Yazoo / Sudeten Creche / Colour Me Pop – Europe In The Year Zero [12''] (1982, S/Phonograph)

 

There’s something very early-80s UK about 'Europe In The Year Zero'; a snapshot of a moment when synth-pop hadn’t fully hardened into chart formula yet and still felt like a loose network of experiments, small labels and odd collaborations. This record came out in 1982 on the tiny S/Phonograph imprint. It’s a five-track compilation 12" with two cuts by Colour Me Pop, two by Sudeten Crèche, and a crucial early track by Yazoo. Only around 8,000 copies were pressed, which already tells you the scale: this wasn’t aimed at mainstream radio, it was more like a document of a scene in motion. 

What really gives the release its weight is the Yazoo connection. They were barely getting started at the time -Vince Clarke had just left Depeche Mode and teamed up with Alison Moyet in early 1982. Their track “Goodbye 70’s” appears here in a unique version, and this EP is often considered their first official appearance on vinyl, predating the full impact of 'Upstairs at Eric’s'. So you’ve got this odd situation where a soon-to-be massive act is sitting alongside much more obscure names.

 
One of those obscure names is Sudeten Creche, who basically orbit the whole project. They formed around 1980 as a kind of conceptual, semi–art-school experiment driven by Yvette Döll and Paul Carlin. Their tracks “Are Kisses Out of Fashion?” and “Dance” land right in that minimal wave zone: cold, sparse, slightly detached. That EP is actually their debut, and it also doubles as a launchpad for Yazoo, which says a lot about how blurred the lines were between projects at the time.

 
Then there’s Colour Me Pop, a short-lived act that had previously gone under the name Watch With Mother. Their tracks (“When Sex Was Fun” and “Bikini Trauma”) bring a more playful, slightly tongue-in-cheek new wave energy, but still sit comfortably in that DIY synth scene. They never reached the visibility of Yazoo, and even compared to Sudeten Crèche they feel more like a side branch than a core node, which makes their presence here even more tied to the label’s curatorial vibe. 

S/Phonograph itself is part of that story. It wasn’t a major player; more like a small, almost one-off vehicle connected to Illuminating Music and distributed through indie channels. The EP even had a loose political angle, with references to anti-nuclear sentiment (“No Nukes” appears in the notes), which fits with the early-80s UK underground where music, art and activism often overlapped. 

Put it all together and the record feels less like a traditional release and more like a junction point. You’ve got the future chart success of Yazoo just beginning to surface, the minimal synth underground represented by Sudeten Crèche, and a fringe pop act like Colour Me Pop filling out the edges. It captures that narrow window where synth-pop hadn’t yet split into mainstream and underground lanes, and everything was still happening in the same small ecosystem.

 

 

Label: S/Phonograph – SPH1 

Format: Vinyl, 12", 45 RPM, Compilation 

Country: UK 

Released: Aug 1982 

Style: New Wave, Synth-pop, Minimal, Minimal Synth, Post-Punk 

 

Tracklist: 

A1 Colour Me Pop – When Sex Was Fun 

A2 Colour Me Pop – Bikini Trauma 

AA1 Yazoo – Goodbye 70's 

AA2 Sudeten Creche – Are Kisses Out Of Fashion? 

AA3 Sudeten Creche – Dance! 

 

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Broken Paws – Broken Paws [Cass] (1986, Broken Paw Music)

The 'Broken Paws' cassette from 1986 is one of those fascinating artifacts from Canada’s underground home-taping era that seems to hover just outside mainstream documentation. Released as a self-titled tape, Broken Paws emerged from Calgary, Alberta at a time when independent musicians were embracing cassette culture as an affordable and creatively liberating format. Rather than pursuing traditional label routes, artists in this scene often recorded, duplicated, and distributed their music themselves, resulting in small runs that have since become rare collector’s pieces.

 
Behind the project was Richard Reynols, who used Broken Paws as a personal outlet for experimentation. The cassette captures the spirit of mid-1980s DIY electronic music: minimal synth textures, drum machine rhythms, and analog synth explorations woven together with a distinctly homemade aesthetic. There’s a rawness to the production that reflects both the limitations and the charm of home recording technology at the time. Unconventional touches -such as the inclusion of clarinet or even music box sounds- add a layer of unpredictability that makes the tape feel exploratory rather than polished. 

