N - Hospital murders (2004). N. is the sick death industrial/noise project of one called Davide Tozzoli. No much infos on him, except that he is Italian. Musically he owes much to early MB sound, combined with Atrax Morgue noisy sick soundtracks. This release differs from all his others and it's possibly his best (well for me at least). No noise here. Just ambient soundscapes created by analog sources, creepy voices creating really morbid atmosphere of psychosis, disease and death. It could be perfect soundtrack for a giallo movie about a sick serial killer addicted to sexual murders in hospitals. The tape comes in vinyl box with two nice inserts and it's limited to 100 copies. The tape itself is white with "blood" splashes and Skeletone sticker on A side. Perfect deluxe packaging from Skeletone label! Highly recommended release!
Roberto Donnini - Tunedless (1980). Architect, visual artist and musician, Roberto Donnini has realized some great avantgarde LPs back in the 80s and 90s, pure droning soundscapes with a complex blending of a rich instrumentations played by an enviable cast of guest musicians (including Albert Mayr, Giancarlo Cardini, Donella Del Monaco, Giancarlo Schiaffini, Andrea Centazzo, Lino Capra Vaccina). This LP was released through Lynx label in 1980, as Galerie Schema edition, of course limited (I heard about 100 copies only). Tunedless is contemporary music for synthesiser and electric and acoustic instruments, composed by Roberto Donnini and performed by Roberto Donnini, Stefano Fiuzzi, Jaqueline Darby, Roberto Buoni, Aldo de Bono, Mino Vismara, Albert Mayr. It can be performed by any kind and number of instruments or voices. Only one instruments must play ad libitum the series with the last three or four notes (right) at random, but returning always to a flat. All other instruments and voices can be well tuned or fluctuate within a very small interval above and below the notes frequency of the instrument playng ad libitum: they can't play more then five notes of the series for each performance.
Oronzo De Filippi - Meccanizzazione (1969?). This fabulous Morricone-esque library rarity (issued on the Leo label) is plainly the template for the turn Stereolab would take circa Dots And Loops, its atmosphere of pointillistic op-art modernist cool enacted via percolating cadences, dancing patterned harpsichord hits, stray dissonances, elegantly odd organ elaborations and jaunty period orchestrations.
Mr. Andrew - Magic planet (1982). Excellent minimal synth meets space electronics project by Mr. Andrew,of Flo and Andrew fame.Released in 1982 through Base label.
Nicola Frangione - Mail music project (1983). In the spirit of the Mail Art movement of the 1980s comes the Mail Music project. Collecting 47 sound art samples sent in from around the world, Nicola Frangione compiles them together in a pastiche manner similar to the Distruct LP compiled by P16.D4. Each side is one continuous track and the individual sound submissions which are approximately 1 - 1.5 minutes long, overlap giving the impression of a collage work. This was a time when DIY was flourishing and the result is captured beautifully here. Only a few of the artists are well known: Maurizio Bianchi, Vitore Baroni, P16.D4, Masami Akita, Naif Orchestra. But don't let that put you off. This is one of the best compilations in the vein of whacked / experimental music to come out of the 1980s. In a numbered, limited edition of 1000, this LP is very hard to find today.
Thank you Dan for this gem!
N.O.R.M.A. - N.O.R.M.A. (1992). This Italian octet's impishly whimsy-fied approach fuses R.I.O.-lite stylizations to sting quartet, film score and circus-y maneuvers by way of CD DJ scramblification in a rather theatrical fashion that gives the whole a certain Downtown NY patina. Though there's a tendency to get a mite precious here and there (their opening gambit of covering Bernard Hermann's Psycho score a case in point), much of this is quite curious and rewarding in it's own discreetly arch fashion.
Minox - Lazare (1986). Minox's art is atmosphere and refinement, melody and instinct, strength and vigor in splendid balance, an avant-garde trend that seeks contact with various artistic genres, without the ideological pretence of defining itself as total art. It does not limit itself only to sound but also moves toward the visual and literary arts, dance and theatre, image and poetry. Minox are already well known on the international front thanks to important collaborations and productions linked to the 'Bruxelles Sound' and tied to the Central-European movement developed in the 80s by labels such as Crammed and Les Disques du Crepuscule. The band has also authored music for theatrical pieces and the first mise-en-scène in 1985 gave birth to the single Suite maniacal for the Artzine Free for Industrie Discografiche Lacerba. One year later, their first album Lazare, produced by Steven Brown of Tuxedomoon, was released to great critical and public acclaim throughout Europe. Serious events subsequently mark the group's activity (Raffaele Banci and Enrico Faggioli, two members of the first Minox line up died in '86) so Mirco Magnani and Marco Monfardini spend a long period of time away from the musical scene, dedicating themselves exclusively to sound experimentation and research, after recording an album which unfortunately never came to be released. They make their comeback in 1991, with a musical-theatrical production entitled "Minox play Lorca", a critical re-reading of the folk songs and the theatrical music of Federico Garcia Lorca.In 1994, Marco and Mirco found their independent label Suite inc. and break the label in with the CD single "Plaza", a release that pieces together the legacy left behind by their collaboration with the legendary Industrie Discografiche Lacerba. A year later they produce B movie show a concept album featuring 4Dkiller, Dubital and Minox which is something of a complex soundtrack to image-less B Movies. This occasion marks the debut of 4Dkiller, a project of electronic syntheses, the fruit of Minox's persistent dedication to sound research and experimentation. Under this guise, they come to remix several of Minox and Dubital's tracks. Over the next two years Minox produce and mix Dubital ep, Ignoranza & cultura, Lite and Technophonic Chamber Orchestra's 1998 release Beats and movements. During the summer of 1998 Minox releases their limited edition CD Single U turn featuring Lydia Lunch and making with her an interesting italian tour. During 2000 Minox went to the studio to work with their friends and collaborators from 1986 Steven Brown and Blaine L. Reininger of Tuxedomoon. A tour with Steven Brown in Italy followed, and on November 2001 has seen the light their new album Downworks featuring The Gentle People, Lydia Lunch, Nobukazu Takemura, Blaine L. Reininger and more.In 2003 Minox have direct the 4th volume of the thematic series Suitable Suitable #3 the downbeatniks and have produced the debut album of Enfantronique "Ecole 72" in 2004 they have produced Nemoretum sonata the second album of Technophonic Chamber Orchestra. Actually Minox are working on their new album, they've invited Jan Jelinek (aka Farben, Gramm - Scape, de) and Dictaphone (City Center Office, de) and are compiling "Suite inc. classics" featuring Murcof, Daedelus, Jan Jelinek, Nobukazu Takemura, etc.
