Ages ago, I uploaded Swedish minimal synth duo Twice a Man’s first 12”, one of the best releases of its time. Without repeating any information, click here for the original post, chock full of info and links to keep on Twice a Man’s current output.
Meanwhile, here’s the information for their debut full length, 1982’s Music For Girls, which though released on CD in 1994, remains curiously out of print to date.
Twice a Man- Music For Girls LP
1. Move
2. Breathe The Air
3. Boy
4. Battle
5. Russian Tractors
6. Decay
7. In My Mind
8. Dance
9. Gentlemen
10. Threat
Posted in Uncategorized on April 6, 2009 by Frankie Teardrop
Based in Montreal, Xavier Paradis has been a forerunner of the recent North American resurgence of minimal synth music since his days as Arnaud Lazlaud, active since the 1990s.Under new moniker Automelodi, Paradis has once more unveiled a succinct handful of ice cold, yet infectious tunes ripe for the masses.
The freshly released Fait ses Courses EP, available via Wierd Records, is heavily influenced by the original French coldwave movement.The EP shares a deliciously similar aesthetic once explored by the likes of Martin Dupont, Babel 17, and Trisomie 21, while injecting the moody atmosphere with fun and fancy-free dance grooves and minimal electronics that call some of the best Italo Disco to mind. Despite these touchstones, Fait ses Courses is remarkably transcendent, flirting with a sound that will both shed light on past triumphs and influence many to come.
Paradis’ vocals, primarily recorded in French, still convey emotion even at the lightest, spoken whisper. The result is a highly romantic, fresh, and imaginative offering that not only swells the heart, but stimulates the body. It’s damn near impossible to sit still while listening to Faitses Courses, as each of the EP’s main tracks are polished and primed for even the grittiest of dance floors. For those paying attention, there’s even a hidden track nestled between a few moments of ambient street noise, a classic instrumental interlude in its own right, and a welcome addition to an otherwise short, but sickly sweet collection.
On the wake of this tremendous release, Automelodi is gracing New York’s own underground minimal synth and coldwave scene, and aims to take the city by storm for two performances this week. The first takes place this Wednesday at Home Sweet Home, an East Village haven for Wierd Records’ own weekly minimal gathering. As previously mentioned, Wierd Records founder Pieter Schoolwerth continues to cultivate and educate in the ways of cold, analog electronics, and many of the bands on the Wierd roster have worked wonders for the necessary fostering and rebirth of the genre. Wednesday’s heavily anticipated recital begins at the stroke of midnight, but Automelodi will also be offering a repeat performance at The Annex this Saturday, joined by Xeno and Oaklander, one of the very best acts this city has to offer. Not convinced yet? Take a listen to “Schéma Corporal,” one of Automelodi’s most striking tracks:
There’s very little information to be found on this particular artist, one John Ruth from New York, whose lone 1981 release, I Am a Model sits comfortably with the likes of OMD and John Foxx-era Ultravox, with a little Talking Heads quirk thrown in for good measure. Without any further ado, here’s the information for this fantastic synth gem.
1. Goodbye
2. Stalk The Wild Animal
3. Kick Me In The Bed
4. Rhonda La Boo
5. I Am A Model
6. Summer Commuter
7. 50 Mile Radius
8. Ordinary Mood
9. Restaurant
10. Polyclimate Is Here
*download link removed. see comments for purchasing link*
Sorry for the delay, ladies and gents, but I’ve returned and look forward to resuming regular activity on this blog. To kick things off, I have two posts lined up for this afternoon. The first is Belgian minimal wave/synthpop band Pas De Deux, who formed in the early eighties. Taking their name from a popular French dance step, the band’s first appearance was a legendary performance at the Eurovision Song Contest, where the band debuted their mainstay “Rendez-Vous” to a misunderstanding crowd. Despite it’s lukewarm reception (the band placed third to last in the competition), “Rendez-Vous” became a rather prominent Belgian single in the summer of 1983.
The band released one mini-LP, and surrounded its release with a handful of singles. The Des Tailles LP, released in 1983, has been reissued a handful of times, each with slightly different tracklistings encompassing further b-sides and single tracks. However, here’s the information for the original Belgian pressing, released on Parsley Records.
