New releases last eight weeks: Industrial/Noise

Review: Throbbing Gristle co-founder and all round British experimental electronic institution, Cosey Fanni Tutti returns with 2t2, a new full-length set for release through her own Conspiracy International label. The new nine-tracker extends the tracked terrains of 2019's Tutti, blurring personal reflections on years of loss and upheaval into prosthetic electronic soundscapes. The record unfolds over two contrasting halves, one beat-driven, the other more introspective, yet it also keeps anchored to a certain ground point emphasising resilience and focus. Lead cut 'Stound' features overtone chanting, which Cosey describes as a way to channel inner strength: "allowing the sounds to permeate and soothe as well as create a sense of power."

Review: Painkiller, the legendary experimental trio of jazz saxophonist John Zorn, Napalm Death founder turned electronic maverick Mick 'Scorn' Harris and Material bassist Bill Laswell, return with another slab of nightmarish intensity, this time drawing inspiration from Arthur Machen's 1894 horror classic The Great God Pan. Known for their blistering fusion of free jazz, metal and avant-garde chaos, the group takes a more measuredithough no less menacingiapproach here, delivering two sprawling, doom-laden pieces that creep through the shadows with unrelenting dread. 'Ercildoune' builds slowly, its eerie atmospherics punctuated by Zorn's tortured sax wails and Laswell's cavernous basslines, while Harris keeps the tension tight with percussive restraint that feels more like a lurking presence than a rhythmic backbone. 'Secret Sins' takes the descent even deeper, a brooding, oppressive soundscape where distorted drones and spectral echoes coil into a suffocating fog of unease. Less outright feral than some of their past work but just as unsettling, this latest offering in Painkiller's ongoing trilogy proves they can summon horror in more ways than oneisometimes, the slowest burns leave the deepest scars.

Review: The then recently reformed Throbbing Gristle's 2005 New Year's Eve performance at Berlin's Volksbuhne pulses with the band's trademark intensity, presenting a vivid snapshot of their uncompromising live ethos, immortalising a key moment in their ongoing evolution, where they intertwine iconic tracks like 'Convincing People', 'Slug Bait', and 'Hamburger Lady' with newer materialigiving a taste of what was to come in their first album in 27 years. The show also marked their first encore in over two decades, a rare treat for fans. As one of the originators of industrial music, their influence looms large, with this performance underscoring their continued commitment to pushing boundaries, both musically and culturally. The shock value of Throbbing Gristle has worn off, but the questions they raised about the nature of art, performance and audience remain compelling, and the music remains as instantly visceral and comfrontational as ever. Their legacy is woven through the dark industrial fabric of countless acts that followed, but the message has always been clear: creativity without compromise is the truest form of rebellion.