Great atmospheric minimal synth MLP much in the mid 80s european vein of Tuxedomoon...not suprising though as this was produced by Mr Steven Brown.
Monofonic Orchestra - Friends' portraits (1981). Awesome mutated avant synth wave into quasi-R.I.O. of an exceedingly ZNR-like sort. What Monofonic Orchestra share with Hector Zazou and Joseph Racaille's ZNR (specifically their antically eccentric Barricade 3 album) is a propensity for wedding Satie-esque piano-led delicacy with with sudden surges of giddy, circus-y avant electropop. Just beautiful.
Monuments - Age (1984). Another crown jewel of the early 80s minimal synth scene. Scanner broken down so no pic sleeve scan
Maurizio Bianchi (M.B.) - Mectpyo blut (1979). Here's the very first release of the legendary Maurizio Bianchi,under the name M.B., from 1979. Not that harsh industrial noise outputs that can be heard in other releases ,but electronic experimental music, claustrophobic in the vein of Asmus Tiechens, early 80s recordings. Was re-released by Slaughter Productions in Italy, in the early 90s in limited edition of 30 copies.
"Bianchi began to produce music in 1979, and since 1980 has used electronic equipment with the avowed goal 'to produce technological sounds and in such a way to work on complete realising of the modern decadence'.
In the beginning, he published tapes under the alias Sacher-Pelz. In 1981, William Bennett, head of the band Whitehouse and the British Come Org. label, offered Bianchi a record contract, which Bianchi signed unchecked. It was based on a "joke contract" that Steven Stapleton of Nurse With Wound had sketched. The contract assumed all rights to Bianchi's work. After delivery of the tapes Bennett edited-in speeches by Nazi leaders, and instead of the relatively unsensational name MB, it was published under the alias Leibstandarte SS MB, named after the SS unit that worked as bodyguards to Adolf Hitler.
Until 1984, Bianchi published on other labels intensively as either MB or simply Maurizio Bianchi, sometimes several albums and/or tapes per year, as well as numerous tracks to compilations.
Bianchi became religious and withdrew from the music business. Much of his work is sought today by collectors, especially as they appeared in extremely small editions. In 1998, encouraged by Alga Marghen label head Emanuele Carcano, who offered him a label of his own, Maurizio Bianchi started again to make music. The label is EEs'T Records, through which he released new editions of all old MB albums, as well as many new releases.
Therefore, since 1997, he was back on the underground scene, working on several projects both in solo or in collaboration with other Italian artists (Giuseppe Verticchio/NIMH, Arnaldo Pontis and Corrado Altieri/TH26, Davide Femia/MDT, Saverio Evangelista, Matteo 'Hue' Uggeri/Sparkle in Grey, Emanuela De Angelis and Eugenio Maggi/Crìa Cuervos) and international (Klaus e Danijela Jochim/Telepherique, Sandro Kaiser/Frequency In Cycles Per Second, Akifumi Nakajima/Aube, David van Ravesteijn/Land Use, Siegmar Fricke, Nobu Kasahara e Hitoshi Kojo, Maor Appelbaum, Jozef Van Wissem, Craig Hilton, Philip Julian/Cheapmachines)".
Maurizio Giombini - Antropophagus/Le notti erotiche dei morti viventi (1980). 2 great electronic soundtracks to 2 Joe D'Amato movies by the great Marcello Giombini .In the same vein as TransVita Express LP.Scary electronic music all through(check the great interpretation of Zorba The Greek at the start of Anthropophagus , which was made in Greece). An Excellent companion to the previous posted Akron LP along with Jacula and the rest!
Master's Cosmic Music/Schlammpeitziger - Let the star shine in/Burgfensterrhytmuskuckloch (1994). Though I've never heard a peep about Master's Cosmic Music elsewhere, anyone out there thats kept an ear cocked to the sublime electronica developments that have emerged from the A-Musik/Sonig-related Cologne axis over the last 10+ years should be well aware of the truly wonderful Schlammpeitziger, an artist whose allegiance to the Cluster/Tietchens/Tyndall wing of the Sky Records aesthetic is even more self evident than those of his contemporaries in this scene. Which brings us to the album at hand, easily Schlammpeitziger's rarest. Issued back in 1994, before any real attention had consolidated around this emergent wing of German electronica, this sits at a complete right angle to any other recordings in his canon. Nope, theres no cartoonishly technicolor giddiness at work on his 4 tracks here. Rather, a completely different dimension to his work wholly abandoned thereafter: glazed and blasted kosmiche electronics of a very advanced order. Unexpectedly, it's Italy's Masters Cosmic Music who pull the proceedings closer to the anticipated Cologne electronica template, with a delicately chiming, tinking and blipping trifecta that brings to mind nothing so much as what To Rococo Rot's Stefan Schneider would be getting up to some five years later with his Mapstation project.
Luciano Dari - Idrogeni superiori/Wajd (1990). Great release from the founder of Musica Maxima Magnetica records.Actually re-release of his 2 80s LP ,by Soleilmoon records. Sometimes reminds me of early 70s German poineers Kluster or Tangerine Dream mixed with MB industrialism with hidden hints of a minimal synth pop feeling.By all means amazing work!
Magazzini Criminali - Crollo nervoso (1980).Though they've never been properly credited for it, these terminally obscure Italian nutters were the first to execute an album length work of explicit plunderphonics. Having said that, you'd be hard pressed to find an album more inscrutable in both concept and execution, Magazzini Criminali here treating extended passages of Eno instrumentals from Another green world along with The Beatles, ethnic recordings and a raft of other appropriated audio as just so many square feet of interchangeable aural wallpaper on which to splash extended passages of overlapping histrionic yammer on concepts of earth shaking gravity like, er...papaya juice concentrate and dancing in Ghana. It's maddening, baffling and oddly amusing by turns and to be honest, I still haven't the slightest fucking clue what to ultimately make of this thing myself. Come to your own conclusions.
