Trisomie 21 – Chapters IV [DE195]

Trisomie 21 is a post punk band formed in 1981 by Phillipe Lomprez (vocals, drums) and Hervé Lomprez (guitar, electronics), two brothers from Abscon, in the North of France. They began composing songs at the age of 16 while studying at school.  Their music consists of lush soundscapes that do not easily fit into any one category. Lyrics are sung in English because in the north of France the duo sought to contradict the trend at the time for everything to be sung in French. Since 1983 they’ve recorded 15 albums and appeared on numerous compilations and remain active to this day. For their fourth album the Lomprez brothers spent September and October of 1985 recording nine new compositions. In January 1986 ‘Chapter IV, Le Je-ne-sais quoi et le presque-rien’ was released by PIAS sub-label Scarface. The title came from a 1957 book by French philosopher and musicologist Vladimir Jankélévitch. The songs on the album, including the emblematic The Last Song’, were captivating, original and without concession. This record further opened the door to new opportunities, and the band’s music spread further internationally. Sadly some of the songs had phase related problems and caused partial cancelation playing back monophonically, so the band remixed and re-recorded the songs and reissued them on CD only in 1987.

listen

Trisomie 21 – Chapters IV [DE195]

Trisomie 21 – Wait & Dance LP [DE194]

Trisomie 21 is a post punk band formed in 1981 by Phillipe Lomprez (vocals, drums) and Hervé Lomprez (guitar, electronics), two brothers from Abscon, in the North of France. They began composing songs at the age of 16 while studying at school. Their music consists of lush soundscapes that do not easily fit into any one category. Lyrics are sung in English because in the north of France the duo sought to contradict the trend at the time for everything to be sung in French. Since 1983 they’ve recorded 15 albums and appeared on numerous compilations and remain active to this day.In Spring 1985 the group went back into the studio to record a new batch of songs. Trisomie 21’s notoriety had increased following two concerts in Belgium and the Brussels recording label Play It Again Sam decided to sign them. In September 1985 the 5-song mini-LP ‘Wait & Dance’ was released by PIAS sub-label Scarface. It contained the band’s first female guest vocals on two of the tracks. Sadly some of the songs had phase related problems and caused partial cancelation playing back monophonically, so the band remixed the songs and reissued them on CD only in 1987. We have added the 5 remixes as bonus tracks here presented for the first time ever on vinyl.

listen

Trisomie 21 – Wait & Dance LP [DE194]

Trisomie 21 – Passions Divisées [DE193]

Trisomie 21 is a post punk band formed in 1981 by Phillipe Lomprez (vocals, drums) and Hervé Lomprez (guitar, electronics), two brothers from Abscon, in the North of France. They began composing songs at the age of 16 while studying at school. Their music consists of lush soundscapes that do not easily fit into any one category. Lyrics are sung in English because in the north of France the duo sought to contradict the trend at the time for everything to be sung in French. Since 1983 they’ve recorded 15 albums and appeared on numerous compilations and remain active to this day. After the success of the debut mini-LP the band returned to the studio and spent October 1983 to March 1984 recording their sophomore album. ‘Passions divisées’ was released by Stechak Products in October 1984. Pascal Tison was replaced by Laurent Dagnicourt on bass guitar. Featuring eight cold wave compositions including the instrumental funeral waltz La fête triste’. Songs cross genres, moving from post-punk to synthetic electronics.

listen

Trisomie 21 – Passions Divisées [DE193]

Grotto – Wait… No Hurry [LIVST004]

First official reissue of Nigerian Boogie Disco Grail LP produced by Grotto for EMI Nigeria and originally released in 1978. Contains dance classic’Bad city Girl’. Liner notes by Nigerian Music expert Uchenna Ikkone, include previously unpublished photos and extensive interviews by Temitope Kogbe. It contains more examples of disco-era dancefloor heat, with the band utilizing Moog synthesizers alongside their usual instrumentation. While naturally rooted in Afro-funk, the set contains some of the earliest examples of Afro-boogie while also touching on jazz-funk, psychedelic funk and undulating Afrobeat/Afro-disco fusion.

vinyl / CD

Grotto – Wait… No Hurry [LIVST004]

Pauline Anna Strom – Trans-Millenia Music [RERVNG10]

Special re-issue in the form of a compilation of various tracks from Pauline Anna Strom’s albums: Trans-Millenia Consort (1982), Plot Zero (1983), Spectre (1984), Japanese Impressions (1988), Aquatic Realms (1988) and Mach 3.04 (1988). Essential ambient works by one of the pioneers from back in the days.

listen

Pauline Anna Strom – Trans-Millenia Music [RERVNG10]

