Review: Greathumour – Choose the Speculum (Cybergrunge, May 3)

Choose the Speculum follows the titular and structural theme of a previous release by Max Eastman’s solo project Greathumour that I also greatly enjoyed: Choose the Forceps, which he released on his own imprint Tribe Tapes. Both releases are comprised of a large quantity of very short tracks and are meant to be listened to on shuffle, which due to the segmented nature of the pieces results in an indeterminate collage of sounds upon every instance of playback. Unsurprisingly, Eastman’s palette on Speculum is once again one of punishing intensity and grating sensory overload; samples are mercilessly processed via speed change, frequency dissection, and God knows what else so they can be mashed into bite-sized bits of digital destruction, which seem to be even more abrasive and adhesive-dissolving this time around. Eastman also provides footholds of sorts in the form of longer tracks like “X,” which runs nearly 20 times the length of most of the others and acts as a recognizable landmark amidst the uncertainty that a shuffle-ready release introduces. Choose the Speculum is a must-listen for any fans of the most extreme computer glitch music.