Note: Many thanks to the commentator who straightened me out about the correct artist at hand here. Turns out that for years I'd been mis-identifying this LP as being by Crollo Nervoso, rather than it being the debut LP by Magazzini Criminali (the cover and spine are of little aid here). Now that it's been clarified, all the pieces are finally beginning to come together in my head. It turns out that their follow-up LP Notte senza fine was posted some time back on the Enatiodrome blog Here and that they're some sort of theatrical troupe turned musical à la Chene Noir, which would account for the conceptual dimension I was grappling with above.
Malombra - Malombra (1991). You may all have noticed that i really enjoy dark organ dominated LPs,in Jacula,Antonius Rex,etc. vein. One of the most representative labels of this genre is the Italian Black Widow records.This LP was released by this label in 1991 and is long sold out.Stunning dark atmosfear in Black Widow meets King Crimson guitar works meets early Black Sabbath(!) jamming together with Jacula and Robert Smith or Peter Murphy on vocals. Anyway,some categorise it as black metal ... I disagree, this is pure organ driven dark progressive music with some Black Sabbath hints. Searck within blog for Jacula, Antonius Rex and other Black Widow records releases posted.
A band bio from Black Widow homepage:
"Based in Genoa and one of the historical acts of Black Widow Records, MALOMBRA has become an institution among non-commercial music fans since their first self-titled release back in 1993. Their incredible mix of gothic and darkwave influences, as well as progressive and avant-garde moods took an even more professional shape with the next Our lady of the bones, which spread MALOMBRA's name world-wide and let the band start playing tons of live gigs. Led by the charismatic figure of the frontman Mercy, MALOMBRA passed a troubled period of radical line-up changes while the band worked to some tribute albums and side projects like IL SEGNO DEL COMANDO and HELDEN RUNE. Eventually new members were found and MALOMBRA started concentrating on their new opus, The dissolution age, a modern come-back which will be an enthusiastic surprise for old and new fans!The long-awaited "The Dissolution Age" witnesses a deep change in MALOMBRA's sound, different from the past but still personal and recognisable. "If my band happened to turn foreseen, I'd rather shut it down" states Mercy, and voilà: the superb vocals by Mercy are supported by a wall of sound as never before by Roberto Lucanato and Francesco La Rosa, while the eclectic bass lines by Diego Banchero deal with the incredible synth-work by Franz Ekurn, which explores symphonic atmospheres as well as electronic and even EBM-oriented ambiences. With lyrics ranging from philosophy to politics, from religion to socio-cultural problems, "The Dissolution Age" is the perfect soundtrack for new millennium's decadence!"
La 1919 - L'enorme tragedia (1985). Following Eric's post of their Jouer. Spielen. To play CD, here comes the 1st ever tape by this Italian duo of Luciano Margorani and Piero Chianura . This time is more electronics oriented blending somekind of "future" jazzish electronics.
Released through ADN label.
La 1919/Chris Cutler/Charles Hayward/Roberto Zorzi - Jouer. Spielen. To play (1994). The Italian duo of Luciano Margorani and Piero Chianura (who comprise La 1919) skillfully craft fidgity, scrabbly, art rock constructs that owe a great debt to Massacre's fevered perambulations and which are, on this mid-90's release, beautifully underpinned by two of art rock's greatest and most distinctive drummers, Chris Cutler and Charles Hayward.
Klangstabil - Gioco bambino (2000). Part of a raft of releases that came out within a few years of one another, all utilizing the sounds of Nintendo's gamboy (sort of a precursor to whats happening now with the umpteen variants on the sound of the Buddha box) , though actually, this half German, half Italian group (an otherwise more specifically post-industrially geared outfit) had their go with this stuff a few years before Stock, Hausen & Walkman's Matt Wand and Poland's Gameboyzz Orchestra entered the fray. For someone like me that adores the idiotically blippy and childish tonalities of, say, Picky Picnic, mutated reconfigurations of candy coated bleep-bloop like this are aimed right at my pleasure receptors, though in the case of Klangstabil, they do about as much as one could to recontextualize the goof right out of these sounds (in a sort of Tietchen-y fashion), something that lends a curious frisson of it's own to the proceedings here. This lengthy CD has been divided into two parts.
Giusto Pio - Motore immobile (1978). Italian violinist Giusto Pio, completed a classical musical training in Venice and was hired as a violinist in the RAI Milan orchestra, following aspects of traditional classical music but without losing an eye on current experiments.
It has become known to the general public for having cooperated with various songwriters Italians, including Franco Battiato, Alice and Milva. Often in the 80s and 90s he had collaborated with experimental artists, working and contributing, as arranger, violinist director or conductor, especially for Battiato, which Pio's gave violin lessons in the seventies.
This is an excellent release on the Cramps label, blending his love for abstract experimental music.
Hydrus - In space (1978). Wonderful space electronic LP released by PDU label (same label as Electriktus, posted about 10 month ago here). Forget that kitch disco label. What we have here is space electronics in the traition of Ohr and Kosmische Kuriere albums, that were released in Italy by PDU label too. Not much more infos available though.
Illachime Quartet - Illachime Quartet (2003). Thanks to blog friend Vincenzo for this amazing piece, the highly ambitious and challenging privately released debut from an Italian outfit who'd latterly go on to work with such luminaries as Rhys Chatham, Graham Lewis and Mark Stewart on their 2007 follow-up “I'm Normal, My Heart Still Works”. Fronted by the duo of Fabrizio Elevtico and Gianluca Paladino, the former with ivory tower credentials, the latter coming from a rock background, the alloy of their combined instincts resulting in something vast, sprawling and fused by a through-line in melancholia. The end product is something pretty unique, though to my ears it seems to take a page from both the strain of Italian improv rock that comes in off the R.I.O. tip ala La 1919 and the terse high drama of This Heat, but with an added overlay of both desiccated and purgatorial Hwyl Nofio atmospherics and spectral threadings of modern classical composition.