Alessandro Cortini – Forse 1 [IMPREC373LP]

Alessandro Cortini (Nine Inch Nails/How To Destroy Angels) composed the Forse series using a Buchla Music Easel. Forse, meaning ”maybe” In Italian, is a series of 3 double LP releases Cortini recorded for Imprec to release in 2013. ”All pieces were written and performed live on a Buchla Music Easel, in the span of one month. I found that the limited array of modules that the instrument offers sparked my creativity. Most pieces consist of a repeating chord progression, where the real change happens at a spectral/dynamic level, as opposed to the harmonic/chordal one. I believe that the former are just as effective as the latter, in the sense that the sonic presentation (distortion , filtering, wave shaping, etc) are just as expressive as a chord change or chord type, and often reinforce said chord progressions. Of all the years with Nine Inch Nails the period spent writing and recording the instrumental record Ghosts I-IV is probably the one which changed my approach to music making the most. After that record I started getting more into instrumental composition, although I tried to approach it in a different way. While we had a vast array of tools and instruments at our disposal then, I decided to approach my pieces limiting myself to one instrument only, as I found myself being more decisive when faced with a limited creative environment.”

listen

Alessandro Cortini – Forse 1 [IMPREC373LP]

O Yuki Conjugate – Scene In Mirage [ERC053]

Emotional Rescue returns to the music of “dark ambient” pioneers O Yuki Conjugate (OYC) with the reissue of their debut album, ‘Scene in Mirage’. Released in 1984, it’s post-industrial; cold wave overtures mixed with an ambient oeuvre created a compelling album that has gained cult status. Quickly selling out in its original pressing, inexplicably their record label decided not to re-press, so an expanded cassette version called ‘Scene In Mirage/Soundtracks’ was re-released on the band’s own Final Image label with an accompanying video. Here, Emotional Rescue’s re-issue combines the best of both versions in a lovingly recreated sleeve taken from the original design templates. Based around original members Roger Horberry and Andrew Hulme, OYC is now returning in its fourth incarnation with live shows and hopefully, new music to come. Watch the horizon.

listen

O Yuki Conjugate – Scene In Mirage [ERC053]

Peppermint Lounge – Perfect High [DE183]

Dark Entries Editions reissue ”Perfect High” the 1983 debut 12” by Peppermint Lounge from Germany. The group consisted of Matthias Elvers (synthesizers, bass), Regina Petersen (vocals) and Jorg Burckhardt (drums, strings). They took their name from a popular 1960s discotheque in New York City. Treading the lines between Italo Disco, Electro, and New Wave, the trio crafted a unique sound difficult to classify. Melancholic arpeggiators, a throbbing baseline, stuttering samples, vocoder and the classic Roland TR-808 drum machine run throughout the track, which builds to a majestic crescendo. This reissue includes the original vocal version, backed with a shorter instrumental version.

listen

Peppermint Lounge – Perfect High [DE183]

Okay Temiz / Johnny Dyani- Witchdoctor’s Son [MM110]

Matsuli Music is releasing another forgotten gem of the South African jazz diaspora – the 1976 Istanbul session featuring Johnny Dyani and Okay Temiz fusing deep roots and new routes, integrating folklore and rhythm within an experimental, avant-garde vision of love and life. Available for the first time since Yonca Records originally released only 1000 copies in Turkey, this album has remained an elusive and sought after landmark in South African exile Johnny Dyani’s discography. The recording captures a complex, funky and musically together exploration of folk themes, jazz messages and popular directions. After many years together discovering both South African and Turkish sources, Temiz and Dyani were intimately versed in each other’s traditions. Side one features material arranged by Temiz, and the second has material arranged and composed by Dyani – including a stunning arrangement of Don Cherry’s Elhamdulilhah Marimba with Dyani on piano and voice.

Continue reading “Okay Temiz / Johnny Dyani- Witchdoctor’s Son [MM110]”

Okay Temiz / Johnny Dyani- Witchdoctor’s Son [MM110]

Lost Trax – The Saturnian System / The Sequel [DSR-X11]

The Delsin re-issue arm turns its attention to Lost Trax. This EP features four cuts taken from two different EPs, The Saturnian System and Lost Trax 2 from 2006 and 2010 respectively. Saturnian System opens the EP with some acid laced electro slickness. Fluttering snares and spacey synths carry it away into the cosmos, then The Sequel gets much busier. Scurrying lines dart about in manic but funky fashion, with serene pads off setting the high energy drums. Self Destruct Sequence then drops into an urgent, slippery electronic groove riddled with squelchy sounds and rubbery bass all perfectly orchestrated. Last of all, Birth is a nimble electronic house cut with plaintive synths and kinetic drums that wiggle and wriggling through the night sky. This is an EP stuffed with timeless sounds and is another essential reissue from Delsin.