Pas De Deux- Des Tailles Mini-LP
1. Rendez-Vous
2. Mani Meme
3. Lits Jumeaux
4. Take A Cigarette
5. Instant Karma (John Lennon cover)
6. Cold Turkey/Axe Ends (Medley)
*download link removed by request*
For your viewing pleasure, here’s the infamous Eurovision Song performance of “Rendez-Vous”, complete with alternate instrumentation. Oh, the internet!
Before we begin, I’m headed to London and Paris for the next week and change, so please excuse my absence in advance. I’m leaving you with a fantastic seminal synthpop record, released in 1990 and cherished to date. The band is Anything Box, a three-piece synthpop band based out of Caliornia, who are still active to date.
Anything Box began their recordings in 1989, based out of a small New Jersey town (fun fact- the band played some of their first gigs at Passaic’s Loop Lounge, a stage I played on just a few years ago). The band signed to Epic Records and relocated to Orange County, California, immediately beginning work on their first album (uploaded below). Since then, the band has released several EPs, singles, and records over the years, and the last dates to 2008. However, Peace, their stunning debut, remains one of their most popular, and boasts the single “Living In Oblivion,” their biggest chart success. The record’s success, as well as all subsequent releases, helped keep synthpop alive in the 1990s.
Without any further ado, here’s the info:
Anything Box- Peace LP
1. Living In Oblivion
2. When We Lie
3. Kiss Of Love
4. Jubilation
5. Soul On Fire
6. Our Dreams
7. Carmen
8. Lady In Waiting
9. I Felt The Pain
10. Hypocrites
11. Just One Day
12. All These Days Undone
It seems both youtube copies of the video have embedding disabled by request, but click here to give it a spin. Otherwise, catch you kids when I’m back on home soil, and perhaps I’ll have found some rare minimal records to rip and share whilst I’m abroad!
Edit: Since this stellar debut, each Anything Box record has been self-released on the band’s own label. Click below to visit their site and purchase more Anything Box records!
Fulfilling a quick Saturday morning request for Voice Farm’s The World We Live In LP, as the band was previously featured on the Oh Harry, You’re Such a Drag! compilation. As a quick aside, I’ve also posted a Radio Free Europe LP a ways back, for whomever asked.
Anyway, Voice Farm were primarily a two piece (but occasionally three or four piece) synthpunk band from San Francisco. Formed in 1981, the band earned a decent cult following over the years, eventually landing a spot opening up for Depeche Mode on their World Violation tour in 1990. They eventually split in 1995, but released four records before their demise. This first one, 1982’s The World We Live In, is significantly different than their last few, as the band persued a more pop-oriented sound in their latter-days, where as this debut is closer to the manic energy of synthpunk and the rampant electronic pulse of minimal synth. Curiously, the band would not release a follow up for another five years.
Here’s the info for their debut record.
Voice Farm- The World We Live In LP
1. A.M. City
2. Lost Adults
3. Beatnik
4. Davy’s Big Battle
5. Mama Made Me Do It
6. Sally Go Round The Roses
7. Double Garage
8. Follow Me Home
9. Voyeur
10. Cheeno
11. Over And Over
I have a few requests to tackle over the next few weeks (including some Malaria and some of the bands featured previously on the Oh Harry, You’re Such a Drag! compilation), but first, here’s a quick 4 song 7” EP for your persual from Australian minimal synth band Informatics, who existed for a brief period in the early 1980s.
The band would only release two singles throughout their brief career, both which though released three years apart, seem to contain the same tracks. However, a CD-R collecting previously recorded tracks as well as a slew unreleased material appeared in 2002. Without any further ado, here’s the information for the Informatics debut 7”, released in 1982:
Informatics- Dezinformatsiya 7”
1. What a World
2. Hungry Pets
3. Proximity Switch (Accidents in Paradise)
4. Satellite to Russia
DOWNLOAD LINK REMOVED: please purchase the official Informatics reissue via Dark Entries records!
In the Garden of Euterpe, the aforementioned 2002 compilation of Informatics tracks, is still available on CD-R through the band’s website, so if you dig these four tunes, be sure to upgrade to an official copy by clicking the link below!
