Altmusic Presents: Merzbow

One of the most extreme and uncompromising musicians of the 21st Century is coming to New Zealand this November - playing all major centres!!! Worshipped internationally for his brutal, speaker destroying sonic assault, underground Japanese industrial noise musician Merzbow (Masami Akita) is a true legend for both his relentless solo releases since 1980 (via Tzadik, Digital Hardcore, Extreme, Relapse and his own ZSF Product) and his crucial collaborations with heavy-hitters Boris, Genesis P-Orridge (Psychic TV), Eye (Boredoms) and more! DON'T MISS OUT on this pivotal tour by the definitive dark master of Japanese noise – presented by Altmusic. Bring earplugs, this show will be LOUD!

Delving deep into otherworldly extremes of industrial, metal machine noise and beyond, Merzbow's blistering output runs the gauntlet of his definitive brand of Japanese noise - from charred & blackened subterranean lows to interstellar cosmic highs. Punishing, remorseless frequencies pour forth in a relentless onslaught of pure sound, decomposing electronic textures devolve into tsunamis of brutal guitar wreckage. Impossible to pin down due to his uncomprehendingly vast ouvre, simultaneously contemplative & aggressive, Merzbow's sound is way beyond music, it simply IS.

“Think of those artists who overpowered the grind of their eras: Bach, Wagner, Miles Davis, The Beatles - all of these people were consistently displaced of their time by the striking originality of their work... there is a case for including Masami Akita (Merzbow) in such a group.” - Pitchfork

“Everyone should own at least one Merzbow record.” - Tiny Mix Tapes

“Though the work is largely atonal and non-harmonic, it is bursting with timbre and texture and vibrancy” - The New Yorker

Merzbow's Auckland performance will be supported by Christchurch noise alchemists Memory Burn, explorers of ambient metal catacombs Chronic Fatigue Syndrome and special guest DJ K5K.

Special thanks to Asia New Zealand Foundation for their support of this tour.

Auckland - Saturday 16 November at Kings Arms with Chronic Fatigue Sindrome, Memory Burn and DJ K5K, $22 presales / $25 door

Presale tickets available via Undertheradar

Altmusic is a programme administered by the Audio Foundation www.audiofoundation.org.nz/altmusic