Clocking in at over an hour, the cassette follows the generous runtime typical of the format. Tracks such as “It’s All Made Sound,” “Slander,” “Closed Eyes,” and “Street Life” suggest a mixture of introspective mood pieces and rhythm-driven synth sketches. Like many releases from the cassette underground, official documentation is scarce.

 

 

Label: Broken Paw Music – bP1 

Format: Cassette, Limited Edition 

Country: Canada 

Released: 1986 

Style: Minimal, Experimental, Minimal Wave, Industrial, Post-Punk 

 

Tracklist: 

A1 It's All Made Sound 5:16 

A2 Sleeping In Surveilance 1:12 

A3 The Drive 3:31 

A4 Closed Eyes 4:05 

A5 My Sins 5:03 

A6 Movement One 1:42 

A7 Slander 5:05 

A8 So Frail Your Wings 3:25 

B1 Street Life 4:28 

B2 Watch 6:12 

B3 A Rising Soul 3:00 

B4 Water 3:15 

B5 Transition 3:52 

B6 Demensions From The Crib 3:54 

B7 Making Films 4:30 

B8 Red Sky (Short Version) 1:58 

 

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L'Aventure Imaginaire – La Fin De L'Innocence [LP] (1982, Not On Label)

'La Fin de l’Innocence' is an obscure and very limited vinyl LP from the early 1980s by L’Aventure Imaginaire, a band with a French name but actually based in Germany. The record was self-released sometime between 1980 and 1982, without an official label, and only about 300 copies were pressed. Because of this extremely small run, it has become a sought-after item among collectors of underground electronic music. 

Musically, the album fits into the minimal synth and dark wave world, with touches of early synth-pop and experimental electronics. It has that raw, DIY feel typical of early ’80s European underground scenes, where artists were more focused on atmosphere and experimentation than polish or commercial appeal. 

The tracklist is full of evocative and sometimes surreal titles, ranging from romantic and melancholic pieces to more abstract, experimental ones. Songs like 'The Endless Armada of Red Frogs Is Crossing the Scottish Highlands', 'Paris Theme', 'One More Night', and the title track 'La Fin de l’Innocence' give the album a dreamlike, slightly mysterious character. 

Very little is known about the band itself, which adds to the album’s mystique. The project involved Nicole Zunker and Joachim Stender, with Stender later connected to other experimental electronic projects in Germany during the same period.

 
Overall, 'La Fin de l’Innocence' is one of those cult records that lives quietly in the background of music history -not famous, but deeply appreciated by listeners who enjoy rare, atmospheric, early electronic sounds. 

 

Label: Not On Label – RP 10217 

Format: Vinyl, LP, Limited Edition 

Country: Germany 

Released: 1982 

Style: Synth-pop, Minimal, Minimal Synth 

 

Tracklist: 

A1 The Endless Armada Of Red Frogs Is Crossing The Scottish Highlands 

A2 Pierrot And Columbine 

A3 Dance With Me (L'Espace De La Nuit) 

A4 Paris Theme A5 Cos I Love You 

A6 Athen 

B1 One More Night 

B2 The Only Sun I've Ever Seen 

B3 La Fin De L'Innocence 

B4 L'Aventure Imaginaire 

B5 Perfect Creatures 

B6 Todeskommando Im Hexenkessel 

B7 Kubistic Jungle 

 

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Excentrique Noiz – Dark Crystal Day [7''] (1986, Ex Record)

Gothic Rock band Excentrique Noiz formed in Japan in 1982 and disbanded in 1996, founders of Noiz Record and EX Record. Members were Takashi Sekine (vocals, keyboards, drum machine), Yoshiro Osone (vocals, guitar), Shigeo Kanamori (bass), Mitsuhiro Matsuzaki (drums), Makoto Kitai (guitar, chorus), Kazumi Kurihara (effects) and Haruhisa Kondou (drums). In 1984 vocalist Yoshiro leaves, and keyboardist Takashi Sekine (also member of Nubile) then becomes the new vocalist. This is a self-released 7" recorded at Studio Showa 03/1986.

