Procedure re-launches tonight at Cafe Saint-Ex / Gate 54

No music in this post, but it is music-related. Tonight my friends Mark Williams & Richard Chartier are re-launching Procedure, a popular DC event that was in hibernation for the past several months. I imagine anyone reading this in the DC area is already familiar with the event, but you never know....

I have been a guest for them in the past, and hope to again in the future. For those unfamiliar, the music here (as described by Richard):

"laid back evening of lost and forgotten music, ambient sounds, electronic whatnot, low brow tunes, dark covers, b-sides, electric squiggles, bloopy unusual-ness, blatant obviousness, avant garde obscurities, bubblegum oddities, punk fun, unintentional hits and very intentional misses...and other seemingly unrelated genre crossing nonchalantly sequenced

or as their slogan states - Something for everyone... and nothing for some...

Check it out.....

V/A - Audiologie Vol.1 Cassette (Audiologie) 1980

This is the first volume in the Audiologie series - featuring all French artists. The package is a clear vinyl and printed black grid pouch with a folded art/track sheet printed on blue paper and a small art collage - silver ink on black.

Some of the tracks here could have just as easily been featured on the Alternative Funk cassette posted the other day, but at the end of the day I think I like this one more.

Participants this time include Vox Populi! (x2), Pacific 231 (x2), Alesia Cosmos (x2), Hymn(x3), Dzyan & F.Man, B.B.K. & Man, and Kosa Nostra (x3).

A pretty strong collection of French minimal/wave....

Enjoy.

RNA Organism - R.N.A.O. Meets P.O.P.O. LP (Vanity Records 0006) 1980

This post should make many of you happy. It is the highly sought-after RNA Organism LP released on Vanity Records in 1980. An unexpected snowfall kept me indoors most of the day allowing me to archive this fine album.

Again, to quote the Vanity Records label article in Music Magazine:

"Receiving a cassette tape from RNA Organism by air-mail, Agi (Yuzuru - head of Vanity Records) mistakenly thought they were from overseas and highly acclaimed the band in Rock Magazine, however, it was a clever ploy by Kaoru Sato from Kyoto. This album is amazing dub music with funky bass, noise guitar, trumpet and rhythm machine - sort of like a heavier version of Andy Partridge's Take Away. Subsequently the group changed its name to EP-4, which became known for its guerrilla live performances as well as simultaneously releasing its debut album from both major and indie labels. Meanwhile, Sato disappeared from the music scene in the mid-80's."

A Japanese music source on-line provides a little detail regarding one of their performances from 1983 - what looks to be three appearances around Japan in one day:

"The most remarkable thing about them is 1983.5.21 incident. The name care sized seal of +----+ was attached on electric-light poles, 5.21 billboard, walls of building, telephone booths and everywhere in Harajyuku and Shibuya (in Tokyo). On the day of event, they performed gigs with time lag at 12:00 in Osaka, at 18:00 in Nagoya, at 1:00 at night in +----+ (originally at 0:00), at 4:30 in Tokyo. The seal became a sort of social phenomenon. Despite mid-night gigs, many stylish and snobbish people gathered in Shibuya. At the same time, it was the day that they were supposed to released LP's (Multilevel Holarchy: Indies, Showa Demise: Major); however, "Showa Demise" infringed the regulation of record and Multi Label Horror Key was released only. Later, it was renamed as "Showa Amnesty and released as book with LP-sized thin small magazine from Indie."

Aside from the RNA Organism LP, Sato released seven albums that I know of as EP-4 stretching into the 90's (not disappearing in the 80's per the Music article):

Seifuku Nikutai [1983]
Multilevel Holarchy [1983]
Lingua Franca 1 [1983]
The Crystal Monster [1985]
Five To One [Hot Records (Australia), 1985]
Lingua Franca X [1993]
Found Tapes [1994]

Aside from sounding similar to other Japanese New Wave/No Wave/Electronic artists at the time, there is also a strong bond here with the early 80's German New Wave/Electronic scene. Truly one of the best records from the early 80's.

Enjoy.

V/A - Alternative Funk Cassette (Audiologie) 1985

Here is another cassette compilation from France. It is titled "Alternative Funk Vol.1" and is packaged in an odd textured vinyl flap sleeve with a metal stud protruding outwards. Inside the package are eight small blue & white inserts printed on both sides.

Apparently, in 1984 the label Vox Man posted a submissions request for an upcoming 'Alternative Funk' compilation. Of these submissions, those that 'fit the topic in the best way' were released on the compilation LP titled "Alternative Funk - Folie Distinguee". The remaining tracks ended up on two cassette compilations of which this is the first volume.

