Archive for the Uncategorized Category

RITUALS MIX016

Posted in Uncategorized on January 29, 2013 by Frankie Teardrop

MIXTAPE16

I love making mixes and playlists, and spent much of my youth constructing cassettes to pass the time.  I was hoping to make another tape recently, but the record deck on my tape player seems to be shot for the time being.  So I did the next best thing and made a mix for RITUALS, an excellent post-punk/darkwave party that takes place at K&M bar in Williamsburg on the last Thursday of each month.  I’ll be DJing there in February for the Tiers/Stereograph show, so if you’re local, be sure to check out the party!  Either way, hope you enjoy this mix!  You can peep the tracklisting & listen/download HERE!

The Rise and Fall of the Obscure Music Blog

Posted in Uncategorized on November 28, 2012 by Frankie Teardrop

I recently took part in an online roundtable discussion with Eric Lumbleau of Mutant Sounds, Liam Elms of 8 Days in April, and Brian Turner of WFMU regarding our efforts and the current state of music blogging.  Thanks to Mark Allen (Vice, NYT) for the opportunity!  Feel free to join the discussion here.

Bushido- The Sands of Nakajima & Deliverance LPs

Posted in Uncategorized on June 9, 2012 by Frankie Teardrop

Here are the two LPs from UK synth/experimental band Bushido, ripped freshly for your maximum listening pleasure. The project is the brainchild of Gary Levermore, who currently runs Nettwerk’s UK division and who also ran Third Mind records (Beautiful Pea Green Boat, Front Line Assembly, In the Nursery, Heavenly Bodies etc.) for a while. Other Third Mind artists have guested as well, including Chryss (Julia Niblock) from Attrition and Glenn Wallis of Whitehouse / Konstruktivist.

Two fantastic listens here, both which walk a fine line between ritualistic experimentation and skewed synthpop, often on the same track. Quite eclectic and engaging listens. The devil is in the details:

Bushido- The Sands Of Nakajima LP (1985)
1. Rain
2. If….
3. She Had To Say Yes
4. Johnny Fez’s South Mediterranean Blues (Moroccan Roll)
5. First Respects (For NS & BV)
6. Laugh, Clown, Laugh
7. Among The Ruins
8. False Prophets = False Profits (Concrete Mix)
9. San Sebastian
10. Black August – The Rape Of Honour
11. Calm

Bushido- Deliverance LP
1. A Question Of Identity
2. Lament
3. Intrigue
4. An Imperial Affair
5. High Rise
6. Question Of Time

*download both here*

Revel Hotel- The Station

Posted in Uncategorized on May 24, 2012 by Frankie Teardrop

The Station, our full length album, is now out. We’re offering one guilt-free download, but it will likely be temporary.  We’d love this album to be heard first and foremost, so feel free to share it as you see fit for the time being.

For those who wish to purchase the album properly, there are higher quality downloads (FLAC) and limited CD-Rs (less than a hundred left) available via our Bandcamp page.   Click here for more info, and otherwise:

enjoy!

For those who live in NYC and wish to make with the merry, our album release party will be this Saturday night at Salvation (Bowery Poetry Club, 308 Bowery, Manhattan) with DJs Patrick & Cyn.  We’ll have copies of the CD-r for sale as well as free swag.  Click here for details and directions.

Art Remains Tangible- A.R.T. K7

Posted in Uncategorized on May 19, 2012 by Frankie Teardrop

A very generous reader donation with kind permission from V.I.S.A., the label responsible for this excellent cassette, among many other classic releases. You can read more about the label and check a more detailed catalog listing here!

Art Remains Tangible, aka A.R.T. were a minimal synth/coldwave hybrid project from France, consisting of four members, all of which go by their first names on this release. This 1984 cassette is their only full release, though astute readers may recall a live appearance on the Unreleased Vol. 1 cassette and a few tracks on the excellent Ritual Dos Sádicos compilation, posted by our dear friend Avicus. He mentions there that only 50 copies of this tape exist!