 

Label: Ex Record – EXN-0001 

Format: Vinyl, 7", 45 RPM, Single 

Country: Japan 

Released: Jun 1986 

Style: New Wave, Coldwave, Minimal, Synth-pop, Post-Punk, Goth Rock

 

Tracklist: 

A Dark Crystal Day 

B In・ Dis ・Tree 

 

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Collective Horizontal – Crap Game [7''] (1979, Dolmen Records)

Collective Horizontal formed in London by Adrian "Ada" Taylor (vocals), Igor [Simon Pearce/Paris] (keyboards, also in Take It and Blue Screaming), Keith Whitehorn (guitar) and Nag [Stephen Lee] (bass). This is their only record, a wonderfully strange and unique thing. It's like a cross between art school UK post-punk, early Pink Floyd, and a small band of beachcombers who stumbled upon an old waterlogged accordian on the shore, picked it up to discover it still worked, and started making up songs on the spot. [SOURCE: RATE YOUR MUSIC]

 
 

 

Label: Dolmen Records – none 

Format: Vinyl, 7", 45 RPM, Mono 

Country: UK 

Released: 1979 

Style: New Wave, Experimental, Minimal, Post-Punk, Zolo, Experimental Rock 

 

Tracklist: 

Off-Side 

A1 Crap Game 1:05 

A2 Slow Guns 1:40 

A3 Edward's Leer 3:30 

Sea-Side 

B1 Beach Coma 3:10 

B2 Tortured Meanderings 2:30 

 

Notes: 

Recorded 'live' in a studio in mono. 

 

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→ ↑ → – Muzak, Rock & Minimalism [LP] (1984, Present Records)

 

→ ↑ → (pronounced as three clicks, often written incorrectly as "Tsk Tsk Tsk" or "Tch Tch Tch") was an Australian music, art and performance group, best known for their experimental music. They formed in Melbourne in 1977 and were led by Philip Brophy. The group performed music, produced artwork, films, videos, live theatre, multi-media, and wrote literature. The Melbourne suburb of Clifton Hill's Community Music Centre, an artist run space focused on the performance of new sound art and experimental music, was the base for Philip Brophy's project, → ↑ →. Sometimes compared to Andy Warhol's Factory collective, the group provided experimental music (Brophy on drums or synthesiser), films, videos, and live theatrical performances exploring his aesthetic and cultural interests, often on a minimal budget.

 

→ ↑ → were often seen as working with Roland Barthes theory of "The Death of The Author". They were primarily interested in demystifying creative practices and analysing cultural phenomenons, stripping them down to their most basic defining characteristics. Musically the group touched upon a wide range of experimental styles including minimalism, punk rock, muzak, krautrock and disco, usually with no vocalist, which frustrated countless music audiences. Although they were regularly performing and presenting music and performances in art spaces like the Clifton Hill Community Music Centre and even the National Gallery of Victoria, → ↑ → frequently played with post-punk and new wave bands, including The Boys Next Door at pubs like the Crystal Ballroom in St. Kilda to non-art audiences. 'Muzak Rock & Minimalism' is compilation of shorts for the first 3 → ↑ → EPs which were released on a compilation LP on Present records. [SOURCE: WIKIPEDIA]

 

 

Label: Present Records – PRE-001 

Format: Vinyl, LP, Compilation 

Country: Australia 

Released: 1984 

Style: New Wave, Art Rock, Experimental, Minimal 

 

Tracklist: 

Muzak: "Venitian Rendezvous" 

A1 Sportello 

A2 Lampadina 

Rock: "Nice Noise" 

A3 Doing Very Little 

A4 Nice Noise Theme 

Minimalism: "→ ↑ →" 

A5 One Note Song 

Muzak: "Venitian Rendezvous" 

B1 Pallini 

B2 Canzona Di Una Notta 

Rock: "Nice Noise" 

B3 Rock Song 

B4 One Note Song 

Minimalism: "→ ↑ →" 

B5 Only Quantity Counts 

 

Notes: 

Track B4 is correctly titled "One Note Song" on the label, incorrectly titled "Nice Noise Theme" on the sleeve. 