Does that mean these cassettes are to be considered rejects, or of lesser quality? Allowing these to age 20+ years, I can't say the LP as a whole, which may end up in these archives some day, is any better than the cassette presented here today. In fact, the track I feel has withstood the test of time and music trends is 'Rapide 5' by Phillipe Laurent which is on the cassette. It is another one of those 'proto-techno' tracks that wouldn't be out of place if put on a collection of early Detroit/Warp label techno. There is some sophistication present in his programming that I don't hear on these other tracks, although some of his drum 'fills' have aged horribly.

In the interest of getting more posted today, I won't review the tracks, but I will list all of the participants for those who are curious:

The Happiness Boys, Costes, Diseno Corbusier, Hypnobeat, Pacific 231, Smersh, Asmus Tietchens, Melsjest, Randal Kennedy, BPA, Vox Populi, Suns of Arqa, Bene Gesserit, The Arms of Someone New, Phillipe Laurent, The Living Daylights.

Enjoy.

By the way - does anyone have Alternative Funk Vol.2 Cassette for sale/share?

Two Daughters Cassette (Methane Music) 1980

It doesn't look like this has been posted yet. It is the untitled cassette by Two Daughters released in 1980 on Methane Music. I am not sure how many copies were pressed, but I rarely see it offered for sale.

To my knowledge, Two Daughters have only appeared on two other releases. A substantially edited version of 'Return Calls - We Are' can be found on the Cherry Red compilation, "Perspectives and Distortion". Their only LP, "Kiss the Cloth/Gloria" was released in 1981 on Anthony & Paul Records, a sub-division of United Dairies Records, the label run by Stephen Stapleton of Nurse with Wound. Overall, I think I like the music on this cassette more than the LP.

I haven't located much info on Two Daughters. I presume there were two members, Anthony & Paul. The liner notes to the compilation mention Jon More on clarinet. Does anyone have more info on this sadly short-lived group?

For anyone familiar with the LP or the compilation piece, the quieter moments there will give you an idea of what the music on some, but not all, of this cassette is like. Many tracks have guitar and/or vocals/chants run through a vibrato effect. There is percussion on a couple tracks, one of which has a 'ritual' feel to it when accompanied by chanting.

The clarinet on 'Return Calls - We Are' reminds me of Electroscope, particularly their limited cassette on Boa. Not sure if this is the appropriate audience, but I can upload a copy of that as well. If anyone desires, contact me via the comments.

I have a copy of their LP for sale. Anyone interested should check out the link to my Atlantis or GEMM site for more details.

Enjoy.

BGM - Background Music LP (Vanity 0008) 1980

I planned to upload the RNA Organism LP today, but it appears I haven't archived that one yet. Instead, I present BGM - 'Background Music'. This is the first Vanity label record I purchased. Ever since then, I have been on a 10+ year quest to track down every release on the label.

Here is an excerpt from an excellent article on the label written by Satoru Higashiseto that appeared in the magazine 'Music' (Issue #02, 1998):

"Similar to ESG and Liquid Liquid this high school band played new wave garage funk. As with Sympathy Nervous, the leader of the band Takayuki Shiraishi reappeared in the techno scene of the 90's under the name of Planetroid, releasing Detroit techno influenced works."

This article was the first time I'd found a list of the label's entire output, and has been a guide/checklist for me ever since.

I have to disagree with the comparison to Liquid Liquid - I don't see it at all. There are some similarities to ESG, but really only the Martin Hannett-produced material. The track 'Neo Dancer' particularly recalls ESG's 'UFO', but stripped down even further.

Possibly my favorite track on the LP, 'And', can be placed right there at the top with the best of what Throbbing Gristle, Cabaret Voltaire, Metabolist... were releasing in the late 70's/early 80's.

The last track, 'Recovery Room', consists of a few overlapping synth tones & melodies that reminds me of Sky-era Cluster at their quieter moments and the amazing 'Ur-Babel' LP by Peter Hammill.

Enjoy

V/A - Call of Cthulhu Cassette (Cthulhu CR 02)

Before I start the next phase of archiving pieces from my collection, I've decided to post this compilation that has been sitting on my hard drive for a while. Compared to everything else I've posted so far, this isn't anywhere near the others in terms of being a favorite of mine, but it does have a few interesting tracks.
Cthulhu records existed in the 80's/90's and aside from releasing many compilations, they put out albums by the likes of Vox Populi, Ain Soph, Club Moral and others. I am seeking the two cassettes by Vox Populi on this label - any help in locating original (or digital) copies is greatly appreciated.

This collection features not only Vox Populi & Club Moral, but also Le Syndicat (4 tracks), We Be Echo (2 tracks), Pacific 231 and others including Un-Kommuniti, the name Tim Gane went under before launching an indie-pop career as McCarthy (and eventually the well-known Stereolab).

The music on this release is primarily of the darker ambient/industrial sort.

Vox Populi provides 3 tracks of 'ritual ambient' music.

We Be Echo contributes two tracks that sound almost identical musically, but containing different vocal samples - not too interesting in my opinion.

