Morphogenesis - Prochronisms (LP, Pogus Productions 201-1, 1989)

"The group was formed in 1985 by individuals interested in exploring the possibilities of live electronics and collective improvisation. The members have diverse musical backgrounds, including teaching electonic music at Morley College and playing in other groups ranging from Cornelius Cardew's Scratch Orchestra, Nurse with Wound and Organum." The band includes, on this record: Adam Bohman (prepared violin, balakaika, objects), Ron Briefel (sound projection and Atari ST computer), Clive Hall (percussion, live electronics and sound projection), Micheal Prime (shortwave radio, bio-acitivity translator, water machine and live electronics), Fred Sansom (prepared guitars, live electronics) and Roger Sutherland (piano, percussion and Atari ST computer). Of these Prime is the most active one as solo musician. Sutherland commited suicide in 2004. Before this album they had a cassette release and then in nineties only a handful CDs followed. Nice improvised electro-acoustic music.

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Second Layer - World Of Rubber (LP, Cherry Red, 1981) plus two singles

When UK's The Sound recorded their first album, 'Jeopardy', they worked fast and had some studio time left. Adrian Borland and Graham Greene (real name: Bailey), quickly recorded 'World Of Rubber' as Second Layer. An album full rhythm machines, guitars and vocals. Dark and creepy, but ever since hearing 'Fixation' on the radio back in 1982, I am a fan of this album. They also released two 7" records, which come in a separate zip. The album 'Second Layer' on LD Records from 1987 has the two 7"s. A pity Cherry Red never released this on CD. So this is more or less the full discography:


Flesh As Property E.P. (7", EP) Tortch Records 1979
State Of Emergency E.P. (7", EP) Tortch Records 1980
World Of Rubber (LP) Cherry Red 1981
Second Layer (LP) LD Records 1987

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Enno Velthuys - Different Places (tape, Exart Tapes, 198?)

Just by accident I found this tape, which I totally forgot about. It's the third tape I post by Velthuys and hopefully a calm down after yesterday's noise onslaught.

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Merzbow - Dutch Tour (double tape, V2 Archief V216, 1991)

The first proper Merzbow Europe tour was held in 1989 and was organized by V2. It brought Merzbow to three Dutch cities and to Bordeaux. The first two, in 's-Hertogenbosch and Nijmegen, were just Masami Akita and Reiko Akita. It's on this tour that Merzbow started the harsh noise sound that he further developed in the decade after this on countless CDs. This tour also provided him with material he used on his first ever CD release, 'Grand Cock OO Grand'. The three Dutch concerts appear in full length (I believe, I only saw the one in V2 and Diogenes), each on a side of a tape. The fourth side has studio remixes of a concert at the Nijmegen squat radio by Merzbow Kapotte Muziek (remixed by Frans de Waard) and a remix of the three live sides by Masami Akita. The video styled box has a metallic construction inside with a contact microphone. Merzbow used them on the night he got some copies handed by the V2 people. I believe that was in 1991. Might have been 1992.

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C-Schulz - 10. Hose Horn (LP, Entenpfuhl, 1991), 7. Party Disco (12", Erfolg, 1991)

The C stands for Carsten and he's from Cologne, and was, along with the previously posted Hajsch, in Kontakta. He makes totally different music, based on sampling, rhythm, spoken word. It's joy and playful music, especially on the 12" and the first side of the LP. The second side of the LP is more sketchy, with lots of shorter tracks - I hope I separated them well. Besides these two early pieces of vinyl there is an even older cassette (which I am not sure I have) and only 3 CDs of his solo work, the last one 'Das Ohr Am Gleis' is from last year. Also he produced an excellent CD with Hajsch in 2000.

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Rod Summers - Arid Like The Ocean (tape, Vec Audio, 198?)

