Been seeing a lot of love for this one on the net since I ripped this, so figured it was due time to post it properly. Here we have 2/3rds of the discography by US-based jangle/new wave/indie rock band Primitive Pleasure. We’re missing the first 7” from 1984 here, but plenty of great tracks to pore over in the meantime. “The Vision” remains a standout, appearing on both the LP and the 7” in identical form, minus the synth blurbs at the beginning of the LP version. These segues feature throughout the entire LP, cementing the album as a pure hybrid of both new wave and jangle pop that’s a perfect listen for springtime.
Guitarist Pascal Tiger also played in a folkier project called Courtney & Western while Axel Kröll would go on to write and engineer with other bands such as The Blow Monkeys. Brook Thaler, who played organ/synth on “The Primetimes,” also recorded with new wave project Social Register, who released one 7” in 1981.
If anyone can contribute a rip of Love is a Nasty Girl from 1984, please give a shout. Otherwise, enjoy!
Primitive Pleasure – The Vision 7” (1985)
1. The Vision
2. Become a Target
Primitive Pleasure – Jupiter Remote LP (1987)
1. Your Carousel
2. Unspoken Words
3. Life In Between
4. Souls Will Shine
5. The Vision
6. Drifter Blues
7. Jupiter Remote
8. The Primetimes
9. Forever…
10. More Than Stars
11. Painting By Miro
12. Requiem
It’s been a minute since we’ve had a post here – sorry about that, folks. Been a rough few months here. It’s ALSO been a minute since we’ve had a true dark synth/wave classic featured on these pages, so with that in mind, let’s highlight this lone 12” by Front and Fantasy, a Danish duo featuring a pair of Martins: Martin Krogh and the ever-prolific Martin Hall. This 12” is the only release by the duo, dropping in 1985, the same year Hall himself released his first non-cassette solo recording, the equally excellent Relief. Martin Krogh was in a handful of goth/post-punk bands, many of which only had a handful of tracks, and sadly, he passed away in 1987.
For those uninitiated, Hall and his many collaborators certainly had a knack for creating some of the most arrestingly powerful darkwave records, many of which could have been heard on a weekly basis at NYC’s Wierd party (and elsewhere across the globe, I’m sure). Tracks like SS-Say’s “Care,” Ballet Mécanique’s “Lied,” and Under For’s “Free-Force Structure” were staples in my own personal DJ sets, and it’s easy to decree the A-side from this 12” in as an instant classic in the same vein, from the moment the stabbing synth bass lines take hold. I can almost taste the fog now, as those warm synth pads kick in, while Hall’s deep croon cuts through the pulsing electronics.
The B-side is an interestingly deconstructed mix of the track- focusing primarily on the isolated vocals and empty spaces, with a distant beat and the otherwise minimal guitar line driving the second half of the piece. It’s a curious addition, worth a listen or two. Come for the icy dance floor smash, stay for the more experimental dub mix.
Enjoy! More posts to come soon!
Front and Fantasy- Treatment 12”
1. Treatment
2. Re-Treat
Here’s a one-off 12” by a dark electro/industrial project from the US, released in 1985. Not to be confused with the incredible minimal synth project Cargo Cultus, there’s virtually no information to be found about this project – members, city or state, or stories about the band or any live dates. The stark cover is met with a pitch black back cover with the most minimal of details, including the year and the record label. The only other documented release on the label is the first, more scarce 7” by Angel of the Odd, who were from California. If the label was a local affair, we can potentially deduce that Cargo Cult were also from California, but that still isn’t a sure bet. Any information about this project is welcome!
As for the sounds here, this 12” should definitely appeal to fans of mid-era Cabaret Voltaire, which might be already something you might already gather from the name of the band and the title track. Crackdown, shakedown, all the same, it’s an excellent sample-driven electronic track that you could expect to get the floor cooking on the earlier side of the evening. The second track is a little funkier, yet a bit more experimental, with a distorted three-note melody in tow, while the final track (my personal favorite here), has an extremely hypnotic electronic bass line pulsing throughout, with some scathing guitar thrown in for good measure. All in all, three excellent tracks worth their weight in gold. Enjoy!