Aside from VP, my favorite piece here is probably 'Ritual for Dago' by Ankh. Ankh was a collaboration between members of Pacific 231 & Le Syndicat. Their piece here contains a female voice accompanied by slowly percolating synth lines similar to Conrad Schnitzler.

Enjoy

V/A - Angelic Technology 2xCassette (Angakok AKT 010) 1986

'Angelic Technology' - two cassettes with a small booklet containing submissions from each artist. This is another favorite compilation of mine from Japan although it features many non-Japanese artists and released several years later than 'Foam'. I purchased this in the late 80's, probably via RRR Records who are still operating. I only wish I had purchased more cassettes offered back then that are near impossible to find these days.

I really like just about every piece on this collection - here are some descriptions of a few:

Pedro Javier Gonzalez & Feliu Gasull: Both contribute flamenco-styled guitar pieces which are quite uncommon on a compilation of this sort - a refreshing change.

Conrad Schnitzler - 'Untitled': This piece is actually titled 'Nummer 6' and consists of lo-key, yet frenetic factory-like movements with some synth bubbling in the background.

Haiginsha - 'CI Falt': Scraping drones similar to early Organum.

Merzbow - 'Enviromental Percussion #4': My favorite Merzbow track. Not a full-frontal noise accualt, but quite rhythmic. Can anyone comment on how other titles in this series sound, or similar tracks by Merzbow?

Asmus Tietchens - 'Hydro-Linear' pt.2': One of his many amazing pieces of recorded water/drain sounds.

HNAS - 'Was Wir 6': Somewhere between Organum & Tibetan bowl music. On of my top 2 or 3 tracks by HNAS.

Bene Gesserit - 'Les Flamme Del'efer': Minimal synth piece accentuated with French female spoken word & laughing.

DDAA - This might also be my favorite DDAA piece. Sounds like the entire track consists of
layers of vocals from melodic humming, vocal percussion noises & rhythms and a bit of talking/singing.

Haters - 'Fuechen': Honey look, cars crashing, over and over....

Enjoy tape 1
Enjoy tape 2

V/A - Foam DLP (YLEM YDL 0000) 1981

This is probably my favorite compilation of early 80's music from Japan. Both records are pressed on clear vinyl and limited to 1,000 copies. The package includes a printed brown paper sleeve w/ art and track info printed in silver ink. There are two intricately-cut thick cardboard sleeves with additional color sleeves inside those to protect the vinyl. These inner sleeves show through the die-cut shapes of the thicker cardboard . There are also a couple inserts, a leaf taped to the package, and a stick of gum.

I believe it is through this compilation that I discovered the world of Vanity records in the late 80's. Although this compilation was not released on Vanity, it includes several artists that released music on Vanity (RNA Organism, Perfect Mother, Mad Tea Party, Salaried Man Club). Aside from the Vanity artists, the most well-known act on here is an early Merzbow piece.

Overall, this is a top-notch collection, here are some of my favorites:

A.T. Rhythm - 'Silence': Minimal no wave funk w/ electronics, guitar & female vocals.

Shinobu - 'Hello, Little One!': Ambient guitar licks over sparse electronic percussion with an occasional keyboard melody or two; nice.

R.N.A. Organism - 'Murderous Act': Backwards rhythm and squealing electric guitar, muted vocals & screams.

Salaried Man Club - 'Blank Account': Submerged rhythms interspersed with bursts of noise. Full cassette on Vanity to look forward to here soon...

Mad Tea Party - 'win-d-or' : Like a slow Young Marble Giants, possibly my favorite one of this set.

Interon - 'Kaelf E1': Damaged electronic percussion & guitar track very loosely based around the disco classic ' Le Freak' by Chic with vocals provided by what I imagine to be a Japanese teenage girl. The track unfortunately suffers from the lo-fi production of this scene. Does anyone have any more info on this band?

Enjoy Side 1 & 2
and Side 3 & 4

DDAA - Prehistoric Rejet Cassette (Illusion Productions IP 014) 1983

Last for today is a 1983 cassette from French artists DDAA. Released on their own Illusion Productions label, the cassette is packed inside an ink-stamped paper envelope with paste-on artwork.

My favorite track here is 'Metal Weapons' - odd percussion, squeaks, bass, phasing fuzz guitar & keyboards. Much of the music on the cassette, at a glance sounds loose, meandering, perhaps sloppy, and this track is as 'tight' as they get from this long out of print document.

I'm looking for a few of their early cassettes & 7"s (see the side-bar top-right). Ideally, I'm always looking for original copies, but until any can be located, digital copies will suffice.

Also - for anyone interested, there is a copy of their 7" - "5E Anniversaire" on my Atlantis and GEMM sites (see sidebar).

Enjoy.