"Rod Summers (1943-), born in Dorset, England, is a sound, visual, conceptual artist, performance poet, dramatist, mail and book artist, publisher, archivist, and lecturer on intermedia. He is based in Maastricht, Holland. The results of Summers' multiple, art-related activities have often appeared as part of his concept of VEC (Visual, Experimental, Concrete), which he originated in 1973. In 1999 CNN International featured Summers in its Art Club show as a representative of avant-garde art in Holland. In addition, over the last 20 years, Summers has performed his work at various festivals in Europe and Iceland, including the Reykjavik Art Festival (1991), the Polypoetry Festival of Sound Poetry (Bologna, 1993), and the International Sound Poetry Festival (Bologna, 1997), among others. Summers features among the "second wave" of intermedia artists, the first wave including Dick Higgins, Vito Acconci, John Cage, Allan Kaprow, Joseph Beuys, and the Fluxus artists of the 1960's. He differs from Higgins and members of the first generation, however, in that he is less theoretical and more experiential in his approach to his art. There have been no VEC manifestos published by Summers, although one may intuit what it encompasses by examining the activities undertaken and products issued under its sign." (from Wikipedia)
This is the only tape I have from Rod Summers, although he has plenty more. His VEC Audio label also has many compilations. One side of this tape has a piece for voice and computer (pretty rare in those days) and the other side a landscape recording from Iceland. Quality isn't super good, but it's still a fine document.

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Hajsch - Nagual (Fuer Silvio Manuel) (LP, Quiet Artworks 08, 1992)

Hajsch is Hans-Jurgen Schunk, one half of PFN, who was also a member of Kontakta (with a lot of others from the Cologne scene, like Frank Dommert, C. Schulz and Marcus Schmickler). His discography is rather small, with over the last 20 or so years only a small handfull releases. His only piece of vinyl is this one, which lists various tracks, which I didn't know how to separate, so I left it as one track. Drone and dream like electronics, with a portion of musique concrete.

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Turkish Delight (tape, Ding Dong Records & Tapes DDC 009, 1983)

And another compilation, on the excellent Ding Dong Records & Tapes, one of the best dutch cassette label. "This is the first issue of a new serial theme cassettes by Ding Dong. We invited several muscians from all over the world to give their vision on the subject Turkish Delight and made a selection of the contributions. We want to thank all the contributors who made it possible to realize this delightful project." Quite a nice line up too, with some well-known names and some unknowns. I have a live recording of SM Nurse somewhere, which isn't as good as their track here, but I wish I knew more about them. The cover I attach is the one that came with my copy. Discogs shows another, but it's one I never saw.

A1 S.M. Nurse Hot Day In Istanbul
A2 Legendary Pink Dots, The I Dream Of Jeanie
A3 Hi-Tones, The Ibrahim
A4 Dislokate Klammer & Alex Igloo T.D. Rain Dance
A5 Van Kaye & Ignit Bogaziçi
A6 Bene Gesserit Bal
B1 Arif Sag Çiçekler (Excerpt)
B2 Soma (9) Haliçi
B3 University Of Swing, The The Market Of Habir
B4 Sueno Sueno Hands
B5 Multi Mundo Ruvgari
B6 Tim Benjamin Turkish Delight

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Er Ist Tief Und Dein Wasser Ist Dunkel (LP, Quiet Artworks AQ 04, 1991)

Another four way compilation, but on one piece of vinyl is this, the start of the shortly lived Quiet Artworks label, with Yeast Culture, Arcane Device, PFN and C-Schulz. More on Yeast Culture and Schulz soon. This was supposed to be a trilogy, but the other two never emerged. Quiet Artworks also released some cassettes by PFN, and the previously posted LP by PFN, and LPs by Hajsch and Ios Smolders.

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Bruitiste (2LP, RRRecords rrr 023, 1988)

I already posted the cassette releases that came with the super limited cassette edition of this 2LP set before, and promised to do the real thing too. Here it is. Bruitiste is a double LP featuring four (one per side) noise artists which one could consider to the best of those days. Vivenza and Esplendor Geometrico take their inspiration from Futurism and Etant Donnes and P16.D4 more from musique concrete. The P16.D4 track (actually left as one track, since it was hard to separate into four) appears also on the CD 'Three Projects' on that RRRecords released by them, but I recorded it off vinyl. P16.D4/Vivenza are in zip one, Etant Donnes and Esplendor Geometrico in zip two.