 

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Underground Life – Away [7''] (1983, Suono Records)

Underground Life were formed in 1977, during the punk era, with a temporary formation of young musicians, founded by the drummer Lorenzo LaTorre. Singer Giancarlo Onorato joined the band last. In 1979 they released their first 45, 'Noncurance / Blackout!' on the Disco Ivoire label, exposed in the windows of London's Rough Trade shop as “italian punk rock”. In 1980 followed a hard-to-find tape, 'I Fiori Del Male'. After some live shows, they released the 12" 'The Cross' (1981) on Trinciato Forte Records and their first LP 'The Fox' (1982) on Suono Records. After joining the legendary I.R.A. Records labels, some more albums were released, including two tracks for the compilation 'Catalogue Issue' (1984) shared with Litfiba, Diaframma and Moda. Musically the sound of Undeground Life were between the classical new wave sounds and the minimal synth stuff. [SOURCE: LAST.FM]

 
 

 

Label: Suono Records – SR 7124 

Format: Vinyl, 7", 45 RPM 

Country: Italy 

Released: 1983 

Style: Minimal, Darkwave, Italo-Disco, Synth-pop, Post-Punk, Goth Rock

 

Tracklist:

A Away 

B Le Vol 

 

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Reducers – Airways [7''] (1980, EMI)

 

Reducers were a Punk band from Bury, Lancashire, formed in mid 1977 and signed to Vibes Records. They debuted with the 7" 'Things Go Wrong / We Are Normal' (Vibes, 1978), a classic mid tempo with a grungy bass driven single a la Stranglers with Lou Reed's "Vicious" melody with a lovely bored "1,2,3 4" intro. Extremely catchy melodic punk. Another single, 'Man With A Gun / Vengeance / Can't Stop Now' (Vibes, 1979) came with a sticker and strangely had A Side played at 45RPM and the B Side at 33RPM. The B Side tracks are the more interesting. One more single followed, 'Airwaves', from 1980 when the band had surprisingly signed to EMI and were suddenly a synth pop band. [SOURCE: PUNK77] 

 

Label: EMI – EMI 5028 

Format: Vinyl, 7", Single, 45 RPM 

Country: UK 

Released: 1980 

Style: New Wave, Minimal, Post-Punk, Minimal Wave, Minimal Synth

 

Tracklist:

A Airways 

B Waiting For No One Airways 

 

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Ex Post Facto – Ex Post Facto [7''] (1981, YinYang)

 

The group formed in early 1980 and featured Chris Clarke (a.k.a. Chrissie Clarke) on vocals, Frank Sparks on keyboards, joined by Paul Reason on guitar (also Keep It Dark), Bernie Carroll on bass (later of Young Lions), and Mark Coleridge on drums (The Stiffs, Glass Torpedoes). The band developed a synth-goth style that, if not totally original, was well representative of that period, combining keyboards with Siouxsie-like vocals. Between the year 1980 and 1983 the group released three singles. A testimony of the hectic live activity of the band is their only LP ('She’ll Rape the World’ recorded live at Pickwick’s (Liverpool) on April 25th, 1984. Earlier the same year Ex Post Facto also released a Peel Session. During live appearances guest musicians were Judith Laity (cello, also Royal Family & The Poor), Andy Warren (guitar and backing vocals, I-Lands), Karen Halewood (on keyboards, also Royal Family & The Poor), and Pete Chegwin (also on keyboards, Danse Macabre). [SOURCE: LAST.FM]

 

Label: YinYang – Y/Y 001 

Format: Vinyl, 7" 

Country: UK 

Released: 1981 

Style: New Wave, Minimal, Minimal Wave, Post-Punk

 

Tracklist:

A Ex Post Facto 

B Money 

 

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WAQ – Mira Por Donde [12''] (1983, MR)

Waq is one of the forgotten bands of the early 80s, formed in Madrid in 1981 by Miguel Bañuelos (vocals and synthesizers) and Antonio González (guitar, bass, drum machine and vocals). They have been labeled as naif synth-pop, making simple songs with ingenious texts backed with good bases of keyboard and guitars. 

 

In the middle of 1981 Miguel convinces his friend Antonio González to start the band, rehearsing that summer songs like "La Monja", "Smoking Rosa", and "Osa Mayor". On March 1982 they give their first show in Rock-Ola and on the following month they register their first demo in RNE. On June 1982 they recorded the videoclip of '"Ladrones de Juguetes", their most celebrated song, in the TVE show "Pista Libre". The next day Paco Martín, boss of the record label MR, called them to record his first EP.  