V/A - Audiologie 5et6 - Ethniques Urbaines Cassette (VoxMan/Ladd-Frith) 1988

This cassette compilation was released on Vox Man records out of France in 1988. The case is packed with a larger printed booklet housed in a ziploc bag. It predominantly contains members of Vox Populi in one form or another as well as Laurent Pernice.

Vox Populi have long been one of my favorite groups from this entire era, so it comes as no surprise that this was one of my first choices to archive digitally. I don't believe any of their vinyl or cassettes are in print or available on CD today - a shame.

Some of my favorite cuts are:

Vox Populi - 'A Cup of Tea': Reverb-laden hand percussion & vocals.

ABOL & VOX - 'Ganja Musique': 8+ minute slow-burner that could be grouped with the psychedelic folk scene today.

Vox Populi - 'Micro Climax': VP presents a different side to their sound - drum machine, minimal chirps & pings, keyboards and a hypnotic bass-line that reminds of early slower Mouse on Mars. This was released just a few years too soon to capitalize on the peak of ambient dub.

Vox Populi - 'A Cup of Tea for Suzuki': More hippie-folk music with heavily strummed acoustic guitar and hand percussion. Halfway through, the mix is filtered tot he point of hearing just a distant breeze oth aural haze that had built up. Soon, near-clarity is resumed, only to fade back & out again.

Jacki Moreau - 'Knossos': I'll let the title describe this one; a beautiful piece.

Enjoy.

V/A - Assemblee Generale Vol. 4 Cassette (P.P.P. AG 4) 1983

Next up is the 1983 cassette compilation - 'Assemblee Generale Vol. 4' released on the French label P.P.P., limited to 330 copies

The package consists of a small plastic jar containing the cassette and two small booklets. One booklet contains contact & track info while the other includes art submissions from each group.

Contributors include the typical artists that seemed to be on almost every int'l 'industrial' cassette compilation at the time: DDAA, Legendary Pink Dots, Etant Donnes, Die Form, Pseudo Code...

Comparing this collection to others from the same era, this probably isn't up there at the top, but there are some tracks that are worth noting:

Wolfgang Wiggers - 'Slightly Mental': Minimal synth-pop w/ a bit of sax, all performed by Wiggers. The track begins w/ drum machine and synth and where one would usually expect a off-key vocal to eventually ruin the song, Wolfgang's sax floats in and establishes an overall subdued mood. His info indicates a forthcoming solo tape. Anyone know if this was ever released?

La Chorale - 'Leninski Tango': minimal new wave/funk.

Berliner Luft - 'Wannsea': A minimal synth track that could have fit on the Thomas Leer/Robert Rental - 'The Bridge' LP. The group comprised of Pacific 231 & Vox Populi members who also ran the label VP 231.

Beats per Minute - 'Into Pieces': This track starts off with what sounds like Roland 303 lines squelching over live percussion in what can be described as a proto-acid/techno. Yes, there were many other artists using a 303 at the same time, 2-3 years before Phuture's - 'Acid Trax'. Most of what I've heard from this era however, does not resemble what would eventually be commonplace in the Acid/Techno/Trance scene of the late 80's/90's. A little past the midpoint, sparse vocals and live bass re-directs the song for the last minute.

Geso - 'The Nail in My Head': This track reminds me of the music on the Vanity label from Japan (see previous and future posts) which isn't too surprising considering Geso released several cassettes in Japan via the 5th Column label (mid 70's-80's). Lo-fi drum machine, sparse electronics, guitar, bass & vocals. Does anyone have leads for Geso cassettes on 5th Column?

Enjoy.

V/A - Vanity Music Double LP (Vanity 0010/0011) 1981

First up...

The double LP compilation on Vanity titled 'Music'. Some of the music on this compilation also appeared on various cassettes released by Vanity. Depending on feedback & interest, these cassettes may show up here.

The music on this compilation leans on the contemporary German industrial/electronic sounds of the early 80's. I have no additional knowledge of the artists on this release aside from appearances on other Vanity releases. These may or may not consist of artists who released records under other names on the label.

Another good example of this snapshot of music in Japan is the compilation titled 'Foam' which will also be on this site in the near future.

Enjoy
Part 2

Introduction

Welcome to the Atlantis Audio Archive.

I set up this site to share music with my friends, primarily rare vinyl & cassettes not known to be available on CD. The majority of these are converted from original source by myself from my collection over the years, and a few from the collections of others.

Similar music-sharing blogs like Mutant-Sounds, Krautrockteam and several others have inspired me to follow suit and share these very rare recordings online.

I will start off with a gift to Mutant-Sounds, the Vanity Music Double LP compilation from 1981. There will be more Vanity titles soon. I will try to fill in the gaps from what (to my knowledge) hasn't been posted already.

I also welcome all guests to visit my links including my on-line record store, DJ Podcasts, Metabolist discography and more.

David *+*