(Bad Alchemy) Mit der mit 'Abandoned Information Kiosk', 'I Have a Prepared Statement' und 'The Exact Opposite of Surveillance' bestückten CD Benign Neglect (pe164) mache ich Bekanntschaft mit S*GLASS, Seymour 'Bananfish' Glass, der das kreiert hat mit Loops, Objects, Casset­tes, Fails Videos, Electric Organ, Location Recordings, Sound Processing, Bass Guitar, Voice und dem Knowhow mit dem weirden Bren't Lewiis Ensemble und als Glands of Ex­ternal Secretion mit Barbara Manning. Als ein Cinema pour l'oreille, das dramatisch und mit wüstem Geschrei suggeriert, was die Kameras nur streifen, weil sie auf Godzilla fokusiert sind. Jedenfalls hat diese 'Ubu-friendly sound collage' aus Shouts, krachigen Kürzeln, Gebrodel, ominöser Action und ominösem Leerlauf einen polyglotten, hauptsäch­lich japanischen Anklang. Die zweiten 20 Min. bringen orgelige, bohrende und dumpfe Sounds und auch wieder vokale, nun opernhafte Einwürfe einer Männerstimme, einer zittrigen Frauenstimme, beides eingedreht in Loops. Dazu elegisch geigende, vogelig schrillende, kratzige, grunzige Laute und schweifendes Glissando in stereophonem Hin und Her. Diesem obskuren Ambiente folgt im dritten Drittel perkussives Scheppern, Schaben und Rotieren und wieder schreiende, impulsive, pulsende, bebende Injektionen. Eine springende Kugel, sanfte, verzerrte, abgerissene Vokalisation, dissonant sirrende Schlaufen, beschleunigter Bandsalat, dialogisches Pingpong, teils rückwärts, schrillende Gänse, eiserne Reibung. Offenbar gibt es immer noch genug LAFMS-Spirit, um in Kalifor­nien in Swimming Pools zu pinkeln. Mit einem Motto wie „Make Yourself Useless“ (2024) und wie er reagiert auf 'The Rise of the American Asshole' (auf „Cesspool of the Angels“, 2023), das spricht Bände. - Rigo Dittmann

(Felthat Reviews) The amount of tools and strategies used here might feel like a vertigo but only in the beginning when you adapt and react by tuning into this wholesome, radiant and well-rounded narrative that might feel like plunderphonics going astray. Released by Bryan Day's Public Eyesore as a DL and a CD is a straight shoot of 60 minute soundtrack to urban neurotica. A collage of sounds, voices, done over the electronic landscape left me with an interesting set of feelings that are rather difficult to convey. A psychogeographical, musical trip through a vast urban biodome of things unobvious, and magical where all the elements and nuances play equally important role. The drama in this narrative is born in pain and a visceral analysis of all the completed samples, echoes, electronic and acoustic, field recorded elements processed and put together in a way that it feels extraordinarily cinematic. An excellent album which could easily be a document, a tape music, you name it... - Hubert Heathertoes

(Vital Weekly) Although there’s no other information given than the list of instruments and sounds used (“loops, objects, cassettes, fails videos, electric organ, location recordings, sound processing, bass guitar, voice”), we can assume it’s Seymour Glass, one of the excellent Bananafish magazine, founder of Stomach Ache Records and a musicians in his own right with such groups as Bren’t Lewiis Ensemble, Glands Of External Secretion, S.F. Seals, and Steeple Snakes. I looked on Discogs and was surprised to see the list of solo releases under the Seymour Glass name (a pseudonym, actually, from various short fiction stories by J.D. Salinger). I’ve only heard a limited number of these releases, and not many from his ‘band’ projects, but listening to this new CD, I believe I can see a common thread: the love of working with sound, whether it’s any sound, or any sound-making device or instrument. Multitrack recording, analogue or (more likely) digital, brings out the organisation, resulting in compositions. He does this in the best tradition of musique concrète, but not in the most traditional sense of the word. Here, Glass offers three lengthy pieces, each lasting 20 minutes, and in each of these, he explores a plethora of sounds, conjuring a multitude of images. One can probably label this as surrealist music, in which sounds are used to paint fever dreams, nightmares and other non-sequiturs. Anything to unsettle the listener, and yet also quite relaxing, an altered state of mind. I admit I was tempted to use some old Bananafish reviews and rewrite/collage them as a new review, as they were as weird as some of the music reviewed, or so I understood back in the day. These three pieces are best enjoyed as one long symphony of sound, without beginning or end, and not to be analysed in too much detail, but, like an altered state of mind, just be perceived and enjoyed. - Frans De Waard

(Babysue)Last but certainly not least is the new CD entitled Benign Neglect from S*Glass. This fellow is a founding member of Bren't Lewiis Ensemble and Glands of External Secretion and the main man behind the publication Bananafish which was published between the 1980s and 2004. The press release probably sums up this release best with this sentence: "S. Glass presents a trio of tottering audio travelogues and vestigial recollections: impressionistic alingual exchanges splattered with organic tribological noise, ebbing bursts of avian chatter and unsettling ficto-mechanical percolations." Hats off to whoever wrote that one. - Don Seven

(Disaster Amnesiac) Just in case you're wondering, Disaster Amnesiac can confirm that it's still daunting to review sounds produced by S*Glass. It's no exaggeration when stated that the dude's an OG on the Noise scene, having shared mental spaces with high flyers such as C. Spencer Yeh, Wolf Eyes, Monotract etc. Also harrowing when considered is his being main man of Bananafish magazine, the no nonsense taste maker of many things Free Jazz and Noise and so forth. So yeah that if can feel kind of weighted when attempts are made to describe his releases. Still, Public Eyesore sent a copy of Benign Neglect my way, and that is a rare privilege so let's unpack shall we. First track Abandoned Information Kiosk sends out a lot of what sound to be distressed human voices. These field recordings conjure urban street scenes such as on recounted on the back of the cover of Neglect. They have reminded Disaster Amnesiac of the non-verbal enunciated pronouncements of many an autistic person that I've worked with since 2014 or so. The track is not entirely incomprehensible as all that, though. There are portions of it which provide significant tones for imaginary travels. Even those distresses can seem musical when framed by Glass's aesthetics. I Have A Prepared Statement comes next, and it starts out Harsh Noise before pivoted to Drone rather quickly. Isolated spiritual chants of varied traditions are highlighted, surrounded by whirring tones and fuzzed episodes. Just as is the case in its predecessor, it's eerie, murky, and un-centered like a Bardo. Then, suddenly, a deep Prog riff occurs. The last third of the it has felt Metal in horror movie soundtrack kind of way. For some reason Disaster Amnesiac has thought about the writings of Deleuze & Guattari as I've listened also; perhaps on account of its slow motion schizo movement? Benign Neglect concludes with The Exact Opposite Of Surveillance which is a completely agreeable notion to this citizen. It features the most consistently interesting samples, paired with repetitive sound motifs. It's uncannily oddball without necessarily trying to be so, and as such it's an effective mirroring of how the world just is now. Very much worth the wait. Is the murkiness of our society in its current state a bummer for S*Glass? A lot of Benign Neglect gives off that aura, and yet he must find joy in preparing this surreal soundtrack of pieces from this zeitgeist's sickened underbelly. - Mark Pino