 

Antonio is called to the military service, so Miguel asks Guillermo Caso to take care of the guitars. On August they recorded 'Las Cebollas' on Doublewtronics. Miguel is also called to serve the country and in a permit (February 1983) they recorded "Toros Blancos" for a compilation, and another EP, 'Mira Por Donde'. [SOURCE: GRUPOS NACIONALES NUEVA OLA 80]

 

 

Label: MR – MF-600838 

Format: Vinyl, 12" 

Country: Spain 

Released: 1983 

Style: Synth-pop, Minimal 

 

Tracklist:

A1 S. I. 4:33 

A2 Nudo En La Garganta 2:41 

B1 Triturado 2:37 

B2 Lazibones Atravesando El Océano 2:31 

 

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Geile Tiere – Geile Tiere [LP] (1981, GeeBeeDee)

Geile Tiere was a band formed by artists Luciano Castelli and Wolfgang Ludwig Cihlarz aka Salomé. Both were protagonists of the neo-expressionist, young, anti-capitalist, anti-institutional and punk-influenced art scene of the late 1970s and 1980s in divided Berlin. They were painters, musicians and performers, came together through the Berlin designer Claudia Skoda and initially appeared together as performers. They eventually founded the band Geile Tiere and often performed at Dschungel, one of the legendary Berlin punk clubs of the time alongside SO36 and others. As part of the gay scene (Cihlarz was part of the Homosexual Action West Berlin (HAW)), they repeatedly used bodily motifs for their images and performances and created provocative, transgressive, drastic and shocking works. 

 

This is indeed a very experimental electro album from those good old days. Lots of analog synth sounds, sound collages, electric chirping and only partially comprehensible lyrics. German avant-garde from the time of the Cold War. Absolutely on the edge of good taste and yet still interesting. “Place des Alpes” is still danceable even today and is definitely an insider tip for any avant-garde art party. Recommended also “Liebst Du Mich?”. A very record record for impressing your oh-so-“arty” friends. [SOURCE: Forschungsplattform – Künstlerpublikationen]

 

 

Label: GeeBeeDee – GBD 0022 

Format: Vinyl, LP, Album 

Country: Germany 

Released: 1981 

Style: Minimal, Experimental, Minimal Wave, Neue Deutsche Walle, Experimental Rock

 

Tracklist:

A1 Rosa / Hellblau 5:50 

A2 Ich Bin Ein Huhn 1:58 

A3 Place Des Alpes 5:15 

A4 Liebst Du Mich? 5:10 

A5 Supergeil 5:06 

B1 Plastic 3:53 

B2 Ausbildung 3:04 

B3 Interview 3:47 

B4 Kein Gefühl 5:34 

B5 Just In Case 3:33 

B6 Love You (Live) 2:47 

 

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Ohne.Unter.Titel – In Aller Munde [Cass] (1981, Das Casseten Combinat)

 

Ohne Unter Titel was an Neue Deutsche Welle and experimental band formed in Berlin. Members were Nina Hagen (vocals), Kiddy Citny, Leffy Leffringhausen (aka Lefty Flamingo, co-founder of Das Cassetten Combinat, co-owner of Combinatsstudio and musician member also of Frau Siebenrock Combo and Lemmy Und Die Schmöker), and Manon Pepita Duursma (also in Malaria!, Matador and Mutabor!). Also Known As Ohne Untertitel, O.U.T., O.U.T. Production or OUT Production, all their releases were issued by Das Cassetten Combinat, a very shortlived but influencial german cassette label, production company (O.U.T. Production), studio (Combinatsstudio) and shop from West Berlin, run mostly by Kiddy Citny and Leffy Leffringhausen in 1981, but also sometimes by other members of Ohne Unter Titel. 

 

 

Label: Das Cassetten Combinat – 0113, Das Cassetten Combinat – 81023 

Format: Cassette, C30 

Country: Germany 

Released: 1981 

Style: New Wave, Experimental, Synth-pop, Minimal 

 

Tracklist:

A1 Fremde Sprache 

A2 Genius 

A3 Kraft Und Mut 

A4 Keine Zeit 

B1 Bin Ich Denn Im Urwald 

B2 Blondes Ding 

B3 Sonie 

B4 Fragen Über Fragen 

 

Notes:

The catalog number is listed as "0113" on the cover. It is actually "81023". 

The tracklisting on the cover is different from the actual appearance of the individual tracks. The listing here on discogs reflects the actual running order and appearing tracks. 

