Playhouse Crematorium
Rusted Whirligig Room
Chatterbox Cell
Claustrophobia Pandemonium
Tin Toy Carcass Elevator
Rag Doll Reanimator Corridor
Decomposing Toy Shop
Dead Teddybear Dormitory
Insane Puppet Asylum
Untitled

Whenever a release by a new artist falls into my lap for review there’s a certain amount of trepidation to be had on my part. Thoughts of trying to be fair and level headed, matched by the refusal to be put off slagging someone’s precious hard work is a constant battle fought within myself. Good write-up / bad write-up. Only when I start typing do I find the answer. And as I’m typing now… here it is in all its unbiased glory:
Of all the recordings I’ve ever heard nothing prepared me for this release by Jakob Nybo and the first release on the Vital Record label… which Jakob also runs. For sure I’m known for my eclectic taste, that’s why I occasionally quote 60’s + 70’s recordings in my reviews, and I veer towards the more darker / avant-garde / experimental genres with relative ease but even I was taken aback by "Toy Factory". Here is a recording that is fresh, original, accessible to the point of being tear inducing, and downright weird and freakish all in one go. Yet the premise is so simple. Over the 10 tracks the artist has taken toy samples and a variety of natural sounds / other sound sources and cut and pasted them to make a nightmarish sonic vision of a toy factory gone to hell. It sounds stupid and chaotic, which I suppose it is, but the treads are pulled together to make music that mixes ambience with the experimental genres seamlessly. Think of "Toy Factory" as the product of the lesser excesses of the more infamous Japanese cut and paste nut jobs, or even Sudden bloody Infant to give an example, given a passive less intrusive makeover and you’ll be half way there. Ambitious without alienating this release has it all. These soundscapes / sound sculptures are both exceedingly funny & scary at the same time. The way that Jakob transforms the sounds in ever bewildering intelligent patterns is, without a hint of irony, bloody stupendous and awe inspiring. I doubt you’ll hear a more intriguing and fabulous recording that dares to go into places never thought of before. You’ll look at that cute bit of plastic sitting on the edge of the bed in a different light after hearing "Toy Factory" let me tell you.
Which means of course that, although limited to 500 copies, none of you will probably seek this out. Fear of the more experimental aspects of music will drive most of you away. Well don’t. Have faith in the words written here. Take a look at the first letter of each paragraph and you’ll see what I really thought of it. Recommendation enough.

ANM