Burned Mind

Ann Arbor, MI’s Wolf Eyes are at the forefront of a quickly expanding American noise scene. The trio of Nate Young, Aaron Dilloway and John Olson are the epitome of the self-sufficient musical entity. Olson and Dilloway have their own labels (American Tapes and Hanson Records respectively) that have been releasing cassettes, CDRs, 7"s, LPs and just about every other format, often in painfully limited editions, of Wolf Eyes material since Young first used the moniker in 1997. Their existence as a trio dates to 2000. And they’ve since released albums on Bulb (Dread, 2001) and Troubleman Unlimited (Dead Hills, 2002). The music that Wolf Eyes creates is truly terrifying; the soundtrack to street fight that erupts into outright incineration. Sonic touchstones include Throbbing Gristle, early Cabaret Voltaire, Black Flag, Whitehouse, Pre-Asheton Destroy All Monsters, Negative Approach, Swans and early Sonic Youth. The advocacy of the latter has led to many opening slots and a spot on the entire 2004 Lollapalooza tour.

This Michigan-based noise trio has risen to notoriety over the past few years not just as Sonic Youth's attention-getting opening act of choice, but on the strength of their wildly divisive, abrasive, and in fact, downright excruciating full-lengths. Burned Mind, the group's Sub Pop debut, is among the most visceral, caustic records you're likely to hear all year. What we're saying is, the underground has a new Merzbow.

Wolf Eyes remains one of the most prominent groups in the noise scene of the 2000s with Burned Mind, their first full-length for Sub Pop.