One of the most profoundly ridiculous library releases ever, and yet one with a strange allure. To hear this is to marvel at just what the hell exactly they assumed these pieces were intended to soundtrack, as the sonics herein are utterly retarded. Gracelessly flat-footed and rinky-dink keyboard themes set to bontempi organ cha-cha/bossa nova beat presets, it's a sound that for the right set of ironic ears and under the right set of conditions (say...in a party mix with Tom Recchion and Tipsy tracks) would have a definite amusement value. Well...I for one am amused, anyway. Your milage may vary.
Giancarlo Toniutti - La mutazione (1985)
Giancarlo Toniutti is born in Udine (friuli - italy), 21.3.1963researcher in morphology and anthropology fields (linguistics, acoustics, material cultures etc.) and composer of experimental electroacoustic sound-works. Basically. The whole activity is centred on a basic notion, which is connected to an anthropologic view of the human activity in general, of its knowledge and the tools enabling and structuring such a knowledge. The sound activity is thus linked to a realm of sound we could simplistically define as electroacoustic or equally experimental, although these notions may have a meaning. The sound work, through the diverse natural developmental phases, is focused on some problems and notions both inherent to the nature of sounds and their structuring and articulation in sound forms. A research connected to the acoustics of materials, chosen as sound sources or generators, materials by now almost only of an acoustic kind (natural objects, custom-made objects and natural sound sources recorded on field). The work is thus strictly connected to the acoustic-morphologic nature of the sound sources, and the action is directed to allow and/or induce such sources to generate sound (microcompositional aspect), in the observance of the inner characters of the materials and their forms. At the same time a research on the notions of form linked to its functions of an anthropologic (and somehow biologic) character, on which a work related to the sound morphologies fits (macrocomposition), almost exclusively connected to analogic means of action onto sound (magnetic tape and equalization, for example). Has xollaborated with Andrew Chalk and Conrad Schnitzler.
Giorgio Buratti - Explosion/Four tunes for a waltz (1971)
Utterly obscure and extremely curious, Buratti's field of operation is out jazz, but his choice of instruments and his minimal and idiosyncratic M.O. make this lost slice of weirdity truly ahead of it's time. While both his collaborators and their remit differ greatly from side to side, Buratti's personal musical arsenal on both consists solely of bass potentiometers, generators and sound effects. Viewed from a certain vantage point, this makes him the grandaddy of contemporary onkyo/lower case/hairshirt improv, prefiguring these strategies by close to 30 years in some respects, but I digress. "Explosion" is, expectedly, the blood-spitter of the two, deceptive flute tootles presaging cacophonous lunges into lopsided cabaret-ish piano pound, disjunctive dictophone chatter and massively close-miked and loud acoustic bass plucks. Wonderfully weird shite to be sure, and with a rigorous and bracingly modern edge that, time-frame-wise, really only compares to Wolfgang Dauner circa "Output", but "Four Tunes For A Waltz" is the real capper here, if ya ask me. Grooving in a rawly frazzled fashion that has a certain akin to both Toto Blanke's live album with Electric Circus and the scrappily wasted and loose limbed side of krautrock ala Spacebox on the one hand and Zippo Zetterlink and Ejwussl Wessahqqan on the other, though aspects of both Rahsaan Roland Kirk and AACM-related stuff suggest themselves elsewhere as well. A serious find, methinks.
Fiorella
Terenzi - Music from the galaxies (1991). Described by Dennis Miller as "a
cross between Carl Sagan and Madonna", astrophysicist, author, and
musician Dr. Fiorella Terenzi received her doctorate in physics from the
University of Milan, has studied opera and composition at Conservatory G.
Verdi, Corsi Popolari and taught mathematics and physics at Liceo Scientifico,
Milan. In research at the Computer Audio Research Laboratory, University of
California, San Diego, she developed techniques to convert radio waves from
galaxies into sound - released by Island Records on her acclaimed CD Music from the galaxies.
"In a new
Island Records CD called Music from the Galaxies, Italian Astro- physicist and
composer Fiorella Terenzi has used the most modern radio-tele- scopes and
computers to convert the natural radiation from a galaxy designated UGC6697
into the audible range then add instrumental harmonies. A fascinating their
largest efforts yet to scour distant galaxies for intelligence on that
end." - Newsweek On-Air Radio
"A
landmark release - an uncommon fusion of science and art, astronomy and music,
known as Acoustic Astronomy" CNN, "Future Watch": "The
source for this sound is a galaxy far, far away. How can we hear music from a
galaxy? Well, our interpreter is Italian Astrophysicist Fiorella Terenzi."
Dennis Miller: "We are going to jam with the galaxy, folks. Thank God I
only did half a tab!"
A strange yet
wonderful cosmic trip by a non musician but astrophysicist.Reminding the great
Komische musik space releases! Highly recommented!
Gerstein - Phlegmaticus (1987). Gerstein was born in fall 1984 as a personal music project
of Maurizio Pustianaz. Since then he has moved between solo melancholic piano
ballads, experimental harsh sounds, synth-guitar powerful extravaganza before
approaching his electronic semi-melodic style in the latest years.
In the past
Gerstein has released several tapes through Infektion Prod, his own label, and
through many other labels such as: Misty Circles (I), BrokenFlag (UK), Minus
Habens (I), Bekko Bunsen (I), HAX (I), etc.
In 1993, his
first full length vinyl album entitled "Sucker" was released in
collaboration with Misty Circles. The piano was still the main instrument then,
but guitars, bass guitar and drum machine were also used.
Then it was
time for a change... 1994 was the year of the rising sun for Gerstein and a new
energy moved the project, a split MiniCD entitled "Harakiri for Seven
Strings" was released in collaboration with Sshe Retina Stimulants. The
two noisy tracks created by Gerstein were The first step into my deep throat and In the shadow of the sun.
Shortly after,
Johnny Mastrocinque joined in the Gerstein project bringing his sampler machine
with him. Gerstein's music became darker and tense... The new tracks were a
sort of dark soundtrack. Piano, synths, guitar, samples: everything was used
each time in a different way to create sicksongs with a melodic taste.
St.
