Overview

overdrive hell 8: Hizumi Tengoku Muchi to no Sogu is the eighth in a series of hardcore and experimental electronic EPs featuring Ayako Saso and Shinji Hosoe. While not for everyone, it does feature some interesting music for those fans of this style of electronic music. All of the themes on this album seem to feature track titles that feature elements of stupidity. How does this album compare to the previous entries in the ongoing series?

Body

The album opens up with “Lesson.31 Encounters with stupid,” and is definitely more reminiscent of some of the earlier EPs in the series. There is plenty of vocal sampling utilized in this tune that goes well with the intense hardcore beat and tempo that most of the track incorporates. There are some “mellower” sections that help serve as a contrast to the constant barrage of beats and the occasional ethnic samples give a nice textural element to the music as well.

Upon hearing “Lesson.32 Unidentified Flying Fool,” the first thought that immediately came to mind was “Junk Plant” from Nanosweep 2. Unlike “Lesson.31,” this tune gives no real reprieve from the constant barrage of hardcore beats. Some of the vocal samples utilized work well with the beats, particularly the sections that sound like hyper scat, while some of the screaming samples don’t particularly work for me. This one is not for the faint of heart, but fans of this style will appreciate it.

“Lesson.33 Dumb infection” opens up with some groovy guitar lines before moving into hardcore electronic territory. Compared to the first two tracks, I love how this one switches from more intense beats to sections that focus on heavier, deeper beats, helping add a nice level of contrast without straining the listener too much.

Lastly, “Lesson.34 Unko Funde Owata” is another successful tune in my opinion. I love how the intro focuses on an initial melody in addition to the hardcore beats and that the tune has a very sinister undertone that plays behind the beats and crazy vocal samples, which at times, seem to be arguing a “water vs. soda” event. There are lots of places where melodic snippets appear, which makes this track a much more interesting tune to listen to and the incorporation of some dubstep influenced bass modulation are a surprise for this series, but I think they work quite well with the material.

Summary

This album is definitely not for the faint of heart. Fans of hardcore and experimental music may enjoy this album, particularly if they have been following the series. However, for those interested in this, it may be best to try to listen to some of Ayako Saso and Shinji Hosoe's more hardcore music to get a feeling for the nature of this album. Compared to some of the previous entries, I’d say this one is a little less accessible than Overdrive Hell 7, but it manages to be more cohesive and enjoyable in terms of hardcore tunes compared to earlier entries in the series.