Execution Ground

1994 studio album by Painkiller

Execution Ground

Studio album by

Painkiller

Released| November 15, 1994
Recorded| June 1994 at Greenpoint Studio, Brooklyn, New York; November 1994
Genre|

* Avant-garde jazz
* avant-garde metal
* dub
* dark ambient

Length| 83:56
Label| Toy's Factory, Subharmonic
Producer| John Zorn
Painkiller chronology
| Rituals: Live in Japan
(1993)  | Execution Ground
(1994)  | Talisman: Live in Nagoya
(2002)

|
|

John Zorn chronology
| Absinthe
(1993)  | Execution Ground
(1994)  | Masada: Alef
(1994)

|
|

Alternative cover
Professional ratingsReview scores

Source| Rating
AllMusic| [1]
Spin Alternative Record Guide| 5/10[2]

Execution Ground is a double CD by Painkiller, a band featuring John Zorn, Bill Laswell, and Mick Harris.[3][4]

## Reception

[edit]

The AllMusic review by Maurice Rickard awarded the album 4½ stars, stating: "The first disc of this inventive and unsettling two-disc set features three long improvisations that show off the band's dub influence. The second disc, subtitled "Ambient Dub," is a rethinking/remix of the third and first improvs on the first disc. Overall less thrashy than some Painkiller excursions, the improvisations here are striking for their greater sonic space without sacrificing any of the heaviness. At times, the band rests, making way for ominous breathing and distant sustained screams, which recur throughout. The transitions from silence to groove to noise and back are relentless and dramatic. Harris proves to be an astonishingly inventive drummer, consistently varying the foundation in surprising ways. Laswell's tone varies from the brightness of flanged round-wound strings scraping the frets to a clean, menacing low-frequency pulse, and sticks mostly to elemental, non-flashy lines that keep the mood deep and dark. Zorn's playing is excellent here, varying between extremely overblown piercing tones (perhaps the best way of being heard over such a rhythm section) and nearly conventional jazzy lines that confidently ride atop the din."[1]

The Quietus wrote that Painkiller "sought out the technics of the mixing desk to explore where they could really travel with their music. And the results are as exhilarating as they are daunting."[5]

## Track listing

[edit]

### Disc 1

[edit]

1. "Parish of Tama (Ossuary Dub)" - 16:05
2. "Morning of Balachaturdasi" - 14:45
3. "Pashupatinath" - 13:47

### Disc 2: Ambient

[edit]

1. "Pashupatinath (Ambient)" - 20:00
2. "Parish of Tama (Ambient)" - 19:19

### Japanese Bonus CD: Live in Osaka

[edit]

1. "Gandhamanda" - 13:00
2. "Vaidurya" - 9:00
3. "Satapitaka" 11:00
4. "Bodkyithangga" - 13:00
5. "Black Bile/Yellow Bile/Blue Bile/Crimson Bile/Ivory Bile" - 8:35

* Recorded in November 1994 by Oz Fritz

## Personnel

[edit]

* John Zorn – alto saxophone, vocals
* Bill Laswell – bass, samples
* Mick Harris – drums, samples, vocals
* Yamatsuka Eye – vocals (Tracks 4 and 5 on Live in Osaka)

## References

[edit]

1. ^ a b Rickard, M. Allmusic Review accessed June 6, 2011
2. ^ Spin Alternative Record Guide. Vintage Books. 1995. p. 450.
3. ^ "Painkiller". Trouser Press. Retrieved July 26, 2020.
4. ^ Buckley, Peter (July 26, 2003). The Rough Guide to Rock. Rough Guides. ISBN 9781843531050 - via Google Books.
5. ^ "The Quietus | Reviews | Painkiller". The Quietus.

* v
* t
* e

Painkiller

* John Zorn
* Bill Laswell
* Tatsuya Yoshida

* Mick Harris

Studio albums|

* Guts of a Virgin
* Buried Secrets
* Execution Ground

Live albums|

* Rituals: Live in Japan
* Talisman: Live in Nagoya
* 50th Birthday Celebration, Vol. 12
* The Prophecy: Live in Europe

Box sets|

* Painkiller: The Collected Works

Related articles|

* Naked City
* Godflesh
* Scorn

Authority control databases |

* MusicBrainz release group

|

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