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blackhumour - breathing like marcel (tape, Corrosive Tapes, 1988)

"The blackhumour audio project had its beginnings in early 1982 with the first few experiments I was doing on my teac 4-track reel-to-reel recorder. The resulting early pieces were not so good, but some of the pieces which were done with my then audio-partner, somebody else, were successful. Two of these pieces, 'murder', and 'trade and commerce', are included in the retrospective of early bh work, 'radical positive' (banned productions). This release also shows the evolution of the blackhumour approach away from treatment/effects techniques of any kind, such as equalization, reverberation. Flanging, echo, etc., and the choice made by blackhumour to use as its sole sound-construction source the use of 'found-object' human voice only, with the exclusion of such tape techniques as speed-masking (speeding up or slowing down the sound of the voice) or back-masking (the notorious technique of playing the voices backwards). Since 'snakes in an atheist's grave' (1984), NO blackhumour piece has used anything other than found object (spoken) human voice and editing techniques. (since 1986, digital editing has been included, thanks to inexpensive digital sampling.) I wanted the sound source to be absolutely basic. The human voice speaking was about as basic as i could get. The rationale being that we are constantly hearing speech, whether it is from others, or simply the sound of our own voices in our ears." (from Discogs) Oddly enough 'Breathing Like Marcel' is not included in that discography.

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Hands To/Mental Anguish - Orange Is For Anguish, Blue For Insanity / Myasic (LP, Harsh Reality Music, Big Body Parts HR-BBP-01, 1988)

Hands To was the 80s project of Jeph Jerman, working with field recordings and electronics to create densely woven patterns. As such he released a whole bunch of tapes and some records. Many of the tapes are stilll available from him directly Jerman is still active to this day, but under his own name. Mental Anguish is still the project of Chris Phinney and it seems an odd combination here with his synth and drummachines (no vocals!), but in the days it was a normal meeting of two likeminded free artists.

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Vlaaikots (tape, Limbabhttp://www.blogger.com/img/gl.link.gifwe 001, 1982)

A vlaai is a dutch cake, especially made in the part called Limburg, where this cassette label got their name. Kost means puke. This compilation was the start of a nice label, of which I unfortunately have nothing else (besides the previously posted tape by Der Junge Hund). This compilation shows a wide interest in music, from hardcore punk of Pandemonium, poet Koos van de Kerkhof and free improv rock bands like Choroform, Holland Elektro, Zoo, Coolcast, A Live Detail, Zanzibars Twist and 83 Cherokee. I never got the case box package though! If anyone has other tapes by this label, I'm more than happy to hear those.


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Maciunas Ensemble - Music For Everyman 861 (LP, Apollo Records, 1986)

Something entirely different from Eindhoven is the Maciunas Ensemble, a group around Paul Panhuysen. It also includes Jan van Riet, Leon van Noorden, Mario van Horrik and Horst Rickels. It is founded by Paul Panhuysen and Remko Scha in 1968, when they also started Het Apollohuis (which no longer exists, and for live experimental music in Eindhoven certainly something that is missed). Named after Fluxus founder George Maciunas for spontanous music, in overlapping layers, thus creating an interesting form of minimal music. I believe they still exist and have an extensive archive of music, but 'Music For Everyman' is their only record.

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Firebomb Fritz' Stylites - 19 May 85 Effenaar Eindhoven (tape, Zesde Kolonne, 1985)

Later today I will travel to Eindhoven for some business, so I thought it'll be good to present some music from that city. Well recorded over there. Tomorrow we'll have some musicians from that city. Firebomb Fritz' Stylites was, I believe, an off shoot of 23 Skidoo, and played some great industrial funk like music. Nothing more is unknown about them, and the cover holds no more info either. But it's great music.

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The Eye Decay Theory (LP, Johnny Blue noy 001, 1991)

This Portuguese label Johnny Blue has a small discography to it's name: this compilation LP, and two more compilations: A Gnomean Haigonaimean (LP) and Hare Hunter Field (CD), as well as a cassette by Hesskhe Yadalanah (all of which I don't have). The compilations have quite a bunch of well-known names. On 'The Eye Decay' the tracks are linked together by spoken word excerpt, which made it impossible to separate the pieces. The cover was designed by Cranioclast. This is the tracklist:

A1 PGR Requiem (6:30)
A2 Peter Frohmader Waves (3:59)
A3 Luciano Dari Lapide Minetale IV (4:23)
A4 Bernard Vitet / Hélène Sage Le Dictionnaire Des Synonymes (3:16)
A5 U.N.A.C.D. Anthropométrie (3:36)
B1 Hesskhe Yadalanah Creeping Paralysis (1:04)
B2 S·Core Insence Burner (3:17)
B3 Vrischika Les Profondeurs (4:15)
B4 When Bell 1 (3:51)
B5 Peter Vogel (Excerpt From) Loop Music (1:29)
B6 Désaccord Majeur En Contre Partie (4:38)
B7 Bourbonese Qualk Halabja (Trafalgar Square Mix) (3:15)

