May 03, 2017 The Gag File is his follow-up to Modern Jester and is every bit as rewarding and unnerving as its predecessor, though at almost half the length.
- You may know Aaron Dilloway from his 2012 album Modern Jester. Or, you may know him as a founding member of the noise outfit (and current Instagram powerhouse) Wolf Eyes. But it’s most likely that you recognize him from your nightmares.
- Dilloway creates a surreal listening experience on this year’s unsettling The Gag File, released on Dais Records. Gag File isn’t too concerned with typical album customs. Rhythms exist, but they are plodding and erratic. Try to pin one down and it will squirm out from under your fist within seconds. What it is concerned with is being monstrous. On “Karaoke With Cal,” a looped and reverbed instrumental reminiscent of An Empty Bliss Beyond This World lurches forward as a voice is helplessly mangled by tape hiss. Where this song is creepy, the next track “Inhuman Form Reflected” is upsetting. Massive bursts of distortion stumble through a noisescape until the song ends with savage grunting and screaming. The screams are distorted into a searing haze, swelling around what sounds like a door being slammed repeatedly. Play this one for the kids.
- It isn’t until “No Eye Sockets (For Otto & Cindy)” that Gag File reaches peak-eerie. Despite being a field recording of friends chatting and laughing over distant music at a party, this song is not a respite. Nothing sounds quite right. Things that should be familiar and comforting sound hellish. Phrases that stick out here and there like, “no don’t do that,” and, “hey is there a phone around this place? I gotta use the phone,” sound more menacing than casual. This recording is abruptly ended by the jarring “Switch”. With a gnarly, thumping kick, “Switch” is one butt-ugly banger.
- My favorite aspect of The Gag File is how it stays away from being imposing. None of the songs seem like they are trying to prove anything in particular. The album jams candid vocal samples and noisy instrumentals into a big distorted mess, but it sounds frighteningly real, like an especially uncanny case of deja vu.
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