UMUR "The Complicated Futility Of Ignorance" is the 3rd full-length studio album by UK, Nottingham based metal act Fudge Tunnel. The album was released through Earache Records in September 1994. It´s the successor to "Creep Diets" from 1993.

Stylistically the material on "The Complicated Futility Of Ignorance" are more of the same if you are familiar with the heavy groove laden metal of the two predecessors. The basis of the music are still heavy distorted groove riffs and rhythms, and sparse shouted vocals. The music has an almost hypnotic repetitive nature to it. It´s structurally simple music, and all tracks more or less focus on the heavy grooves and simple yet effective riffs. There really hasn´t been much development of sound and style since "Hate Songs in E Minor" was released in 1991, and although there is nothing wrong with the quality of the material or the musical performances, it was probably for the best that Fudge Tunnel disbanded after releasing "The Complicated Futility Of Ignorance". It does seem like the creative well had run dry and that they were more or less stuck playing the same thing over and over again.

"The Complicated Futility Of Ignorance" features a powerful, raw, and detailed sound production. It´s a step up from the sound production on "Creep Diets (1993)". So in many ways the album is a high quality release. Had Fudge Tunnel expanded on and experimented a bit more with their core sound, this could have been a very interesting release. Instead it´s a very solid effort featuring some powerful and effective grooves and riffs, which are instantly enjoyable, but it´s also a bit one-dimensional (and doesn´t sound vastly different from the two predecessors) and featuring 12 tracks and a total playing time of 62:37 it´s also a bit too long, when the material isn´t more varied than it is. A 3.5 star (70%) rating is deserved.

UMUR "Creep Diets" is the 2nd full-length studio album by UK, Nottingham based metal act Fudge Tunnel. The album was released through Earache Records in April 1993. Fudge Tunnel was formed in 1988 and released the "Sex Mammoth" EP in 1989 and "The Sweet Sound of Excess" EP in 1990. The band´s debut full-length studio album "Hate Songs in E Minor" followed in 1991. The trio lineup who recorded the debut album is intact on "Creep Diets".

Stylistically the material on "Creep Diets" also reek consistency as the the tracks more or less are a natural continuation of the material on "Hate Songs in E Minor (1991)". Sludgy riffs, hypnotic heavy grooves, industrial influences, and touches of alternative/noise rock. The vocals are raw and shouted (often effect laden and relatively low in the mix), but oddly sedated/monotone for that vocal style. It´s the heavy grooves and riffs which are in focus at all times though and Fudge Tunnel shine in that department. The tracks are often a bit simple and repetitive in nature, and there isn´t that much variation between them (although a few tracks stand out as a bit different), but if you manage to lock on to the irresistable almost hypnotic heavy grooves, variation matters less.

"Creep Diets" features a raw organic sound production, which brings out the best of the trio format. Personally I would have prefered the vocals a bit more up front in the mix, but that´s just a personal preference, and it´s definitely a conscious production choice to place them relatively low in the mix. Upon conclusion "Creep Diets" is a quality sophomore album by Fudge Tunnel. It´s not quite as surprising or fresh sounding as "Hate Songs in E Minor (1991)" was when that album was released, and it´s overall a slightly less interesting album than its direct predecessor, but a 3.5 star (70%) rating is still deserved.

UMUR "Hate Songs in E Minor" is the debut full-length studio album by UK, Nottingham based metal act Fudge Tunnel. The album was released through Earache Records in August 1991. Fudge Tunnel was formed in 1988 and released the "Sex Mammoth" EP in 1989 and "The Sweet Sound of Excess" EP in 1990.

The material on "Hate Songs in E Minor" is a combination of sludgy riffs, heavy grooves, industrial influences, and nods toward alternative/noise rock. I´m thinking it sounds a bit like a marriage between Helmet and Tool (but not in any way a clone of either). The tracks are often repetitive in nature with riffs and rhythms being repeated quite a lot of times during a track, but it has an intended hypnotic groove effect. The vocals are raw shouted type vocals (often effect laden and relatively low in the mix), but oddly sedated/monotone for that type of vocals.

"Hate Songs in E Minor" features 9 original tracks and two covers of ""Sunshine of Your Love"" by Cream and ""Cat Scratch Fever"" by Ted Nugent. The original tracks are fairly consistent in sound and style, while the two covers of course provide the album with some variation. Fudge Tunnel manage to put their own spin on the covers, and they sound like a natural part of the album. It´s hard to pick highlights to mention, because all the original tracks are pretty similar in quality, but I´d probably mention the opening track "Hate Song" as one of the standout tracks.

I was a bit surprised to learn that "Hate Songs in E Minor" was produced by Colin Richardson (and Fudge Tunnel), but it´s nice to hear him tackle a production like this, and with great success I might add, because the sound production on the album is one of the great assets of the release. Detailed, powerful, and relatively unique sounding. The guitar tone is especially noteworthy, but the distorted bass and the sharp drum sound also deserve a mention.

"Hate Songs in E Minor" proved to be a great success for Fudge Tunnel, who were the talk of the town for a short while in the early 90s, before more or less fading into obscurity again. While a bit more variation between tracks and a bit less repetition of the same compositional ideas during tracks could have made the listening experience a bit more intriguing, Fudge Tunnel had an honest and defined sound, which spoke to quite a few music listeners of their generation. The despair, aggression, noise/industrial elements, and strong focus on groove combined made them unique on the scene at that point in time. A 3.5 - 4 star (75%) rating is deserved.

Vim Fuego Fudge Tunnel were one of those rare bands who managed to disconnect themselves from all the bullshit associated with the music business. Forget the posturing and posing, the trendy genre labels, and the commercialism. Fudge Tunnel focused on nothing but the music. The rhythm section looked like a pair of trainspotters, while Alex Newport could easily have been mistaken for a floppy-haired Manchester shoegazer, or an early grunge fan. Nondescript and unremarkable standing in a crowd, get them behind their instruments and the result is anything but unremarkable.

`Creep Diets' is stripped back, bare bones rock, but not the sort of rock you'd ever hear anywhere near a radio station. Fudge Tunnel produced more of a stoner version of hardcore. Imagine Fudge Tunnel are the little brothers of Neurosis or Today Is The Day or Unsane and you won't be far off the mark. The riffs are a wall of noise, almost but not quite droning, and the effect is quite stunning at high volume. Feedback and sloppy guitar noises prevail more than sparse solos, which are nothing more than slightly twisted riffs.

On first listen, it's easy to think something has gone wrong with the production on the album, because the vocals are indistinct and buried deep in the mix. It was done deliberately, so the voice is nothing more than another instrument. The lyrics mean very little anyway.

The rhythm section of Dave Ryley and Adrian Parkin seem to get bored with straight 4/4 rhythms, and mess with timings, add fills, and generally wander around somewhere near the beat, if not exactly on it. It's nothing fancy, but it's effective.

The band mangle Black Sabbath's "Changes" until unrecogniseable, and it comes out the same shade of minimalist grey as the rest of the album. There are no real highlights here to point out here. Neither are there any low points. The entire album is a Ritalin-induced emotional flatline.