A very curious cd, the title suggests that this is the work of electronic musician Ostertag working as a DJ, a popular sideline for electronic musicians these days. The cover shows an apparent government award signed by John Ashcroft offering Ostertag the honor of "DJ of the Month" with the comment "Great Job!" and thanking and recognizing him for his conformity, marketability, attitude, price, diligence and "other"; only his "content" is blotted out from the honors bestowed. Of course in the ironic world of Bob Ostertag nothing could be further from the truth.
This is the second volume in Ostertag's solo series, the first being Like a Melody, No Bitterness. That album displayed the culmination of Ostertag's 10 years of work with the Ensoniq sampler, using the deconstructed sounds of Fred Frith and John Zorn. On DJ Ostertag is working with his own "software-based instrument", and the result sounds less sampled and more brutal. In the liner notes Ostertag cautions the listener that "this music is quite out of step with most electronic music made today." He further explains that the disc is a sort of meditation, requiring a concentration and focus which "may not come easily," and that "if you do not have 40:48 to focus on listening, we suggest you skip it altogether."
Given that daunting preamble one can only approach the cd with a bit of consternation, which becomes increasingly well-founded upon listening. What Ostertag suggests as meditation is more akin to a stoning. The listener is assailed by sounds from all angles that rapidly collide and slam the ears. The sources encompass a vast cross-section of electronic experimentation, but at Road Runner speed. Music is fragmented, sped and slowed, compressed and expanded and mangled in all possible descriptions. Percussive sounds merge with squeaky, slippery sounds, belch, growl and bubble away, and are quickly replaced with something new and indescribable. Nothing sits still, nothing is repeated, there are no drones or endless figures. In other words, it's classic Ostertag.
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