Anthony's Fire was released on CD in 1998 on the acclaimed german label
Discordia. Unfortunately Discordia bankrupted a few months later and the album
suffered of no promotion and a very poor distribution.
At the end of
1999, when the recordings of "Burn" were complete, Johnny
Mastrocinque left Gerstein and since then got involved with a lot of hip hop
bands. "Burn" was released privately in two editions, the latter also
contained the whole "St. Anthony's Fire" as a bonus. An old tape,
"Phlegmaticus" was also re-released on Oktagon Records at the same
time.
Since then, due
to his involvment with Chain D.L.K. magazine, Gerstein kept on working on new
music and on his new project called Noisebrigade in a more relaxed way.
In October 2003
Afe released "Here Comes Sickness", a collection of mostly unreleased
and rare tracks, to celebrate Gerstein's 20th anniversary.
Gaznevada - Gaznevada (1979)/Nevadagaz (1980). Gaznevada adventure started at the end of
the seventies when Billy Blade (vocal and sax), Bat Matic (drums), Andy Nevada
(vocal and synth), Chainsaw Sally (bass) and Robert Squibb (guitar) decided it
was time to give to their social / sonic hysteria a form. March, 1977. After
the university riots some of them, start to live together in a flat in Bologna
with other artists and friends. The aggregation place is an occupied house in
Bologna where they lodge artists, musicians, designers, cartoonists and
directors. At this time the name of the band is Centro d'urlo metropolitano. With this band they write Mamma dammi la benza the first and one
track of Centro d'urlo metropolitano
co-produced and distributed by the University Student Movement of Bologna in
september 1977.
Egisto Macchi - Bioritmi/Futurissimo (197?). "Egisto Macchi was raised in Rome, where he studied literature, piano, violin, singing and composition, as well as courses in medicine and physics. The first years of his work were dedicated to instrumental composition. He was then involved in the investigation of musical theater, for which he wrote experimental works, as A(lter) A(ction) (1962), based on texts by Antonin Artaud. In 1965, he founded with Domenico Guaccero and Silvano Bussotti the Compagnia del Teatro Musicale di Roma. Starting in 1968, Macchi wrote scores for films and television, for Joseph Losey, the Taviani brothers, Bernardo Bertolucci, among many other filmmakers. From 1980, he was dedicated to the composition of works for the female voice, combining voices with chamber orchestras, small instrumental groupings and even fireworks, and experimenting with new technologies. This led to the creation of the Istituto della Voce in 1983, with Guaccero.
With his friends Franco Evangelisti, Daniele Paris and Guaccero, Macchi was active throughout his life in organizations related to music, such as an editorial, the publication 'Ordini', dedicated to reviews and studies of new music, and the Palermo New Music Festival, all in 1959; the group Nuova Consonanza in 1960, to promote contemporary music; in 1967, with Evangelisti, Guaccero and Gino Marinuzzi Jr., he was one of the founders of Studio R7, an electronic workshop for experimental music, he was a member of the Italian Commission of Music for UNICEF, with Evangelisti, Nino Rota, Ennio Morricone and Luis Enríquez Bacalov, and he joined the Gruppo d'Improvvisazione Nuova Consonanza, created by Evangelisti; from 1976 to 1981 he organized the Corali Riunite in his home town, Grosseto, and since 1984 he directed the sound archives of the Institute of Research for Musical Theater.
In his last years, Macchi had been working with Morricone on a project to promote the 'new opera'. He had arranged La Bohème for 16 instruments and four synthesizers, and Morricone had worked on Tosca. Both works were ready to be staged, when Macchi died in 1992".
From RYM:
Here are 2 classic LPs for the fans of the so called 'library music', by one of the masters of the genre. Released on Gemelli and Montparnasse 2000 labels respectively, these 2 are some serious examples of abstract electronics from the early 70s. Bioritmi is an interpretation of some medical actions to music, though Futurissimo is more abstract space music oriented.
F.A.R. - Presto i topi verranno a cercarci (1987). Great dark droning experimental/industrial electronics from these Italian pioneers of experimental electronics. Will appeal to all HNAS, Sigillum S, Throbbing Gristle, etc fans.
Doris Norton - Personal computer (1984). Doris is the wife of Antonio Bartoccetti (Antonius Rex and Jacula) and the mother of Anthony Bartoccetti, best known as Rexanthony. During the 80's she was sponsored by Apple Computer, and made a music program for IBM USA. She is the "voice" in Jacula and Antonius Rex LPs. Early experimenta/electro synth pop music all through. Her LP Artificial intelligence coming later today! If anyone has her LPs Under ground (1980). Parapsycho (1981). Raptus (1981) please contact me. I would appreciate a rip!
Doris Norton - Artificial intelligence (1985) ."At more than 19 months from the previous album Personal computer, Doris Norton, who is undoubtedly a leader in international computer music, has finally completed her latest work: the album Artificial intelligence (previous title: From art-physiol to artificial intelligence, changed before publishing). Quite besides the taste of the public and concerned who necessarily have to maintain an obvious subjectivity, there are objective data in the new album Artifical intelligence which can be summarized as absolute premiers at an international level. Amongst these are the following: 1-The whole was composed and programmed only with the alfanumerical keyboard of the computer. 2- The total of the notes and coded events takes to the number 124.648: of these 123.827 were coded with 'step time' procedure and the rest with real time procedure. Having done reduced the keyboard Doris Norton used only an hexaphonic JX.8P with memory processed by her and interfaced to the computer. 3-No drums were used, neither electronic nor much less acoustic. All the rhythmics were obtained by A.D.A. conversions and processing of wave ranges and with the use of expanders with a very special handling of envelopes, frequency, resonance, noise ..... 4-Doris Norton fed the computer the parameters of vowels and consonants of her own voice, like A, O, U, E, D, N, through an A.D.A conversion card; by processing these values and assembling them in phoneme in hundreds of different combination, various compressed resolutions she was able to make the computer sing a complete song in a totally human way (with the voice of Doris). 5-Many other yxith sounds resulting from A.D.A. conversions are present in this new album 'Artificial Intelligence', amongst these: pipe organ, plate, electric discharge, iron beat, birds, dog, harp, woods ... all sampled and handled by the computer. 'Artificial Intelligence' is a perfect example of how human intelligence can bend the coded 'artificial intelligence' to hits own will. ....."
