakniks". The band present a new member, MK Vermin from Czech noise project Magadan, who not only provides powerful electronics, but also vocals. "17 Shameless Years" is a mix of brand new songs, specifically written for this CD, and radical reworkings of material from the back catalogue. If you have seen D.O.L's return to the stage at Tower Transmissions 4, you will know that the new direction is very harsh. Power electronics dominate the sound, and you will not always recognize the new versions of older tracks as the reworkings are very radical. After a long hiatus, finally a new album by Austria's one and only power electronics band.
Seit 1997 ist es in erster Linie Barbie Blutig (Kommando, Konstruktion & Kontrolle), die in einsamer Personalunion die Geschicke „Österreichs einziger Power Electronics Band“ leitet. Personell verstärkt durch MK Vermin vom tschechischen Noise-Projekt Magadan erscheint nun mit „17 Shameless Years“ rund 8 Jahren nach der letzten Veröffentlichung „Instructions für modern Wekniks“ ein Album mit neuen Stücken sowie Neubearbeitungen älterer Songs. Ein akustischer Rück- und Ausblick also. Wobei der Begriff Song natürlich nicht der infernalischen Physiognomie der Tracks gerecht wird. Vielmehr denkt man hier an kreischende Ventile einer Höllenmaschine, Schreie der Wut und Unzufriedenheit des drangsalierten Individuums, die hier ihre expressive Gestalt und Struktur erhalten. Gnadenlos ehrlich. (Westzeit, July 2015)
Rather than talk about the music track-by-track, I'll say this: it sounds damn good. Even in my Jeep, where I do much of my day-to-day listening over road noise, this release sounds really fucking good. You can tell that a lot of effort was put into making this a high quality release. The sounds, the vocals, the samples all take me back to the late 90's and early 2000's, when power electronics, harsh industrial, or whatever you want to call it (personally, I think obsessing about subgenre classification is weird and doesn't help anyone) was at its peak: creative, fresh, and powerful. It's loud, but not always loud...abrasive, but not always abrasive, which is great. Barbie B. has a good understanding of how to craft a track to give it impact, but also giving brief respites from the relentlessness. One of my favorites so far in 2015. (Unjust Intonation, August 2015)
It should not be considered as a simple summary in the history of this project, but rather a succession of acts, which together express more than one composition. Note the complete connection between each of intuitive displays in conciliation with the graphic design of the cover, through which there is a deep bond, conscious and turbulent. There is an intense self-evaluation, a critical and poignant look, a revival emerging from delirium and work until the next day, keeping an endless fire that eats the soul. (…) Constantly come to surface ideas, voices, cries, noises, and echoes and against all this diversity characters, we must position ourselves insufferable, expectant and euphoric to the inherent decline of our present. (Grupo de Faena, September 2015)
In der Vergangenheit haben mich ehrlich gesagt die einzelnen Veröffentlichungen des Projektes nie so richtig überzeugen können, aber was an geballter Kraft in Verbindung mit Atmosphäre jetzt mir jetzt ins Gesicht schlägt, finde ich schon überraschend. Gerade diese mehr Old School-Konstellation aus christlichen Sakral-Gesängen, obskuren Sprach-Samples, fiebrigen Ambient-Schleifen, die mit brutalen Noise-Wänden und fies-keifenden Vocals kombiniert werden, ergeben eine beunruhigende Mischung, die mich gerade im richtigen Moment zu treffen scheint. (...) Auf jeden Fall ist für mich „17 Shameless Years“ das bisher schlüssigste wie packenste Werk von INSTITUTION D.O.L. und man darf gespannt sein, ob das nächsten regulären Album die hiermit geweckten Erwartungen erfüllen kann. (Black Magazin, October 2015)
This is an album which will specifically attract fans of an archetype European power electronic to industrial and heavy electronics sound, whilst also displaying a few experimental quirks and sporadic appearances of neo-classical, dark ambient and martial percussive elements. Although in the most part the music is sonically loud, harsh and abrasive, there is also a ‘cleanness’ to the tonal palate and a meticulous layering of sound elements (as opposed to being crude and loose in delivery).(...) ’17 Shameless Years’ represents an enjoyable collection of industrial/ heavy electronics/ power electronics focused material. (Noise Receptor, December 2015)
An album that is intrictaely weaved conceptually which is quite a feat when considering that this release collects ideas spawned over the last 17 years. Institution DOL present a great place to begin for new listeners to dive deep into the portals they rip wide open and a cache of hidden treasures for long time fans. 10/10 (Traumatic Static Webzine, July 2016)
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