Francisco Meirino

musique concrète | noise | sound art

FAILED PROMISES / ATTEMPTS AT APOLOGIES

Released in October 2026 by Purge Records 

as a cassette & digital files

Two raw and intense pieces that feel like they’re constantly about to fall apart. "Failed Promises / Attempts at Apologies" turns malfunction, noise, and space into something genuinely visceral.

focus on nothing

get up and fall again

give up

one knee on the ground

and there you are

damaged beyond all possible repair

Music: Francisco Meirino - electronics, field recordings

Artwork: Niccolò Nozza (IG: nomennescio______)

Mastering: Alessio Barbuzza (IG: halba. sound/blackhole.studio.2023)

Tapes: Tape Factory (IG: tape_factory_)

REVIEWS

By Harsh Critic

An album from Francisco Meirino today, a sound artist whose work explores gear failure, magnetic fields, electrostatic noise and all manner of sonic oddities, recontextualising and honing them into wonderfully rich compositions. Two tracks, roughly fifteen minutes each. Let's get stuck in.

Failed Promises is a full-frequency, textural exploration, with wide panning and a bewildering array of sounds. This isn't just a contact mic shoved through a DOD Death Metal and a Boss Metal Zone. It's rather chirpy and tweety, full of oscillations, from the subtle crunchy bed to the beautifully sculpted highs. Everything wavers and rolls, creating an almost tidal sensation.

Then, unexpectedly, vocal samples and intimate recordings of someone simply going about their business appear. Little moments twist into something resembling a fly buzzing past your ear. Elsewhere, eerie suggestions of lurking psychological horror creep in, but the threat never quite materialises, leaving a faint, lingering discomfort.

Attempts at Apologies opens up another curious world. Twisting sounds like a rusty cello bowed for one brief, sustained note. Squelchy signal frequencies mingle with mechanical spiderlings tapping away at a glass typewriter. There's tension here, an angry warning buzz that threatens to erupt.

Single-hit percussion loops emerge, joined by soft, wet plops, only to be interrupted by sharp, distorted blasts. Piano-string stabs, stones rolling across wood, glitchy cuts. All of it leaves you questioning not only the original sources (mine are entirely imaginary!) but the intentionality behind every sound and its placement. Eventually we're led out by soft crinkles and the powdery crunch of snow.

This is Sunday morning noise. Exactly what I want when my brain is mourning the impending loss of the weekend and the return to work, before I kickstart the day. I've a lot of time for releases like this: texturally and sonically rich, spacious, intricate and experimental. This one totally hit the spot. Lovely stuff.

Grab it on tape or download from Purge Records.

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