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Nasmak - Only This Day And 77 Others: Indecent Exposure 5 & 6 (2 tapes, Plurex, 1981)

So we did all the LPs by this great, somewhat forgotten dutch group. To be done are some 12"s, a 7" or 2 and no less than six tapes, of which this is the first post, from back to front. They were released as series of two under the banner of Indecent Exposure and each got their own subtitle. This is the working book of Nasmak. They recorded their concerts, improvisations, rehearsals etc, and on these tapes, which act like a sketch book, you can find them. Endless thanks to Mic for sending this. Your work is highly appreciated

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Keihard & Swingend (LP, EMI, 1978)

Punk captured by the majors, EMI of them all. Perhaps the bands on this live album aren't all real punks, but it was presented at such. Recorded live in Paradiso on 12, 13 and 14 Februari 1978, so that is today exactly thirty years ago. Wow, small coincidence there (I hadn't planned this, as I was merely playing Mgr Ubu records in a row, and this is the final one). Writing credits for Sammy America's Gasphetti goes out to Sammy America (still active these days) and Henny Vrienten (later of Doe Maar). Other bands include The Nits (who just released the nineteenth album, I believe), Subway, Suzannes, WHizz Guy, Suzannes, Panic, Captain Coke, Sylph, Turf, Cilinders and The Lizards.

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The Spiderz - Pressure (LP, WEA Records, 1979)

Some of the punk bands started from scratch, but some evolved from pubrock. The Clash in England, and in The Netherlands, The Flying' Spiderz did the same, this becoming the first punk band. In the punk days they released two albums and various 7"s, and had a fierce live reputation. They were dumped by EMI and the band dropped the name Flying and just became The Spiderz. This post is their first album (or third) 'Pressure', when the band progressed into a more power pop/new wave sort of sound. It's produced by Laurie Latham. They will also released a fourth album, which I don't have.

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Speedtwins - It's More Fun To Compete (LP, Universe, 1978)

One of the first Dutch punk band, from Arnhem, with an english singer Jody Daniel. They were a band who decided to play punk, rather than punks who started playing punk music. Such as other of the earlier punk bands. They started at the end of 1977 and in 1978 already released this LP 'It's More Fun To Compete', which is not the real punk thing of course. The album was released by Universe on transparant vinyl, but later re-released in a different mix by Philips. This post is the Universe one, produced by Alfred Lagarde. Speedtwins released some more 7"s (including a cover of Who's 'My Generation', which is also on this record. in 1978, changed line up and Jody Daniel died in a motor accident in the early eighties, which effectively also ended Speedtwins.


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Rock Tegen De Rollen (LP, Rock Against Records, 1981)

As you have no doubt noticed this blog is slowly shifting away from the Dutch punkrock, new wave and experimental music and going in more foreign directions. Partly because I'm pretty through though what I have. I don't want to use other people's MP3's too much and rather having the real thing myself to rip. Or borrowing them. Mgr Ubu lend me a few records, and this is the first I'm posting. Rock against rolemodels is a rough translation and it has all female bands (which is a daft thing to say, as nobody says all male bands) from Utrecht, who all played live on November 8, 1980. It has tracks by The Nixe, Pin-Offs, Pink Plastic & Panties and Removers and is actually quite a nice compilation, with a remarkable cover in there by the Removers.

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PFN - Akasa (LP, Quiet Artworks, 1992)

PFN is the duo of Monika Westphal and Hajsch from Cologne (Germany), both also running the Quiet Artworks label, of which more later on. They released only four cassettes, which I don't have, and this absolute great LP of slow drones and acoustic instruments (violin, cello, saxophone and clarinet). There are several softer parts which may not have translated well to MP3, but it's certainly some record to buy if you come across it. After this LP they didn't release anything as PFN anymore. I believe both were members of Kontakta, and Hajsch also made a solo LP (also to come later on) and several works with C. Schulz.

