I generally don't look at other reviews before writing my own (unintentional plagiarism still sucks), but Naqoy's arresting use of electronics, distortion and noise is so stunning that I wanted to make sure I wasn't experiencing the critical equivalent of a premature ejaculation. One of the other reviews referenced Godflesh, My Bloody Valentine and Big Black. Check. So I'm definitely not premature.

Naqoy Art Brut EP (Forbidden Place Records)

The ease with which this Budapest duo slides between krautrock, noise and brain-splatting abuse is breathtaking. The range of sounds and ideas here is far broader than most industrial artists dare to attempt. And I call this industrial only because the band itself seems to use that description. I would put this somewhere in the electronic spectrum, though the hazy scrim that permeates (that would be where the MBV comparison comes in) takes this into a more analog-sounding territory.

I do think this is fully digital, but the noise is often grimy as hell and sounds like the squalls I could make on an old amp after driving a screwdriver through the tweeter (that high-end grind is so sweet). The songs have an abstract feel, but they're constructed on stable, if unusual, platforms. Perfectly crafted to suck in curious ears.

This is not "normal". It's not "mainstream". Hell, a lot of people who fancy themselves fans of eclectic music will run away screaming. Naqoy induces a lot of pain, but the beauty beneath is totally worth being brutalized. At least, I'm sick enough to think so. Gorgeously throttling.

Jon Worley