Zeni Geva ‎- "Alive And Rising" [2010]

Artist: Zeni Geva

Title: Alive And Rising

Genre: Noise Rock

Country: Japan

Release date: 2010

Track List:

1. Alienation
2. Disorganization
3. Hate Trader
4. Interzona
5. 10,000 Light Years
6. Implosion
7. Blastsphere
8. Last Nanosecond
9. Dead Sun Rising
10. Desire For Agony
11. Slam King
12. Hazchem
13. Autopsy Love

Started in mid-1980s as a Japanese version of Godflesh, Zeni Geva have achieved a cult status among the fans of avant-garde music from Japan over the next 15 years or so. Although they haven't released any new material since 2001, there's a re-recording of their best earlier stuff released in 2010, which I present to you. (The solo discography of their core member KK Null is considerably larger, but that's beside the point). The band members describe their music as "progressive hardcore", but in fact it's a mix of everything, from doom metal to japanoise. One thing can be said for sure: any of their albums isn't an easy listen, but it's quite impressive.

In one of KK Null's interviews, he explains that "Zeni" is an old Japanese term for money, and "Geva" comes from German "Gewalt". So, "Money Violence". In responce to the interviewer saying that it sounds like an anti-capitalist statement, he answered: "No, it comes from a cartoon which I watched in my childhood. It's a very serious, dark cartoon". I wonder which cartoon he was talking about? I'd like to watch it too, even if I haven't watched any sort of anime in ages. There apparently is a dorama under that name, and it indeed looks like a dark and serious one, but I couldn't find anything named "Zeni Geva" in any of the anime databases...