This particular band hails from Boston and mixes coldwave guitars with minimal electronics, shifting gears into more of a synthpop/italo-inspired dance act over the years with plenty of big beats and catchy hooks. Primarily a two piece based around Kearney Kirby and Ann Prim (expanding to a four piece over time), November Group was once known as Wunderkind, but changed their name to reflect a group of German expressionist artists before their first release in 1982.
The band released two 12”s and two mini-LPs , and I’ve tracked them all down for your listening pleasure. Wikipedia seems to list an untitled cassette release with a handful of tracks, but I can’t seem to find any information about it one way or the other. Should this tape actually exist, and should any astute readers have it handy, feel free to send it our way. Check out the tape HERE.
Otherwise, here’s their entire vinyl output for yr perusal:
November Group- November Group Mini-LP (1982)
1. Shake It Off
2. Flatland
3. Pictures Of The Homeland
4. We Dance
5. The Popular Front
November Group- Persistent Memories 12” (1983)
1. Put Your Back To It
2. I Live Alone
3. Night Architecture
4. Heart Of A Champion
November Group- Work That Dream Mini-LP (1985)
1. Volker/Work That Dream
2. Put Your Back To It (Remix)
3. The Promise
4. Arrows Up To Heaven
5. Careful (A Life Is A Fragile Thing)
November Group- Work That Dream 12” (1985)
1. Volker
2. Work That Dream (Extended Mix)
3. Work That Dream (Instrumental)
This very rare disc was just lent to me by a generous fellow, so I’m inclined to upload it here for any curious parties. The disc in question is a collaborative effort between neofolk legends Death in June and the previously featured French one-man project Les Joyaux De Le Princesse.
This particular disc is a reissue of sorts, collecting some of the finer moments from the similarly titled cassette release from 1989, which featured several original Death in June numbers, remixed and processed by Les Joyaux De La Princesse. There are a few collaborative efforts on the 1995 reissue, aptly named, and the CD deletes the interviews with Death in June’s Douglas P.
As with most Les Joyaux…recordings, all editions of this particular record are extremely limited and worth quite a pretty penny, so keep yr eyes peeled for one! Otherwise, where’s the details:
Death in June/Les Joyaux De La Princesse- Östenbräun CD
1. Les Cavaliers Du Crépuscule
2. Heilige…
3. The Congress
4. SD XXI
5. Östenbräun (Collaboration I)
6. Nichts
7. Blood By Despair (Collaboration II)
8. Östenmarsch
9. A Röse For SD (After She’s Dead)
10. Blood By Despair (Reprise)
11. Triumph Of The Will
Today’s band is classic but tragically obscure minimal wave/synth pop act Hard Corps, who formed in 1983. The three original members, Hugh Ashton, Robert Doran and Clive Pierce had played together previously, but upon the addition of vocalist Regine Fetet, the band had found their calling.
The band released several singles throughout the 1980s, working with the likes of Daniel Miller and Martin Rushent. The band nabbed a supporting slot on both the Cure’s Head on the Door tour and one leg of Depeche Mode’s expansive Music for the Masses tour, and released a compilation of their material in 1990, shortly before splitting. This compilation was released on both vinyl and cd, each featuring slightly different tracklists, though encompassing most of their discography, assorted remixes and rare b-sides aside. The LP compilation boasts 8 tracks, while the CD contains 11. I’ve uploaded the CD version for your perusal, and here’s the proper info:
Hard Corps- Metal & Flesh CD
1. Des Hommes
2. Respirer
3. For Pleasure
4. Porte Bonheur
5. Dirty
6. Tu Te Trompes
7. The Bell
8. Porte Bonheur (Remix)
9. Desolation Land
10. Je Suis Passee
11. Metal & Flesh
*download link removed by request—> reissue now available on ITUNES!*
For yr viewing pleasure, here’s a video of the band performing “Dirty” in Brixton, 1986:
Here’s a site dedicated to the band, complete with BBC/Saturday Night Live info and respective show reviews. Some interesting tidbits!
Systems of Romance was created in mid-2007 to serve as a dumping grounds for all great things coldwave, minimal synth, post-punk, synthpunk, industrial, synthpop, and various other combinations of these styles. Feel free to make requests, noodle around, and discuss all you like...
Otherwise, this blog is dedicated to showcasing material that has long since been out of print. If you are aware of any of these items being readily available from the artist or label, or take issue with these tracks being uploaded, please let me know so I can amend the post or remove the links.
