Coma = コーマ – In A Coma.... [7''] (1985, ADK Records)

 

Released in 1985, 'In A Coma….' is a rare 7-inch single/EP by the Japanese underground band Coma (コーマ). Issued on the independent label ADK Records, the record stands as a small but intriguing artifact from Japan’s mid-1980s post-punk movement. Like many releases from that era’s DIY scene, it was pressed in limited quantities and circulated primarily within underground networks, which helps explain its scarcity today. 

'In A Coma….' reflects the darker, mood-driven aesthetics that defined much of the global post-punk sound during the early to mid-1980s. Contemporary commentary, including mentions in the influential punk zine Maximum Rocknroll, noted the band’s resemblance to the tense, brooding style of Killing Joke. That comparison places Coma within a lineage of bands that fused punk’s raw urgency with heavy, atmospheric guitar textures and a brooding rhythmic foundation. While reviewers at the time considered the record competent rather than groundbreaking, its sound captured the restless experimental spirit that characterized Japan’s underground rock scene.

 
The mid-1980s Japanese independent circuit was vibrant and diverse, with small labels like ADK Records documenting a range of punk and post-punk acts. Bands such as GISM, Cobra, and The Stalin are often cited as defining figures of the era, yet many lesser-known groups -Coma among them- contributed to the broader sonic landscape. These artists experimented freely, blending Western influences with local sensibilities and creating records that now serve as time capsules of a fiercely independent cultural moment.

 

Label: ADK Records – ADK-25E 

Format: Vinyl, 7", 33 ⅓ RPM, Stereo 

Country: Japan 

Released: 1985 

Style: Goth Rock, Post-Punk, Deathrock 

 

Tracklist: 

A1 Isolation 4:23 

A2 Cyinder 3:04 

B1 Coda 3:01 

B2 In A Coma.... 3:50 

 

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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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Another Green World – Adjusting The Mirror [Cass] (1992, Not On Label)

'Adjusting The Mirror' is a fairly obscure cassette release from 1992, issued in the UK under the name Another Green World. It was self-released, which usually means it was produced independently and likely in a small batch. In the early ’90s, that kind of DIY cassette culture was still very much alive, especially within experimental, ambient, and underground electronic circles. Artists would often duplicate tapes themselves or in very limited runs, distribute them by mail, or sell them at small gigs and through niche record shops. Because it wasn’t put out through a major or even well-known independent label, there isn’t a huge amount of documentation available. That scarcity is part of what gives releases like this a certain mystique. They tend to live on through collector databases and word of mouth rather than mainstream music archives. 

Stylistically, the project is generally associated with electronic and ambient sounds, with touches that have been described as downtempo and possibly influenced by folk or world textures. That suggests something atmospheric and layered rather than song-based in a traditional pop sense. Early ’90s ambient and experimental electronic music often leaned toward mood and texture -synth washes, field recordings, minimal rhythms, and introspective tones- so it likely sits somewhere in that sonic territory. 

The name "Another Green World" can definitely cause confusion, since most people immediately think of Brian Eno’s 1975 album of the same title. However, this cassette is completely unrelated. The shared name appears to be more of an artistic nod or coincidence rather than a direct connection to Eno’s work.

 

Label: Not On Label (Another Green World Self-released) – AGW 003 GWM 

Format: Cassette, Album 

Country: UK 

Released: 1992 

Style: Downtempo, Ambient, New Age, Progressive Electronic

 

Tracklist: 

A1 The Pilot's Mirror 

A2 Polestalk 

A3 Elephant Eye 

B1 Shaman 

B2 Swipesy 

B3 Sakanaaji I 

B4 Sakanaaji II 

B5 Eau D'Erik 

 

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Various – Catalogue Issue [LP] (1984, IRA)

 

'Catalogue Issue' is a 1984 Italian various-artists compilation that holds a special place in the history of Italy’s alternative music scene. Released on vinyl by the independent label I.R.A. Records, it wasn’t just another compilation -it was actually the very first release by the label, making it something of a manifesto pressed to wax.

 
I.R.A. Records (often expanded as Immortal Rock Alliance or Immortal Record Alliance) was founded in 1984 by Alberto Pirelli along with Anne Marie Parrocel. The label had a clear mission from the start: to promote a new wave of Italian underground bands who sang in Italian at a time when many alternative acts felt pressured to perform in English. 'Catalogue Issue' perfectly captures that spirit. It was designed not only as a sampler of the label’s roster, but as a bold statement about the future of Italian independent music.

 
The LP features eight tracks split between four bands that would go on to become key names in the scene: Diaframma, Moda, Litfiba, and Underground Life. Diaframma appears with “Siberia” and “Delorenzo,” Moda contributes “Nubi d’Oriente” and “La Voce,” Litfiba shows up with “Onda Araba” and “Versante Est,” and Underground Life rounds things out with “India” and “Glasarchitektur.” All tracks were recorded at the Global Art System Studio in Florence, a place closely tied to the early development of this movement.