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De Fabriek - Four Very Early Tapes

These four releases, Fab prod 1-4, are the very first releases De Fabriek ever did. They were short, the first two only 10 minutes or so, but forecast the latter first big landmark 'Schaftijdsamba'. Fab prod 3 'De Fabriek Goes Solenoid' is very unclear in what way Solenoid is involved. Information never has been an important feature for De Fabriek.

1. Schuurpapier (De Fabriek Records & Tapes fab prod 1, 19??)
2. Gold (De Fabriek Records & Tapes fab prod 2, 19??)
3. Fabriek Goes Solenoid Goes Fabriek (De Fabriek Records & Tapes fab prod 3, 19??)
4. Enduro 3333 (De Fabriek Records & Tapes fab prod 4, 19??)

(some of these may have been released in the seventies already)

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No Borders (LP, Generations Unlimited, 1988)

And while on the subject of Generations Unlimited, here is another of their releases, the compilation 'No Borders'. Eleven pieces by artists that were closely related to Conrad, Gen Ken and David. Rollkommando is Conrad's son, Jörg Thomasius made several collaborative works with Conrad. Arcane Device is from NYC, Michael Chocholak worked with Conrad. I don't know about Charles Cohen though, or where Morphogenesis fit in. Same about Stefan Tischler who was once in Port Said with Keeler. Finally Iancu Dumitrescu had an album on this label later on. A nice varied album of electronic music in the Schnitzler sense and some more experimental sounds.

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David Prescott - Walking In Slow Circles (LP, Generations Unlimited, 1987)

Prescott started the label Generations Unlimited together with Gen Ken Montgomery and Conrad Schnitzler. He was supposed to handle the business side, whilst the other two did the artistic side. The label was primarily for their own music, but Prescott wanted to expand to other musicians too, which he did, like Iancu Dumitrescu, If Bwana and Arcane Device, so Gen Ken and Conrad left him with the label. Soon after nothing was heard of the label or Prescott (although discogs lists an MP3 from 2006). His own music was not unlike that of Schnitzler: two side long pieces of 'non-keyboard electronics'. I no longer have his "From Chance To Probability" LP on the same label.

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Perpetual State Of Oracular Dream (LP, Baader-Meinhof release VA-001, 1991)

This is an early nineties compilation LP, released on the Baader Meinhof label, compiled by Eric Lanzillotta. It was his label, but quite soon after that it would transform into Anomalous Records, also one of the best mailorder outlets of the 90s. He liked his music to be German or American, it seems. Included are American bands Debt Of Nature, Crash Worship, Premature Ejaculation, Arcane Device and Plecid. Germany supplied Genocide Organ, Asmus Tietchens, Cranioclast, Hirsh Quadrant and Mimir (ok, well, they are part Dutch). Two Canadian bands: blackhumour and The Haters. Quite a nice experimental album, which came in a cloth cover back then.


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Der Junge Hund - Optreden 41 (tape, Zesde Kolonne, 1986), Vervormd In V2 (tape, Limbabwe Cassettes limb 005, 198?)

As promised some time ago, the final tape releases by Der Junge Hund, the free jazz combo from Eindhoven. Vervormd in V2 is a recording from a year which I can't read on the cover. It looks like 1981, but that can't be, since V2 didn't exist back then. It shows Der Junge Hund in a raw spirit. Optreden 41 seems to be towards the end of their career and is much more quiet and subdued, and actually a very fine release.

A friend of mine, who is 'in the know', had problems sending a comment, so i'm posting it as part of this post:

"V2 DID exist in 1981. It is the year they started at Vughterstraat 234 in 's-Hertogenbosch. They were called V234 in the beginning. That later became V2 under influence of how visitors started calling it. There were concerts but also exhibitions with anarcho art. One guy made a cardboard sculpture in the format of a rocktet, that resembled the german missile.
It all started very low-profile with musicians and artists that were personal friends (as was quite common amongst "artists initiatives" in those days) and the members of Der Junge Hund certainly were.
AV'

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Peter Zegveld - Dynamica Tumultus (tape, De Appel, 1985)

Peter Zegveld is a Dutch sound artist and painter, who creates interesting pieces with installations. 'Dynamica Tumultus' was a piece on a new highway, in which cars speeding by and some music. It's quiet music. I have no idea about the other two pieces on this tape. Zegveld to this day active in music, see his website

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