 

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Kuruki – Action [12''] (1984, Zip Zap Records)

Kuruki was almost a solo project, by Ghent-based musician Gerry D'Haeyer. The single 'Crocodile Tears', printed in 1981, was fun and interesting, a one hit wonder. Then followed three 12" ('Such A Liar', 'Action' and 'Souvenir, Souvenir') and 'Just A Cat' in 1983, which was recorded with Alan Gevaert and Chris Whitley of A Noh Rodeo, and a full-length album in 1984, 'TV Scape'. Gerry D'Haeyer later went on to play drums with blues musician Roland Van Campenhout.

 

 

Label: Zip Zap Records – ZZ 5821 

Format: Vinyl, 12", 45 RPM 

Country: Belgium 

Released: 1984 

Style: Synth-pop, Minimal 

 

Tracklist:

A Action Part I 4:45 

B Action Part II 4:53

 

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→ ↑ → – → ↑ → [7''] (1980, Innocent)

Minimalism was the first live → ↑ → project. Bluntly labelled, it approached Minimalist music not as a transcendental practice, but as an unforgiving and undeveloping manifestation of static music. Approached with Duchampian zeal and Warholian perversity, it announced → ↑ →'s modus operandi as a quixotic meld of severe experimentalism and intellectual playfullness. Minimalism took the non-humanist route and revelled in the nothingness one could become by playing such music.

 
The Minimalism set was developed in the midst of Punk's early stirrings. History tends to portray Punk as yet another youthful, energetic, radical social phenomenon -endlessly remembered by withered 'I-was-there' media hustlers- but it was just as restrictive, jingoistic, dogmatic and anti-intellectual as everything it claimed to destroy and debunk. Its saving grace was its connection to performance art and a pretentious flaunting of politicised thought. In such an environment, Philip envisioned his take on Minimalist music as perfectly not fitting in to the dominant 3-chord brigade of wild-youth expressionism. The key influence -as with all → ↑ → projects- was the ideas of Marcel Duchamp and Andy Warhol. The Minimalism project is best viewed as Duchamp writing distilled slivers of pop music, with the resulting compositions performed by 4 clones of Andy Warhol. Repetition, anti-humanism, insularity and dilettantism governed all. For Philip in particular, the most entertaining recourse to radicalism was to be as normal and nothing as possible.

 
"On the whole, minimalism is a comparative concept -only taking in a productive meaning when related to a concept of 'maximalism' (i.e., the similarities to and differences between Philip Glass and Arnold Schoenberg). Our view of Minimalism is one based on the problematics of the History of Music, as the relationship between Glass and Schoenberg is first and foremost historical rather than musical. Minimalism looks at the ultimate basics of the History of the Western Diatonic Tonal Systems (the music grammar and language that we have all been brought up on), focusing on the effects of a single repeated melody; very slow volume fade-ins and fade-outs; single notes held for long periods of time; etc. Thus the music is not the result of experimenting with minimal procedeures to generate a stylistic type of music that can be categorized as "minimal". Our minimal music is more concerned with looking at basic harmony through a microscope. A simple way of describing it then is music in extreme close-up." [SOURCE: PHILIPBROPHY.COM]

 

 

Label: Innocent – none 

Format: Vinyl, 7", 33 ⅓ RPM, EP, White Label 

Country: Australia 

Released: Mar 3, 1980 

Style: Minimal, Experimental 

 

Tracklist:

A Only Quantity Counts 

B One Note Song + Most Things Don't Really Matter 

 

Notes:

There are no catalogue numbers for Innocent releases #1-5+7. This is the 7th label release in an edition of 300. According to official Innocent 1981 catalogue: "Two pieces dealing with Minimalism. Music in extreme close-up." Comes in a normal glossy sleeve. Label on A-side has arrows stamped, label on B-side stamped: Thirty Three & A Third R.P.M. Side:A. (sic!) 

This release is also known as "Minimalism" because the music comes from the Minimalism project. 