Cargo Cult- Shakedown 12”
1. Shakedown
2. Last Cab In Berlin
3. Ji’had
Second post for today, ladies and gents. This one in particular may look unassuming from its white label, cover-less presentation, but contained within are two of the best DIY post-punk tracks I’ve heard in a second. This particular band hails from Alabama, and they appear to have only self-released this one single in 1985. Copies of this one can prove to be quite scarce, though maybe this post will help shed some light on this otherwise mysteriously obscure band who take their name from either a 19th century term for a painkilling breed of medicinal drugs or a term for something “inoffensive.” My guess is the reference refers to the former…
As for touchstones, you can expect some Three Imaginary Boys-esque post-punk (ie, a Buzzcocks sense of songwriting with darker overtones) though of course there might be a little bit of Bauhaus in the otherwise driving, monotone vocals. I’m reminded a bit of Here Today, a similarly influenced band who were from Baltimore. Either way, both tracks here have become favorites in recent months. Enjoy!
Happy New Year, y’all! A bit of a new post here, and a bit of an update to an old post at the same time. If you visit this previous post on the incredible Italian post-punk band Fru Aut, you’ll find information about their 1988 self-titled LP, a masterpiece of the Italian post-punk scene and a perfect listen for fans of dreamier post-punk, in the vein of things like Sad Lovers & Giants, Film Noir, Modern Eon, Xmal, Nico + Faction, etc. In the same post, there’s also an allusion to a previous 12”/cassette release from a long defunct (but wonderful) blog. So with that in mind, I thought I’d kick the year off lightly with an update of both of these releases.
If you aren’t already familiar with Fru Aut, the band was a five piece from northern Italy, more specifically Bassano del Grappa. They self-released this cassette in 1985, with a more limited 12” version appearing the same year. The LP appeared in 1988, also self-released. There was also a CD that came out in 1994, but sadly I haven’t heard it and I have an inkling it might veer more into rock territory, but if anyone could confirm or deny that, I’d gladly give it a listen! Lastly, there’s another cassette out there from the same era as these two releases I’m guessing, with very little info, no year or tracklisting to confirm if it’s exclusive material, or similar to what’s already released elsewhere… Any info on that one is even more welcome…
Even though I’ve updated the previous post, I’ll include both the LP and the cassette here to make things a little neater. With that in mind, here’s the info for both of these excellent releases:
Fru Aut- Fru Aut LP (1988)
1. Prova D’Orckestra
2. La TV Sensuale
3. Kabul
4. Bla Bla – Discorso Alla Finestra
5. Tesò
6. Indastria
7. Berber
8. Segnali
9. Freiherz
10. Superglu
To celebrate Mardi Gras- here’s another rare US entry from the post-punk pantheon, consisting of a two piece husband and wife duo from Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Living Links originally started as a side outlet for Hans and Margie Van Brackle, who were first active in a band called Times (not to be confused with the Venus in Furs side project of the same name). Margie came from a background of opera, religious, and musical theatre, which can be heard in her playful, almost child-like soprano vocals. The pair recorded with a drum machine, layering overdubs for their debut single in 1983.
After picking up steam, the duo began occasionally performing live with a drummer, headlining regional shows and performing at the World’s Fair in 1984, which was held in New Orleans. This gig was followed up by their lone full-length record, 1985’s Gathering the Forces, which explored several styles outside of traditional post-punk. The duo would soon fade away, though allegedly the Van Brackles still play music together…
Fans of Talking Heads, The Wake, and more playful, yet still well-executed post-punk and indie pop will find much to love across these releases. I’ve included a fresh rip of the debut single (Every Sad Night) and the LP, and while it isn’t my personal rip, I’ve attached the a-side of their second single “Manger” just to sweeten the pot. I’d include the b-side, but it’s identical to the album version, so it’s a bit redundant to have here twice. The duo also released a final 7” in 1990, which also contained two repeat tracks from the LP.
So with that in mind, here’s the (pretty much) full discography for this excellent band. Enjoy!