Doris Norton - Automatic feeling (1986). Here's one more gem by Doris Norton.In 1986 she became an official consultant for IBM Computer Music and recorded two compact discs for IBM entitled Automatic feeling" and The double side of science (both in new age /computer sound and psychoactive music area).
Collettivo Haim - Un fedele struggimento riposto (199?). Issued in a microscopic private edition of 65 copies (50 originally, than a re-issue of 15 more, of which this is one) back around the mid-90's and sounding remarkably close at times to the Two Daughters LP that Steve Stapleton released on United Dairies, this glutinous slurry of taffy stretched and multi-tracked turntablist manipulations finds Italian mystery unit Collettivo Haim folding smeary slowed down slabs of noxious 80's/90's pop fodder into one another to surprisingly far more winning effect than such a description might suggest.
Devil Doll - Sacrilegium (1992). Devil Doll is an experimental dark rock band formed in 1987 by Italian 'Mr. Doctor'. Originally, two lineups were formed, one in Ljubljana in former Yugoslavia (now Slovenia), and one in Venice, Italy. The band has gained a cult following, taking influences from gothic rock, classical and slavonic folk music, and fronted by the sprechgesang of Mr. Doctor himself.
The first work of Devil Doll was The Mark of the Beast, recorded in Tivoli Studios, Ljubljana in the last half of 1987. Among the sound technicians were Jurij Toni, who would work with the band for the next ten years. The Mark of the Beast was finished, and a single copy pressed, in February 1988. The cover to the album was painted by Mr. Doctor himself, who keeps the album in his home to this day. No other copies exist. A few passages from the album, however, are said to make "cameos" in future Devil Doll albums.
Later the same year, work on a second composition began. This work, entitled The Girl Who Was ... Death, was inspired by the 1967 British television series The Prisoner. 500 copies of the album were originally pressed, in the beginning of 1989, of which only 150 were released. These were distributed out amongst the audience of the second live performance of the composition (the first had occurred before the pressing of the album), each with a unique inlay created by Mr. Doctor. Some of these inlays were written in his own blood. The remaining 350 copies of the album were destroyed by Mr. Doctor once he returned home.
In 1989, Mr. Doctor began the work on three different compositions, The Black Holes of My Mind, Eliogabalus, inspired by Antonin Artauds work Heliogabalus : Or, The Crowned Anarchist, and Mr. Doctor Sings Hanns Eisler, an interpretation of four of German composer Hanns Eisler's works. "Mr. Doctor Sings Hanns Eisler" was never released, and the two former compositions were, due to budget limitations, cut down to fit on a single vinyl, named Eliogabalus. The shortened version of "The Black Holes of My Mind" was renamed "Mr. Doctor" for this release, while "Eliogabalus" retained its name. Eliogabalus was released in 1990, in three different pressings, one of 50 and two of 900 copies. One of the pressings of 900 was on CD.
In 1991, after the fall of the Soviet Union and the independence of Slovenia, the two lineups of Devil Doll were combined into one, and in December, the combined lineup entered Tivoli Studios to record Sacrilegium.
Sacrilegium was released in May 1992. It was released only on CD, but the Devil Doll fanclub released 900 numbered vinyl copies with inlays designed by Mr. Doctor and Adriana Marac.
In January the next year, a soundtrack to a movie by Mr. Doctor, The Sacrilege of Fatal Arms, was released. The 900 copies sold out in 72 hours. In March, drummer Roberto Dani left the band, and was replaced by Slovenian Roman Ratej.
In July 1993 Devil Doll entered Tivoli Studios for recording of The Day of Wrath - Dies Irae. During a mixing session, the studio caught fire. Both Jurij Toni and Mr. Doctor were able to escape, although Toni ended up hospitalised for several days. Mr. Doctor refused to rerecord the album, and rumours of a split-up began circulating. 20 copies of a book containing the sheet music for The Day of Wrath - Dies Irae, as well as a tape of the unmixed recording, was released, though.
At the end of 1994 Mr. Doctor finally agreed to rerecord Dies Irae. The recording started in January 1995 in Akademik Studios. Devil Doll was backed by the Slovenian Philharmonic Orchestra, of which band member Sasha Olenjuk was leader and first violinist. Later, Norina Radovan, a Croatian soprano, was recruited to sing a duet with Mr. Doctor on the album. The recording was released in February 1996, and is the only composition to consist of multiple tracks (Eliogabalus consists of two tracks, but these are two different compositions supposed to have been released on two different albums).
A last album, The Day of Wrath, soundtrack to the second of Mr. Doctor's movies, of the same name, was scheduled for release in 1997, but was never released.
While Devil Doll has never been officially disbanded, nothing has been released since Dies Irae. In 2004, a mailing action was started by a fan and the Fan Club to make Mr. Doctor and Devil Doll produce more material. The letters were printed in a book named 'A Thousand Letters to Mr. Doctor'. Mr. Doctor replied to the effort in 2005, and sent the fan, who started the mailing action, a gift of appreciation. This gift was Mr.Doctor´s personal copy (number 1) of Sacrilegium. Handmade and written in a leatherbox and as extra a handmade, signed artwork with the word ´Astonished´ on it.
Mr. DoctorMr. Doctor is the enigmatic and mysterious leader of and creative drive behind Devil Doll. He is extremely secretive about his identity, to protect his privacy. It is known that he is Italian, however, his family originates from Venice, and he supposedly lives in Venice. Since 1992, after being heavily censored in the introduction of a television showing of Sacrilegium, Mr. Doctor has refused to give interviews.
Mr. Doctor is an expert at Sprechgesang, a vocal technique somewhere in between singing and talking, and is often known as 'The Man with a Thousand Voices', due to his ability to change his voice to sound completely different.
