Merzbow is a Japanese noise project founded in Tokyo in 1979 by Masami Akita and Kiyoshi Mizutani, high-school friends who had already been playing improvised rock together — its name taken from Kurt Schwitters’ Merzbau to signal a junk-art, Dada-inflected sensibility. Mizutani performed on Merzbow’s earliest tape releases and live shows through the 1980s before leaving after the project’s 1989 European tour to pursue a solo career; Akita has continued Merzbow alone since, its studio output now exceeding 300 full-length releases and widely regarded as among the most important and prolific bodies of work in noise music.
Works in the Library
P16.D4's 1989 compilation across four sections of tape composition, concrète improvisation, and a direct Merzbow collaboration.
Merzbow ALBUM 1995
Merzbow's 1995 album of pure, unadulterated noise built from synthesizers and handmade instruments.
Merzbow ALBUM 1997
One of Merzbow's most accessible 1990s albums, built on EMS and Moog synthesizers, theremin, and processed voice.
INSTRUMENTS
Richard Pinhas, Merzbow ALBUM 2008
2008 live duo recording between Richard Pinhas and Merzbow, made in Tokyo in 2007.
Merzbow ALBUM 1995
Merzbow's 1995 album, its track titles drawn from the writings of Athanasius Kircher.
Merzbow ALBUM 1996
Merzbow's 1996 album, live noise concrète made entirely with a fuzz box and no overdubs.
Merzbow ALBUM 1990
Merzbow's 1990 album, condensed from roughly 21 hours of raw material recorded 1987-1990.
Richard Pinhas, Merzbow, Wolf Eyes ALBUM 2012
A spontaneous live collaboration between Richard Pinhas, Merzbow, and Wolf Eyes, recorded at FIMAV 2011.