listen

Lost Trax – The Saturnian System / The Sequel [DSR-X11]

Beta Evers – Eruption [SGX03]

The sub label of Sonic Groove, “Sonic Groove Experiments”, returns after a 4 year hiatus with a stellar re-release of the Electrowave classic “Eruption” by Beta Evers. Originally released as a Limited Edition 12” back in 2005 on Beta’s own Kommando 6 label. Now in 2017 the original pressing goes for quite a fortune on the record collecting market.

listen

Beta Evers – Eruption [SGX03]

Byron – Too Much [BST-X023]

Official remastered limited edition of this down-tempo disco heaven from one-hit wonders Byron. Originally released in 1985 on the Italian label Golden Sound, ‘Too Much’ is a must for any discerning Balearic record bag. A side contains the original vocal version and on the B side there is the original instrumental plus the warmest Remix version previously available only on the rarest Byron Album from 1985.

listen

Byron – Too Much [BST-X023]

Vitor Hublot – KESS 06 [KESS06]

Former masked techno crusader Adam Rivet started the Kess Kill imprint a couple of years ago, to showcase some lesser known talents from the ’80s scene in Europe. French producer Guy Clerbois began his musical career by transforming sounds: creating rhythms with scratched vinyl records and altering their playing speeds plus detuning his guitar. In the mid eighties, he began what would become the very concept of Vitor Hublot, making shifted reworks of existing ones. All compositions originally issued on the ‘185 Millions De Francophones Et Moi, Et Moi, Et Moi…’ LP via his own Psoria Discs in 1986.

listen

Vitor Hublot – KESS 06 [KESS06]

Ross 154 – Fragments [ART-EL1]

ROSS 154 - Fragments (remastered)

Originally released on Stefan Robbers’ Eevo-Lute label in 1993, Ross 154 aka Jochem Peteri – now best known for his productions as Newworldaquarium – released four tracks of deep, dark, mysterious hybrid techno interspersed with four delicate ambient interludes.

listen

Ross 154 – Fragments [ART-EL1]

Severed Heads – Come Visit The Big Bigot [DE180]

Dark Entries present the deluxe 2xLP reissue of ‘Come Visit The Big Bigot’ by Severed Heads, one of the longest surviving bands to emerge from the Australian post-punk independent music scene. They began in Sydney in 1979, incorporating elements of ‘industrial’ noise-generation, tape cutting & looping and electronic sound synthesis. As the project developed song-structures and vocals were employed in a more-or-less recognizable mutant electro pop style. After many line-up changes featuring Garry Bradbury and psychedelic guitarist Simon Knuckey, Severed Heads was the vehicle for composer Tom Ellard. ‘Come Visit The Big Bigot’ was Severed Heads’ first record to be released commercially simultaneously in Australia, North America and Europe in 1986. It was a prime period for this ‘industrial dance music’ and Bigot was a respected album that did well from the tour they did with Skinny Puppy that same year. Quite a few people still define the band by this period. ‘Come Visit The Big Bigot’ was made on a Fostex 16 track recorder in Tom’s bedroom, employing the newly acquired AKAI S612 sampler and Roland SH-101 to create most of the drum sounds. The album signaled a new direction, flirting with the dance floor and the pop song. Presenting the Heads at their most cohesive, while retaining their distinctive musical stamp. Tom’s vocals are harmonized, slowed down, sped up, run through fuzz boxes, backwards, drum machine rolls, sampled guitars, horn sections, and voices but with a subversive rather than malevolent intention. Tape loops are more subtle and define their own space and texture. Like the original Australian version of the album, we’ve included a bonus disc featuring three extended remixes by Sydney DJ Robert Racic (who produced the edited 7” version of “Petrol” we reissued in 2015), plus three B-sides from the ‘Twenty Deadly Diseases’12” and two additional tracks from the same recording sessions. All songs have been remastered by Tom Ellard, who worked very slowly and methodically with much better equipment over two years, letting each track have its own breath.

listen

Severed Heads – Come Visit The Big Bigot [DE180]

Pussycat – Le Chat [BST-X021]

PUSSYCAT - Le Chat

Limited edition remastered reissue of an obsure Italian Balearic Disco song produced and arranged by Victorio Pezzolla. The plus on this limited edition reissue is that the production is directly handled by the former producer to obtain a more accurate sound compared from the first release.

listen

Pussycat – Le Chat [BST-X021]