VHF- 1st Impressions LP
I was going to wait until Monday came to post this one up, but news travels fast, and a few people are already asking for it. Up on the slab we have one of the rarest new wave records in existence, the elusive VHF LP. Not to be confused with the heavy metal band of the same name (though the logo looks conspicuously like Van Halen), this particular EP has more in common with Speak and Spell era Depeche Mode, Erasure, and soulful synthpop in that vein.
This LP was released in the UK in 1984 on Pennine Records. A power pop single by Any Trouble was the label’s only other release. Coincidentally, VHF has a bit of a power pop vibe going for it, instead employing a slew of synth leads and drum machines in that minimal style we all love to get the job done. A curious mix, which generally works.
This doesn’t complete the VHF saga though… There’s a 7” out there for the title track, which I believe features an exclusive b-side. Maybe we’ll hear that one some day, but in the interim, here’s the info for this ‘holy grail’ of rare wave records:
VHF- 1st Impressions LP
1. The Peril Of Passion
2. Let Me Fall
3. Smile On Demand
4. No Surprise
5. I Know You Wanna Say Goodbye
6. Don’t Call Me
7. First Impressions
8. Key To My Heart
9. Our Love Is Undecided
10. Mirage
11. Counting The Days
12. Replacement Heart
November 12, 2010 at 4:52 pm
;D
November 12, 2010 at 6:10 pm
thanx!
November 12, 2010 at 7:03 pm
Iam very surprised. Usually when I hear a record that is very rare, the music value of it sucks. Probably it is rare because no-one bought it, or everyone threw it away. But, I have to say this is a very good one. Thank-you
~TymexPyres
November 12, 2010 at 11:08 pm
Great record! thx for sharing! stuff like this make your blog stand out!
November 15, 2010 at 12:38 am
thank you!! 🙂
November 15, 2010 at 9:59 pm
Thanks for posting this. They sound like Techno-Pop Spandau Ballet. On the song "Repalcement Heart" they even nicked part of the vocal melody from Spandau's "Toys"
November 18, 2010 at 1:27 pm
i'd love a lyric sheet, my god!!
December 1, 2010 at 11:55 am
At first I thought I wouldn't like it. But now I must say there a some *very* good songs here, although I still do not like everything. Thank you!
January 22, 2011 at 4:46 pm
I have a vinyl copy of this! Got it in South Africa when I was a teenager. They were very popular for about a year then disappeared.
February 26, 2011 at 4:20 pm
Again surprised with this contribution.
Thanks thanks ….
Enjoy this great blog.
March 2, 2011 at 2:47 pm
I used to watch this band play all the time at Port O' Call in Durban, South Africa. Bernie, the guitarist returned to SA under the guise of a different band called Dutch Elm. Can anybody, please email me the band members names at pier.rondin@yahoo.com.
August 16, 2011 at 9:24 am
I grew up in Durbs in the early '80s and although I never got to see these guys perform, I listened to this album loads. Amazingly, unlike a lot of this genre from that era, this album really stands the test of time. Still sounds great and just as good as the electro out there at the moment, Assemblage 23, VNV Nation, Mesh, Tenek, etc.
April 9, 2012 at 11:09 am
It's great to hear so many positive comments about our album and it's also amazing that so many people have been able to listen to it after all this time. sadly the band split in the mid 80s and I've lost contact with my ex-bandmates.
I am still writing and performing and I will uploading some of my new songs in the very near future.
Once again, thanks for the feedback. Brian Renwick
August 2, 2016 at 4:18 am
Hi
ÃŽ.m looking for the lp for my private collection, perhaps Could you help me to find It ?
Best regards
April 9, 2012 at 3:19 pm
Great to hear from you Brian- yes this album is certainly a treasure and was very hard to track down! Still is, for that matter. Looking forward to hearing your new material and any stories about VHF if you're willing to share!
April 13, 2012 at 5:08 pm
[…] the American underground and went for a more European aesthetic. It also kind of reminds me of the VHF LP, for those who enjoyed that particularly rare gem. A little gloom, but catchy all the […]
September 13, 2012 at 2:28 pm
i used to work on the door at portsocall for a few years. most probably why i am half deaf now. the last i knew was they went back to the uk. i have been looking to get their music tracked for years and just found the link. best wishes brian.
October 31, 2012 at 2:58 pm
What a great pleasure it was to find this music. Thanks so much for uploading.
So many evenings we spent at the Durban beachfront in the early 1980s enjoying VHF. First at ‘Father’s’ before they moved to the more appropriate venue of Port of Call. Along with their own great music, I remember their brilliant cover of some Spandau Ballet, OMD, Split Enz and Ultravox tracks (Vienna!). One thing that struck me was how unpretentious these guys were when we chatted to them in between sets. I also remember Alan Prendergrast roaming around the dance floor handing on the mike to anyone wanting to join in. Great, great times those. And who was it who played the electric violin? Often introduced as Goulash (was it Colin?). I remember when VHF left Durban – there was no act close to them in SA at the time. Then a year or so later they came back again for a spell. Such fine times. What would it take to be back there again now….
November 8, 2012 at 5:41 pm
I met VHF in the guise of ‘Manteau’ at Monks Inn… and relived the Ports Era through the VHF album which I loved.. Loved everything about this band & Brian did do a cracking Tony Hadley impression… I still have a single too that VHF did….
February 20, 2013 at 7:41 pm
Great to find this site. Remember this from portocall, durban. Funtimes the 80s, thanks for the memories. OOOOOOH VIENNA!!!Had the !st Impressions album but got lost along the way with my Cold Fact Album
November 1, 2013 at 11:40 pm
[…] talk aside, this record, like VHF and Eleven Pond before it, deserves it’s mythic status, less so based on the quality of the […]
December 10, 2013 at 7:53 am
Thanks for posting. I’ve been looking for VHF for years.
June 6, 2014 at 7:09 pm
Pensé que nunca lo hiba encontrar gracias por subirlo
November 29, 2015 at 12:37 am
Can’t believe I found someone else who knows this band!
Played much air-guitar to the 45″ single, the b-side was even better.
Gone now tho! Just like those days!
thanks for the memories!
January 21, 2017 at 4:28 pm
a gem of a site
February 24, 2017 at 8:18 am
VHF and Port o Call changed my taste in music forever.
I still have memories of them doing Kraftworks Showroom Dummies with the painted faces and strobelights. WOW great to have the memories playing again
April 10, 2017 at 9:05 am
Always love a good post like yours. Thanks for this!