[Reviewed by Marcel P.]
Full disclosure: I am not an expert in the field of Power Electronics. But having a finger on the pulse of the entire scene doesn’t seem to be necessary when dealing with such a well-established project as Institution D.O.L. from Austria.
Originally founded in 1998 by Barbie B. as a solo project Institution D.O.L. released its first CD album in 1999. Before going on hiatus for a bit in the 2010s the project released 5 albums and a DVD.
Barbie B. returned with a vengeance in 2015 and the new incarnation of Institution D.O.L. is giving us the destruction of the world in a little under 40 minutes with “Our Love Can Destroy This Whole Fucking World” (CD/LP).
New versions of military hardware are often referred to as “Mark 2” (Mk2) and even if this terminology is rather common when naming new phases or line-ups of bands this time the military connotation is fully justified.
Institution D.O.L. Mk2 – now consisting of Barbie B. and Meta Dolor – unleashes an attack on the listener that goes beyond a wall of sound. These are highly aggressive weaponized soundwaves that culminate in the final (and title-) track “Our Love Can Destroy This Whole Fucking World” which brings some melody back to the devastated audience members after they were decimated by the couple’s distorted weapons of ear-destruction.
Noise or Power Electronics artists often refer to their music as “soundscape(s)”, a composite word of “sound” and “landscape” referring to the “acoustic environment” they create. According to the project’s statement Institution D.O.L. creates “deathscape(s)”. And that shoe really fits. The duo doesn’t leave an environment behind. Only death.
Yet it is still “music”, not just “noise”. There’s a method to the madness and there’s order in all of the chaos. It’s well thought out and even if you haven’t listened to Institution D.O.L. before you know and feel that this is the work of experts in the field.
The 7 tracks on the album were recorded and produced over a period of 3 years making this a well-planned, thought out and executed massacre of the ears and brains by a project that has been around for 21 years.
The tracks throw you against a wall, and then slowly build you up before they stab you or shoot you right between the eyes. Masters of the art of Power Electronics or audial assassins? You decide!
So who should check out this new CD or vinyl LP?
• Everybody familiar with the work of Institution D.O.L. either on CD or on stage (obviously).
• Furthermore all fans of Power Electronics, Noise Industrial and similar sounds.
It’s hard to name compatible acts because there are so many and everybody seems to have their own reasons for liking project over another.
But it’s safe to say that…
• if you own a Genocide Organ patch (or had your eye on one),
• if you listen to Haus Arafna to relax,
• if you associate the “good old times” with S.P.K. or Test Dept. or
• if you bought every Steinklang release in a time before the term “Percht” meant anything to you
…then this album is for you!
If you want to start with just one track instead of listening to the entire album from start to finish you may want to give “In Dust And Death” a try. All the others should just lean back and enjoy the ride through the deathscapes. It’s not for the faint of heart but you will grow through this album. As a fellow musician I can say it has already inspired me.
Institution D.O.L. – Our Love Can Destroy This Whole Fucking World
TORM Ent.
CD/LP 2019
Santa Sangre 