A Review
(Courtesy of http://www.progarchives.com )
This record only contains one huge track: it lasts near 80 minutes!! I've never heard such progressive rock so far! It is one of the most disturbing, scariest album i've never heard! The music is funest, diabolic, insane, dement, dark, religious, theatrical, P-O-W-E-R-F-U-L, apocalyptic, and you must be a little crazy to really enjoy it! The recording and the compositions are PROFESSIONALLY made, well structured, absolutely not amateurish! The track gives me the feeling that a super genius serial killer makes a satanic cult and tries to attract some fragile victims by seduction, temptation and magnetism. Punctuated with some Hitlerian crowd ambiences & speeches, the disturbing church organ, the sad violins, the slow solemn piano, the haunting accordions and the poignant religious choirs are complementary to an omnipresent set of extremely deranged & disturbed male voices, obviously exaggerated. As if all this was not enough, an excellent metal rhythmic guitar gives the aggressive & rhythmic mood, when needed. AROUND 22:30, THE MEGA CROWD REACTION, BEFORE THE HITLERIAN SPEECH, WILL MAKE YOU FALL FROM YOUR COUCH, ESPECIALLY IF YOU LISTEN IT VERY LOUD: THAT'S ABSOLUTELY INCREDIBLE!
The composition is, I must admit, absolutely delightful, approaching the genius state, although it may seem for the listener lengthy, because of the numerous long pauses and the overall slow rhythm. Don't listen to it alone in the dark: IT IS A VERY DISTURBING ALBUM, an acquired taste! For maximum effect, turn up the volume!
DsorDNE - Grafio ricerca (1989). Excellent release from well-produced Italian artistsSnowdonnia tapes became briefly popular for one shining moment when they first released a split 7" with LegendaryPink dots on one of their rare Premonition volumes.. The7" was extremely limited and the b side was split with Dsordne.
This cassette was marketed as the ambient side of Dsordne..That is when compared to their full LP release and their othercassette Carceri all of which consisted of a more rhythmic nature.
Tracks
1) Cielo (In ascencione) - Superb spirits drifting type soundtrack reminiscient of some Goblin material
2) Terra Del Fuoco - Can't help but compare to Brian Eno... Another Green World material.......but way better
3) Acqua - Sampled Noise combined with ominous soundtrack Really top-notch dream material
4) La Voce 2 - Just a filler track really. Halloween nightmare stuff5) Il respiro - IF you like Ain Soph then you will love this track. Creepy and disturbing
6) Interno - still more Ain soph'ness
7) Stammheim - Possibly my fave experimental track of all time. This track is extremely frightening. This song has to defeat Coils "Hellraiser" themes for spooky effects..... and so well produced
8) La Forma - a taste of Dsordne rhythmic side ...
Capricorni Pneumatici - Capricorni Pneumatici (1987). Italian duo active from 1987 to 1991. Ambient, ritual and concrete music. Their name comes from Aleister Crowley's book "Liber A'ASH vel Capricorni Pneumatici SUB FIGURA CCCLXX". The two persons involved in the project were only known under the pseudonyms of Pazuzu and Soda Caustica.
"...Your music is very good, truthfully, I like it better than any that has been sent me by various groups. Both tapes are excellent". Z'ev - November 1988, writing about CP and Al Azif.
Spooky creepy ambientritualistic industrial soundscapes all through.Don't listen it with lights off!
Capricorni Pneumatici - Al Azif (1987). Following my post of their first tape a few days ago, here comes the 2nd one. Dark scary industrial electronics!
Christina Kubisch & Fabrizio Plessi - Two and two (1976). Christina Kubisch belongs to the first generation of sound artists. Trained as a composer, she has artistically developed such techniques as magnetic induction to realize her installations. Since 1986 she has added light as an artistic element to her work with sound.
Christina Kubisch's work displays an artistic development which is often described as the "synthesis of arts" - the discovery of acoustic space and the dimension of time in the visual arts on the one hand, and a redefinition of relationships between material and form on the other.
Two and Two was a live performance for two performers (Kubisch and Plessi), two video cameramen, a wall of monitors and uncommon objects and instruments. Throughout the performances, people were invited to walk around and observe the live action in real time as close up images of the performance were projected on video screens and unusual objects as sound sources - a vibrator, water, swanee whistle, voice, contact microphone on ventilator, prepared alto flute, electronic metronome, waterjet on steeldrum - were sonically 'blown up' through self invented systems of amplification. The resulting four pieces on this 1977 recording alternate between heavenly, rhythmically shifting drones to gamelan tinged blistering electronics that sound like distant, corrupted morse code dispatches. The entire album is an organic revelation of the discreet acoustic nature of everyday objects, intensely mechanical, startling and elemental.
