Among the most notable—and prolific—projects in extreme music for the past four decades, Merzbow‘s output in recent years has been highlighted by collaborations with Lawrence English, Bastard Noise, Prurient and Boris. Recorded during a double show residency at London’s Cafe OTO in 2016, the latest Merzbow release—a remastered, expanded version of the more limited 1.10.16 release on OTOroku in 2017—is as much a documentation of Masami Akita’s musical progression and dynamism in the 21st century as it is a solid live recording that highlights the capabilities of Akita the performer, instead of Akita the collaborator. As an example of the … Continue reading Review: Merzbow – Cafe OTO