 

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Tableau Noir – Correspondances [LP] (1986, Not On Label)

'Correspondances' is the only album, self-released, by French band Tableau Noir, formed by Yasmine (backing vocals), Patrick Ambulante (bass), Thierry Cordier (guitar, vocals), Bernard Mikaélian (keyboards) and David Girardi (vocals, drum programming) and produced by Jacques Pinon and keyboardist Bernard Mikaélian. 'Correspondances' is a rare but great Minimal Synth / New-Wave concept album based on lyrics from Charles Baudelaire's "Fleurs Du Mal", sung in French in a Daniel Darc fragile and captivating vein. Music comes with some Taxi-Girl's 'Seppuku' vibes to more minimal synth tracks. A must in every synth-pop collection. [SOURCE: DISCOGS]

 

 

Label: Not On Label – BAU.86 

Format: Vinyl, LP, Album 

Country: France 

Released: 1986 

Style: New Wave, Synthwave, Minimal, Art Rock, Minimal Synth

 

Tracklist:

A1 Correspondances 

A2 Le Voyage 

A3 Le Reniement De St Pierre 

A4 Lesbos 

B1 L'Albatros 

B2 Sed Non Satiata 

B3 La Mort Des Amants 

B4 Le Serpent Qui Danse 

B5 Les Bijoux 

 

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Kosmonautentraum – Liebesmühn [7''] (1982, Zickzack)

 

Kosmonautentraum is a music project founded in 1980 by the singer Ziggy XY (aka Michael Jarick) and drummer E.K.T. (then both at Der Moderne Man) in Hannover with a strong closeness to the genial dilletants from Berlin (Die Tödliche Doris, Einstürzende Neubauten, Sprung Aus Den Wolken, etc.). Kosmonautentraum published mostly on cassettes and on the ZickZack label, with changing accompanying musicians until the mid-1980s. Ziggy XY also published a volume of poetry titled "Der Deutsche" and published together with E.K.T. the fanzine "Heute", which contained mostly collages and fictitious concert reviews and record reviews. [SOURCE: WIKIPEDIA] 

 

 

Label: Zickzack – ZZ 41 

Format: Vinyl, 7", 45 RPM, Stereo 

Country: Germany 

Released: Jan 1982 

 

Style: New Wave, Abstract, Minimal, Post-Punk, Neue Deutsche Welle

 

Tracklist:

A Kosmonautentraum Nr. 7 3:40 

B1 Kosmonautentraum Nr. 8 2:37 

B2 Kosmonautentraum Nr. 9 0:59 

 

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Various – 4 In 1 [Cass] (1982, Grafika Airlines)

'4 In 1' is the first of a series of compilations initiated by Alain Neffe (Belgian multi-instrumentalist, responsible for the Insane Music label and member of Bene Gesserit, Cortex, Human Dance, Human Flesh, Japanese Genius, Kosmose, La Maison Du Jardinier, Ornament & Crime Arkhestra, Pol Silentblock, Pseudo Code, Sic, Subject and The Chopstick Sisters). 4 groups share one format. 

 

Released on a variety of Belgian labels, the first compilation was this cassette '4 In 1' (1982), followed by an LP 'Four In One Vol. 2' (1982). The series was continued in 2012 with the release of a CD '4 In 1 Volume 3', a cassette '4 In 1 Vol.4' and lately a LP and CD '4 In 1 Volume 5'. 

 

This first release was issued on Grafika Airlines, a Belgian experimental cassette label from the eighties. GRAFIKA is the production department of Direct Impact Association (DIA), a Belgian non-profit organization and it's divided in four parts: Grafika Airlines (cassettes & graphic products; stopped end of 1982), Grafika Discs (records; created in June 82), Grafikaset (cassettes; starting January 83) and INSANE/GRAFIKA (cassettes compilation).

 

This tape features four bands: Mecanique Vegetale, a group that is an enigma -unclear if it is one man or one band; Pseudo Code, that are self-defined as playing "potlatch music", motivated more towards emotional expression than anything else and formed by Alain Neffe, Guy-Marc Hinan (one of the two men who formed the label Sub Rosa) and Xavier S.; Etat Brut, a pioneer industrial / noise band from Brussels that operated from 1979 until 1983 releasing a dozen of cassettes, various flyers and xeroxed booklets; and Human Flesh, founded in 1981 and one of the many disguises of Alain Neffe.