Christina Kubisch & Fabrizio Plessi - Tempo liquido (1979). Tempo liquido is one of a series of video performances created by the visual artist Fabrizio Plessi and myself between 1974 and 1980. In these works video images were transferred live while I (and sometimes Plessi) performed on musical instruments and/or other objects. Tempo Liquido is a piece about the concept of time. The basis is the form of the circle as a symbol for continuity and timelessness, which I always was fascinated with and which I used in several compositions such as "The circle which bites its tail" for voice and percussion (1974). The idea of musical compositions without a precise beginning nor end, pieces which could go on for ever, pieces where you can enter and leave following your individual pace always fascinated me. Pieces with circular time structures somehow anticipated the idea of my later sound installations. The experience of the video concerts was a step towards leaving the stage as a performer and to create sound ambients without time limits. "Tempo Liquido" in performance was much longer than on the recording, but we were limited to the duration of an LP and the splitting into two parts. Thus we had to shorten the piece and divide it in the middle. I still regret this, because the slow and continuous development of the whole musical process had to alterated in order to fit on the record.The visual elements of the performance consisted in a projection of various images of circles out of different cultures and eras. These slides were projected without a precise order on two large sceens above the performers. There were also the continuous projections of two super 8 films, showing a toy ship swimming around in a small plastic water pool, which we had filmed ourselves.Plessi and I were sitting together behind a table with a quite sophisticated double set-up of glass panes situated vertically in a small water basin. The video cameras were directed towards the glass and transmitted the images of a continous stream of water flowing down over the outer surface of the glass. In order to realize this we explored all the aquatic shops of Milan and became quite experts about water pumps, aquarium sizes, filter systems etc. The images on the monitors gave the feeling of an ever running waterfall and it was amazing to compare it to the "real" construction made of everyday items - a contrast we had already focused on in our first video performance. At the beginning and the end of the piece there was also the image of a large clock, which we approached from the other side of the glass until the "time" was recognizable behind the water and then slowly disappeared again. All the sounds had a connection with the circle . The performance started with a four-channel ambient sound which continued throughout the whole performance. I had no sampling possibilities at that time. All the instruments were recorded solo in my studio on a Revox machine. The recordings - one channel for each instrument - were repeated several times in order to create a kind of "mega-loop" and the final result was transferred to a four-channel-tape for the performance. The superimposition of the sequences of different durations generated layers of sound with continous minimal variations: a music which could go on forever. All the instruments had a circular shape: the sho was brought from Japan by a friend, the steel-drum came from New York (we had used it already in "Two & Two") and the childrens carillon was found on a street market in Italy. The glass was the basis for the image of the running water but as well an acoustic instrument.The glass sheets were amplified by contact microphones fixed directly onto the glass and connected to the four speaker system. It was brought to resonance with metal thimbles (objects which originally I had used for a flute piece called "Emergency Solos" in 1973) placed on the index finger of the right hand. Thus I (and Plessi) traced segments of circular forms on the glass, repeating them again and again with many variations from a quarter of a circle to a complete round. Every movement of the metal on the rough surface corresponds to a direct sound. Its duration, colour and loudness depended on the velocity, pressure and form of our gestures. In a way it was like painting acoustic signals. The continuous circular movement on the glass in the middle of the performance created a loud, harsh and almost frightening sound which was in contrast to the image of the small and almost fragile object which created it. The scores show the various possibilities of tracing circles on a rough surface, thus making it audible. The four sheets show the basic idea of creating a great variety of combinations and variations using at the same time a limited reservoir of material. This is on one hand typical for the minimal music of the seventies but as well I have always liked to use reduced materials and explore it to its limits. So I used for example sound materials as the original sounds of a glass harmonica or a series of tuning forks. These scores from 1978 have never been shown and it was a surprise to rediscover them and find a lot of similarities to my actual work. Christina KubischChristina Kubisch was born in Bremen in 1948. She studied music, painting and electronics. Performances and concerts until 1980, subsequently sound installations, sound sculptures and work with ultraviolet light. Numerous grants and awards, such as Award of the German Industrial Association (BDI), composition grant of the city of Berlin, Carl Djerassi Honorary Fellowship, IASPIS Stockholm.Since 1974 solo exhibitions in Europe, USA, Australia, Japan and South America. Participation in international festivals and group exhibitions such as : Pro Musica Nova, Bremen 1976 /1980, Für Augen und Ohren, Berlin 1980, Biennale of Venice, 1980 / 1982, Gaudeamus Music Festival 1984, documenta 8, Kassel 1987, Ars Electronica, Linz 1987, Steirischer Herbst, Graz 1987, Biennale of Sydney 1990, Donaueschinger Musiktage, 1993 /1997, Prison Sentences, Philadelphia 1995, Sonambiente, Berlin 1996, in medias res, Istanbul 1997, festival d'art sonor, Barcelona 1999, Sonic Boom, London 2000, Visual Sound, Pittsburgh 2001, Singuhr-Hörgalerie, berlin 2002.Christina Kubisch is a professor of sculpture and audio/visual arts at the Academy of Fine Arts, Saarbrücken, since 1994 and a member of the Akademie der Künste Berlin since 1987.She lives in Berlin. She belongs to the first generation of sound artists. Trained as a composer, she has artistically developed such techniques as the magnetic induction to realize her sound installations. Since 1986 the artist has added light as an artistic element to her work with sound. Christina Kubisch's work displays an artistic development which is often described as the "synthesis of arts" - the discovery of acoustic space and the dimension of time in the visual arts on the one hand, and a new relationship between material and form in music on the other.
Andrea Tich - Masturbati (1978). Here's a great Cramps records release from 1977. I couldn't get much info about Andrea Tich as most of those found were in Italian language (and it's not my strong point for sure).The record is a weird Zappa-esque twisted rock and ballads with much progressive blend and experimental hints, well hidden behind compositions. I guess Italian people and those speaking Italian language will enjoy it more as they will understand the lyrics which are satyrical referring to gay life (that's all I could understand, from descriptions, with my poor italian).
Overall a very essential LP.
Ataraxia - Prophetia (1990). Ataraxia is an Italian trio which occupies the fine-art end of the neo-gothic spectrum and produces a rich tapestry of music and song incorporating folk, mediaeval, renaissance, baroque, and classical elements.
Formed in 1985, it consists of Francesca Nicoli (vocals, lyrics, flutes, drum machine), Vittorio Vandelli, (classical, acoustic, electric and synth guitars; drum-machine; lyrics) and Giovanni Pagliari (keyboards, synth, piano, pipe-organ, lyrics).
The group's performance is characterised by the prominence of Francesca's strong voice which is blended with both modern and traditional instruments. Her accent has a distinctively strong 'r', which is of course a feature of Italian but also strangely suggestive of English rural accents. In some songs her voice rises into little screams in punk fashion: in others she hits the high notes with a Kate Bush-style warble.
They have produced a number of tapes and CDs and a vinyl, and have featured on numerous compilations including My Castle's "Onore Alle Arti". Francesca also provided vocals for three of the tracks on Camerata Mediolanense's "Musica Reservata".
This is the very first release of this exceptional, much Dead Can Dance inspired band. Listen to the dark medieval soundscapes blended with Francesca Nicoli's wonderful voice.
Note this tape has been ripped as side a and b ... non separated tracks. So here's the tracklisting:
- Visionary side -
Prophetia
Anno Domini MDLVI
In Articulo Mortis
May, 16th 1980
Hommage Funèbre
- Chimerical side -
Kastamonu
Ozymandias
Nocturnal Euthanasia
Teuflische Mosaikarbeit
Boneschi Electronic Combo - Sounds electronic (1973). Great LP of library electronic music that sometimes is funny and naive but in some parts very weird reminding Residents era recordings. No infos found of who is behind this project but rumours want it to be Nino Nardini. A song from here was chosen by Luke Vibert and was included in his Nuggets series.
