Archive for October, 2012

East Wall- Demo K7

Posted in 1980s, 1984, darkwave, demo, East Wall, italian, italo, italo disco, Kirlian Camera, minimal, minimal synth on October 22, 2012 by Frankie Teardrop

I’ve had this demo kicking around on my hard drive for a long time, but have yet to see it shared.  For those unfamilair, East Wall were an offshoot project of Kirlian Camera’s original keyboard player Fabrizio Chiari, who recorded the band’s debut 12” (for my money, “News” is still the band’s best track followed closely by the soaring “Blue Room”).  Teaming up with vocalist Wilma Notari, East Wall produced one LP and the excellent Eyes of Glass 12” (produced and aided by KC mainstay Angelo Bergamini), both which can be found here.  There’s also a CD from 1993 out there, but I have no idea how that stacks up against their previous material.

I know very little about this demo tape, except that it was released in 1984, a year before their debut 12”.  Most of the track titles are unknown, but the first track is clearly an early version of “Blue,” which was re-recorded for their 1991 LP Silence.  The rest of the tracks sound hauntingly familiar (perhaps they were reworked entirely for Silence), but outside of some vague similarity, they seem to be exclusive to this tape.   There’s some obvious cassette murkiness here, but it’s to be expected and the tape is still worth hearing for die hard fans of this excellent Italian duo as well as the primitive minimal synth of Tranquil Eyes & A Blaze Colour.

No artwork for the tape, sorry!

East Wall- Demo K7
1. Track 01 (Blue)
2. Track 02
3. Track 03
4. Track 04
5. Track 05

*download it here*

The Laughing Apple- The Ha Ha Hee Hee! E.P.

Posted in 1980s, 1981, alan mcgee, creation records, new wave, post-punk, primal scream, synth on October 16, 2012 by Frankie Teardrop

Excellent minimal post-punk 7” from 1981, as donated by the great bx-59cppw.  Most notably, The Laughing Apples were the springboard for Creation Records’ Alan McGee.  After a handful of private releases, McGee and bandmate Andrew Innes would form both Biff Bang Pow! and Revolving Paint Dream, two early Creation staples.  The label would grow to prominence with bands such as Slowdive, Adorable, and My Bloody Valentine.  Innes is also a member of Primal Scream, one of the label’s most lucrative bands.

This 7” should appeal to fans of They Must Be Russians, Marquis De Sade, and Product of Reason, not to mention McGee’s garage rock fascination.  Be sure to listen carefully, or it’ll be over before you know it!

The Laughing Apple- The Ha Ha Hee Hee! E.P.
1. Sometimes I Wish
2. Chips For Tea
3. Upstairs Downstairs
4. I’m Okay

*download it here*

Ellysgarden- Demo K7

Posted in 1990s, 1995, coldwave, ellysgarden, france, french, post-punk on October 9, 2012 by Frankie Teardrop

Here’s another generous donation, this time from Jonathan. Here we have a demo tape from Ellysgarden, recorded in 19881995*.  If you haven’t heard their full length record, 1994’s Echoes, you can grab that here.

For those unfamiliar, the band shares members with Rosa Luxemburg, a band that appears on several classic French compilations.  The band employs a more jangle/dreampop sound than most of their contemporaries, recalling bands like Kitchens of Distinction, House of Love, and Catherine Wheel.   However, this tape leans more towards their post-punk roots and is an absolute must for fans of fans of Sad Lovers and Giants, Lowlife, and Comsat Angels circa My Mind’s Eye (an underrated latter-day classic).

The tape features eight unheard songs that were never recorded again.  No artwork for this one! Including a promo photo instead.

*EDIT: Thanks to Philippe Faraut for filling in the missing gaps!  I can now report that this cassette was meant to be Ellysgarden’s SECOND album, recorded in 1995 and not 1988 as originally posted.   The original master tapes for the pressing were lost in the mail, so all that remains of the album is this demo tape…

Ellysgarden- Demo K7
1. Pretty Accidents
2. Twice
3. Bleed or Shine
4. Reach Out
5. Heroes/High
6. Wrecked Skies
7. Ghardaia
8. Your Shammed Tears

*download it here*

Masoch- Demo K7

Posted in 1980s, coldwave, france, french, masoch on October 3, 2012 by Frankie Teardrop

I promised more rare French coldwave demo cassettes, so here’s another fantastic donation from Stéphane B. of Coldwave.fr. If you haven’t visited his site before, be sure to check in for some rare tracks never before heard, as well as a country-by-country sampling of some of the world’s best obscure guitar tracks!

This cassette was released before their 1984 12”, which you can find over at the always excellent Phoenix Hairpins (check the comments section for more info about this mysterious band).  There’s a bit of overlap between the 12” and this cassette, though the versions on the demo were eventually re-recorded, appearing here in primitive form.

Masoch- Demo K7
1. Petit Valet
2. Strip-Tease
3. Semaine
4. Quand Musclée
5. Des Poils Sur Moi
6. Your Way

*download it here*