 

Label: Grafika Airlines – GRA11 

Series: 4 In 1

Format: Cassette, Compilation, C60 

Country: Belgium 

Released: 1982 

Style: Minimal, Industrial, Noise, Experimental, Ambient, Minimal Synth

 

Tracklist:

A1 Mecanique Vegetale – Incantations Cycliques 6:24 

A2 Mecanique Vegetale – Lamentations 1:32 

A3 Mecanique Vegetale – Zona Periodica 3:21 

A4 Mecanique Vegetale – Sick Soldier 3:00 

A5 Pseudo Code – Le Gange 14:25 

B1 Etat Brut – Sollicitation Extérieure 8:32 

B2 Etat Brut – Psychosomatique 5:08 

B3 Human Flesh – Total Recall 5:07 

B4 Human Flesh – T.I.N.A. 74 3:22 

B5 Human Flesh – Matin Promenade 4:20 

B6 Human Flesh – Airport (Your Selfish Mind) 2:23 

 

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Vorgruppe – Erste Auslese [7''] (1980, Monogram)

 

Vorgruppe was a Neue Deutsche Welle band from Herne, Germany, with a sound ranging between the hypnotic motorik of Krautrock and the Teutonic synth atmospherics of Kraftwerk. Formed in spring 1979, they played their first proper live gig at Jugendkunstschule Wanne-Eickel (15 Feb 1980). They released three albums from 1981 to 1986. Members: Bernd Schäumer (synths, also in Disque Omo), Detlef Ritz (vocals), Matthias Brauckmann (bass), Volker Stigge (guitar), Waldemar Hayduk (drums) and Wolfgang Hemprich (bass). They changed their name to "The Vorgruppe" in 1986. [SOURCE: LAST.FM]

 

 

Label: Monogam – 004 

Format: Vinyl, 7", 45 RPM 

Country: Germany 

Released: Apr 1980 

Style: New Wave, Synth-pop, Minimal, Neue Deutsche Welle, Minimal Wave

 

Tracklist:

A1 Menschenkinder 2:46 

A2 Liebe Oder Hass 3:37 

B Langer Abend 5:30 

 

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Games – Dance This Way [7''] (1982, Open Eye Records)

 

Games were a pioneering three-piece synth-pop outfit, formed in 1980 and consisting of Brendan Coyle (synthesisers, percussion, vocals), Colin Hughes (synthesisers, percussion, organ, vocals) and Steve Knott (synthesisers, guitar, vocals), from Wirral, UK. The same year, they self-released their first 7" single 'Childsplay' followed by a contribution of the two tracks "Unrest In The Real World" and "The Song" to the 'Street To Street Volume Two' LP compilation on Liverpool's Open Eye Records in 1981. Then the band fell apart with Steve moving on under the Games moniker including new band members. Their 7" single 'Dance This Way/Love Canal' still saw its release in 1981. Brendan and Colin moved on as Zephyr In The Swamp, Brendan also played in Some Detergents, and Colin in Sense Of Vision.

 
Games were truly ahead of their time and quite unique in that they played credible well-crafted pop songs in a purely electronic style. They did not ride the wave of synth-pop, they were the early creators. The stories of the band waiting outside Hessy’s famous music store in Liverpool waiting for their orders of the Roland SH-09 to be delivered, emphasised that they were the zealots of the synthesiser phenomenon which was to change pop music forever. Looking back their commitment enthusiasm and industry was truly remarkable. Ironically the songs were not dry and mechanical. The crude monophonic synths and very early Dr. Rhythm drum machine were used creatively to produce memorable, dramatic and emotional pop songs. Games truly were visionaries and pioneers. They never got the credit they deserved because they were not in the right place at the right time and lacked the contacts good management could have provided.

This single was recorded at Open Eye Studio, Liverpool in 1981 and released the same year. The tracks were recorded by Dave Hutchman and Steve Knott on a Studer A80 8-track machine. Wayne Hussey played guitar; Brian Rawling played drums; Dave Hutchman played trumpet on "Love Canal"; and Steve Knott played synthesisers, sang, and wrote the songs (published by BMG-Chrysalis). The tracks were produced and mixed by the band, and the single was mastered by Tim Young at CBS in London. The label graphic and typesetting were done by Alex Plain and the sleeve graphic was drawn by Steve Knott (based on dance notation). The Games logo is based on the Omni typeface. The track "Love Canal" is an edited version, the full version contains an extra verse (unreleased). [SOURCE: DISCOGS]

 

 

Label: Open Eye Records – OE 007 

Format: Vinyl, 7" 

Country: UK 

Released: 1982 

Style: New Wave, Synth-pop, Minimal, Minimal Wave, Minimal Synth

 

Tracklist: 

A Dance This Way 

B Love Canal 

 

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