Pitchfork

Foetus was conceived in 1978, when a guy called J.G. Thirlwell decided to combine his separate talents into one handy little package. The guy was a master of retro German commercial art and created some incredibly innovative and angry stuff with only basic equipment to work with.

In 1981, Thirlwell started experimenting with tape loops resulting in the first full-length album under the Foetus moniker. Deaf is his first record and at a volume of ten, it might make you go just that. The album, recorded as You've Got Foetus On Your Breath, was probably nothing like anyone in the world had ever heard before. Thirwell's creepy, spaztic vocals were recorded over weird, grinding, mechanical noises and goofy drum machines -- it, and following Foetus records, were essential records in the shaping and inventing of original industrial music. The result is a twisted and jerky nightmare you'll never wake up from.

Deaf includes the original recordings of "Today I Started Slogging Again" (a later version was released on the Wax Trax Foetus compilation, Sink) and the classic "New York or Bust." It's an interesting listen, though Thirlwell didn't fully develop his style and energy until 1984's Hole.