Living Links- Every Sad Night 7” (1983)
1. Every Sad Night
2. You and the Unknown
3. I Stop Short
Living Links- Manger 7” (1983)
1. Manger 2. I’m Not Streetwise
Living Links- Gathering the Forces LP (1985)
1. I Live In Here
2. Gathering The Forces
3. I’m Awake When I Should Be Sleeping
4. Remember The Battle
5. For The Paramecium
6. Do You Dream In Color
7. Two Girls
8. Like An Animal
9. I’m Not Streetwise
Picking back up where our last post left off, here’s an album that’s been near and dear to my heart for many moons, hailing from the same general area and scene as Drowning Pool, Abecedarians, etc. While there seems to be a lot of activity in the area, there doesn’t seem to be as much love out there for Fourwaycross, who began in 1984 in Los Angeles. Though the main core of the band was Tom Dolan, Biff Sanders, Steve Gerdes and Courtney Davies, the band has shifted lineups and styles seamlessly over the years, most notably drafting Brad Laner and Beth Thompson, who would then go on to form Medicine upon the band’s demise.
Despite the lineup changes, the original core of the band offered up what is in my opinion, their strongest work, 1985’s self-titled cassette. The release is haunting, singular, and transcends genres to allow for neo-classical passages, Savage Republic-esque tribal post-punk, ethereal instrumentals with flutes in tow, and psychedelic, haunting folk. The cassette was reissued several times over in a variety of formats, including a vinyl pressing (affordable and essential), cassettes with alternate artwork, and even a CD-R issue in 2011 as interest in post-punk music was thriving. That said, this rip comes from an original cassette from 1985, in pristine condition.
This is the band’s earliest material, not counting a posthumous release of outtakes, demos, and rare tracks on Independent Project Records, released as Pendulum. The band would issue three equally strong albums following this debut, and have released a handful of excellent singles in the last year featuring the original core lineup. You can listen and purchase the new work via the band’s Bandcamp, and you can also find them all on Facebook. Courtney and Steve have also launched a new project called The Roogs, who are currently working on material.
Without any further ado, here’s the info on this cassette:
Fourwaycross- Fourwaycross K7
1. Intro
2. When Will You
3. Apologize
4. Sharpened Knives
5. Long Talk
6. Driving Thru Trees
7. MF
8. Strictly Morphine
Before we even get started, I’d like to thank Rich Benton for contacting me out of the blue on my Facebook page to send me these tracks. Rich was the synth player in The Enter, who you may recall had a one-off track on the excellent Young Blood compilation, the gloomy “The Contract.” While this single was never released, Rich informs me that these two tracks were recorded midway through their four year run and then subsequently pressed to a white label 7”, which never was released to the public. The tracks were recorded in 1985 at Slaughter House Studios in Driffield UK.
Rich also filled in a few more gaps about the band, otherwise a three-piece based around vocalist Paul Smith. Drummer Danny King (who has since passed away) also performed and helped with the programming, and as Rich claims, was “the only real musician in the band.” Of course, we all know that these things don’t matter much in the DIY-minimal synth world, as The Enter definitely tapped into something special. These two tracks aren’t as gloomy as “The Contract” but are definitely equally enjoyable – a bit more polished and poppy for all lovers of obscure new wave.
As you might have guessed – a white label single means no artwork, so you’ll have to use your imagination for this one. Otherwise, here are the tracks:
The Enter- Whole New World 7”
1. Whole New World
2. To Go (All the Way)
Here’s a fresh rip of a forever classic, hot off the needle to soothe your end-of-summer anxiety. Here we have the second (and final) LP by Scotland’s Dead Neighbours, released in 1985 and featuring eight tracks of driving post-punk bliss.
For those unfamiliar, Dead Neighbours began as a Cramps-inspired psychobilly band, featuring the powerful baritone vocals of Craig Lorentson (RIP) at the forefront of their sound. The band was managed by Brian Guthrie, brother of Cocteau Twins guitarist Robin Guthrie, who helped develop the band’s cult following.
During the recording of their second LP, bassist David Steele departed the band, and the Guthries encouraged Will Heggie to join to complete the record. Heggie, freshly departed from the Cocteau Twins after a tumultuous tour supporting Garlands, was happy to oblige, and completed the record and stayed on to work on new material. Heggie’s incredibly charismatic playing instantly changed the dynamic of the band, and after swapping guitarists for Stuart Everest, the band decided to rechristen themselves as Lowlife, who would go on to release five highly acclaimed albums and a handful of EPs until their breakup in the mid-90s.