Art Remains Tangible- A.R.T. K7
1. Prayers Breakfast
2. T.V. Nut
3. Foolish Virgin (Live Cithéa 4 Juin 1984)
4. Industrial Town
5. “M”
6 Skinny Baboon
7. Derrière Le Mur
8. Foolish Virgin
9. Prayers Breakfast (Live Cithéa 4 Juin 1984)
10. Rythm ‘N’ Bees (Nid D’Guêpes)
11. Neon Jungle (Live Cithéa 4 Juin 1984)
12. Sans Titre

*download it here*

Screaming Trees- Release & Beaten By the Ugly Stick 12”s

Posted in 1980s, 1986, goth, goth-rock, post-punk, uk, Uncategorized with tags , on April 24, 2012 by Frankie Teardrop

Here we have the first two 12”s by Screaming Trees out of the UK. Not to be confused with the grunge band of the same name, Screaming Trees had several 12” releases and a full length throughout the mid-late 1980s, mixing both bludgeoning electronics and industrial textures with club friendly beats. While not primarily EBM, these later releases walked a fine line between the Belgian scene and the 12” mix mentality, with scattered results.

However, the first 12”, released in 1986, is somewhat of an anomaly among the lot, as it has more in common with the UK goth scene at the time with slightly more tribal influences and aggressive guitar work. Think bands like Play Dead, Rebel Christening, and early Clair Obscur. “Incinerator” is my favorite of the lot, but all three tracks are great guitar driven goth tracks. Many thanks to Michael for ripping it and passing it over! Been dying to hear the first piece of the puzzle for quite some time now. I’ve also uploaded the band’s second 12” from the same year, which sounds more in this vein as well.

The band’s label Native Records was also responsible for releases by They Must Be Russians, Darling Buds, UV Pop, and more. The two members of the band, Sean Maloney and Mark Swancott were rather prolific for the time, also releasing music as Count Zero, Success, and Tocsin. Both continued into the 1990s, releasing electronic/techno records.

Here’s the info:

Screaming Trees- Release 12” (Re-Ripped 12/9/22)
1. Release
2. Incinerator
3. Razors In My Mouth

Screaming Trees- Beaten By the Ugly Stick 12”
1. Build On Ice
2. Build On Dust
3. Damage Report

*download it here*

Revel Hotel- Phantasm

Posted in Uncategorized on April 23, 2012 by Frankie Teardrop

The Station, out May 8th
http://revelhotel.bandcamp.com/

Μάκης Πρέκας (Makis Prekkas)- Recording Is An Art LP

Posted in Uncategorized with tags , , , , , on April 11, 2012 by Frankie Teardrop

In stark contrast to yesterday’s guitar-heavy cassette, here’s an incredibly rare minimal synth LP from Greece, released in 1985. A mix of churning synths, psychedelic dirges, and experimental rhythms make up this release, a must hear for fans of Solid Space, Tranquil Eyes, Transparent Illusion, and bands of that caliber. There’s even a club-minded synthpop track (‘Morroco’) and a cut reminiscent of Damon Edge’s solo material (‘This is a Point’) hidden among the otherwise experimental set, so this should have something for everyone interested in the synth spectrum.

This is their only release, issued by Engima Records, an underground Greek label also responsible for Magic De Spell’s discography. Not a lot of info out there about this one, so let the music speak for itself:

Μάκης Πρέκας (Makis Prekkas)- Recording Is An Art LP
1. T 244
2. Control Room
3. That’s The Way Out
4. Kashmir
5. Morroco
6. Guitar
7. This Is A Point
8. Beki

*download it here*

Survival

Posted in Uncategorized on April 10, 2012 by Frankie Teardrop

If you’ve found your way here, welcome to phase two of Systems of Romance.  As you can see, all the content from Blogger has been imported to this site, with all the posts and the comments from phase one still intact.  [Most of] the backlogs have been reuploaded to Rapidshare for now, pending any new options that may present themselves in the future.  Expect some improvements on several of the previous posts, as I’ve revisited a handful of the wav files that survived a hard drive crash to remove pops and clean up some of the mess wherever possible.  More importantly, we will be moving forward with gusto, so expect plenty of new posts to follow.

Many thanks to Hi-Fi Hillary for getting this website off the ground both functionally and aesthetically,  and thanks to everyone for the constant support over the past few weeks.  It has not gone unnoticed or unappreciated.  Onwards and upwards, folks!

 

Denouement

Posted in Uncategorized on March 27, 2012 by Frankie Teardrop

Looks like mediafire suspended my account thanks to a few flagged files.  Awesome!

While it’s possible that my account will be unfrozen in due time, it looks like we’ll be winding down here very soon. I’m aware that there are plenty of other options out there and that file sharing will never truly die, however after nearly five years and roughly 500 posts, I’m afraid I just don’t have the time or energy to reupload everything for the third time during this blog’s tenure. Some things must come to an end I’m afraid, and unless the account bounces back, I’ll try and get the last things I had queued up out there to you all before closing the doors here.