Dick Skinner - "Cunt Blister" (Harsh Reality 2000, HRC004, originally released on Haltapes as a cassette 1996)
Dick Skinner - "Cunt Blister" (Harsh Reality 2000, HRC004, originally released on Haltapes as a cassette 1996)
From Aural Innovations #13 (October 2000)
The first thing I saw when I opened this disc is a note pointing out that this is not to be taken seriously. Phewww... I feel better. With song titles like "Jap Slut Bondage Fuck" and "Revenge Rape" I would have been pretty worried about these guys. But by way of explanation I'll simply quote from the Harsh Reality web catalog:
"Cunt Blister is a satirical examination of how sexism and violence permeate American culture. It's also a wry send-up of power electronics bands like Whitehouse and their progeny".
Works for me. So what's the music like? Dick Skinner is a duo of Big Ed Davis on voices and Ralph Silverman on electronics. The music is extremely harsh and difficult to absorb (tolerate?) in a single listen. I remember years ago a roommate having a cheap little amplifier and microphone and I used to enjoy cupping my hands around the mic and screaming insanely with the reverb turned up to 11. This is pretty much what Davis' voice sounds like though to his credit when he's actually speaking words you can make out what he's saying, even if what he's saying would make Aint Bee say 'My goodness!!'. Silverman's electronics are noisey, thundering, and rife with ear splitting squeals making it pretty damn dangerous to attempt listening to this with headphones. Believe me... I tried. And my eardrums narrowly escaped even at the lowest volumes. Beneath the high pitched howling sounds there are various drones and industrial electronics, but you've got to listen close to catch them.
Hmmm.... I'm not quite sure what to make of this. As social commentary Dick Skinner make their point quite bluntly. America is certainly rampant with sexism and violence yet we excel at dumbing down its effects by not being honest and upfront about genuine brutality. Unfortunately I haven't heard Whitehouse so I can't comment on the send-up of that band's brand of electronica. But if you want to either scare the shit out of someone, torture them, or just piss them off, then Cunt Blister is just the ticket. Not for the timid.
Reviewed by Jerry Kranitz