With that in mind, the shift in sound is already present on this LP, a clear shade of difference from their 1984 debut Harmony In Hell. Heggie’s energy can already be felt, and the songs appear harder, faster, and stronger, despite shirking much of their psychobilly roots. There’s still a little of that sound present, but just enough to keep things interesting. Lyrically, the album is very focused on mental illness and suicide, especially apparent on opening track “Wreckage of Your Mind” and the final track. Also worthy of note: closing track “The Cowards Way” [sic] was re-recorded by Lowlife and a more lush, dreamier version kicks off their 1986 debut record Permanent Sleep.
If you HAVE heard this one before, hope you enjoy a fresh 320kbps rip of this classic. I don’t happen to have their first album Harmony In Hell NOR the 1985 compilation Wild Women Vs Rubber Fish! in my collection to provide new rips, but hope this one satiates your ears for now. Either way, feel free to pull this down and crank it loud!
Dead Neighbours- Strangedays : Strangeways LP
1. Wreckage Of Your Mind
2. Turmoil
3. Terror Eyes
4. The Survivor
5. The Ultimate Goal
6. Beauty and the Beast
7. Tell Me Why
8. The Cowards Way
Got an email request for the early material of A Primary Industry, an incredibly underrated UK band who walked a fine line between the avant ghetto of SPK, 23 Skidoo, and A Certain Ratio and the ethereal textures of Cocteau Twins and Operating Theatre. While their lone LP Ultramarine was released in 1986, there are quite a few tracks that point heavily towards the shoegaze genre that was barely a glimmer across a pedalboard at the time.
That all said, A Primary Industry released most of their material on Sweatbox, an excellent label also responsible for the like-minded In the Nursery during their earlier and more experimental phase. The label also released a handful of Meat Beat Manifesto records, so you get an idea of some of the wildly oscillating moods and textures that can be found across all three bands. Otherwise, once A Primary Industry ran its course, the band morphed into Ultramarine (sharing the name with API’s lone LP), who released a series of more electronic/downtempo records in the 90s, and one in 2013. While Ian Cooper and Paul Hammond stayed on board for both projects, vocalist Jemma Mellerio left after Ultramarine’s first LP, Folk.
A Primary Industry’s work has been shared before, but at low bitrates that have since been scrubbed from the internet blogosphere. As their work is some of my very favorite, it was due time to dust off my copies of these records and share them across the board. Thanks also to Jeffo! for supplying a great rip of the band’s first 7”. I’ve uploaded the band’s four main singles and excellent LP from fresh rips, but have also included a handful of compilation tracks. I can’t take credit in any way for the lower bitrate comp rips, with the exception of the exclusive track from Bark, an excellent compilation from the Sweatbox label that also features The Anti Group, Perennial Divide, Meat Beat Manifesto, and In the Nursery. Just wanted to include the other comp tracks (minus Life at the Top, as the version of “Perversion” is identical to the 7” b-side, as is the mix of “Heart of Glass” from Bark) to complete the discography, more or less.
That said, if anyone has the elusive Real Time 6 compilation (or the exclusive track “Under Western Eyes”) I’d love to hear it, as that’s all we’re really missing here… Otherwise, enjoy!
A Primary Industry- At Gunpoint 7” (1984)
1. At Gunpoint
2. Perversion
Various Artists- Heures Sans Soleil LP (1985)
11. From This Prospect
A Primary Industry- 7 Hertz 12” (1986)
1. Cicatrice
2. Obeah
3. Biting Back
4. Bled Dry
A Primary Industry- Ultramarine (1986)
1. Body Blow
2. Beacon Hill
3. Shear
4. Sans Orange
5. Cicatrice
6. Watchword Weal
7. Gush
8. Raw Umber
9. Silesia
10. Rose Madder
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Various Artists- Suck (A Soundtrack For Everyday Living) LP (1986)
5. Rose Madder (Edit)
When’s the last time we had a video here?! With that in mind, there’s a video for “Cicatrice” (the first track of theirs I heard, and the winner among winners). Enjoy!
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.