 
The release also had a strong visual identity. The cover artwork, designed by Fabio Galavotti of Moda Graphic Studio, played on the idea of a debut or launch -fitting for what was essentially the birth announcement of I.R.A. Records. The label even pushed the slogan “La nuova musica italiana cantata in italiano” (“the new Italian music sung in Italian”), underlining its cultural stance.

 
Never officially reissued, 'Catalogue Issue' remains a vinyl-only release, and original copies are now quite collectible. Some promotional versions were distributed as “Campione gratuito” (free sample) copies, which adds another layer of interest for collectors. Today, the record is seen as a landmark of the Italian new wave and post-punk era, capturing early material from bands like Litfiba and Diaframma before they became major names in Italy’s alternative rock history. 

 

Label: IRA – IR-LP2001 

Format: Vinyl, LP, Compilation 

Country: Italy 

Released: 1984 

Style: New Wave 

 

Tracklist: 

A1 Litfiba – Onda Araba 

A2 Litfiba – Versante Est 

A3 Moda – Nubi D'Oriente 

A4 Moda – La Voce 

B1 Diaframma – Siberia 

B2 Diaframma – Delorenzo 

B3 Underground Life – India 

B4 Underground Life – Glasarchitektur 

 

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Yoshinori Motoki / Junji Hirose – Chi-Chi-Chi-Nngacah [LP] (1984, Cacoon)

 

'Chi-Chi-Chi-Nngacah' is a collaborative album by Japanese experimental musicians Yoshinori Motoki and Junji Hirose, released in 1984 on the Cacoon label. Issued as a vinyl LP, it comes out of Japan’s early-1980s underground scene, where free improvisation, avant-garde jazz, and noise-based experimentation often blurred together. Today, it’s mostly known among collectors and listeners drawn to obscure and exploratory Japanese records. 

The record is built around long, open-ended improvisations rather than songs in a traditional sense. The title piece, “Chi-Chi-Chi-Nngacah,” takes up most of one side of the LP and unfolds in several connected parts. Sounds shift constantly, sometimes sparse and fragile, sometimes dense and chaotic. Instead of clear melodies or steady rhythms, the focus stays on texture, interaction, and the energy of the moment. 

Yoshinori Motoki brings in a wide range of instruments and sound sources. These include reed-altered flutes, electric guitar, tapes, Casio-Tone keyboards, percussion, and toy instruments. His contributions move between playful, almost childlike sounds and rougher, more abrasive passages. Very little detailed information about Motoki is available, but this album places him clearly within Japan’s improvised and experimental circles of the time. 

Junji Hirose was already an important presence in Japanese free improvisation by this point. Starting out as a saxophonist, he later became known for using self-made and heavily modified instruments, along with found objects and unconventional noise sources. On this album, he works with junk materials, altered string instruments, percussion, and other nonstandard tools. His playing emphasizes physical sound and texture rather than technique in a conventional sense. 

The album feels less like a finished statement and more like a captured encounter between two curious and risk-taking performers. It reflects a period when Japanese experimental musicians were actively questioning what instruments, structure, and performance could be. For listeners interested in free improvisation, early Japanese noise, or raw avant-garde recordings, 'Chi-Chi-Chi-Nngacah' remains a striking and uncompromising document from that era. 

 

Label: Cacoon – CACOON-003 

Format: Vinyl, LP 

Country: Japan 

Released: 1984 

Style: Free Improvisation 

 

Tracklist: 

A1 Chi-Chi-Chi-Nngacah (Parts 1 - 3) 19:26 

A2 Solo I (To Motoki) 3:00 

B1 To Apeiron 3:01 

B2 IRc2 3:13 

B3 Facing The New Morning 6:35 

B4 Raise Your First! 7:34 

B5 Solo II (To Hirose) 2:33 

 

Notes:  

Recorded at :- 

Kid Ailack Art Hall, Tokyo, June 23, 1983 (Side A). 

Akasaka International Artist Center, Tokyo, December 11, 1982 (B1 to B2). 

Terpsichore, Tokyo, June 25, 1983 (B3 to B4). 

Takoyaki-Ya, January 12, 1984 (B5). 

 

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Zones – Sign Of The Times [7''] (1978, Arista)

'Sign of the Times' is a 1978 single by the Scottish band Zones, a group that emerged from the late-1970s punk and new-wave scene. Zones were formed from the remains of PVC2, a band that once featured Midge Ure before he moved on to Rich Kids and later Ultravox. By the time this single was released, Zones were developing a sound that mixed punk urgency with melodic power pop and early new-wave influences.

 
The single came out in 1978 on Arista Records in the UK as a 7-inch vinyl release, with "Sign of the Times" on the A-side and "Away from It All" on the B-side. It followed their earlier single 'Stuck with You', which had gained them attention on BBC Radio 1 thanks to support from John Peel. That exposure helped the band secure their deal with Arista and brought them a bit more visibility within the UK underground scene. 

Although 'Sign of the Times' didn’t chart or achieve mainstream success, it’s often seen as a solid example of the band’s transition from raw punk toward a tighter, more polished new-wave style. Around this period, Zones recorded sessions for John Peel and built a modest reputation as a strong live act, even if wider commercial success remained elusive. 

Zones would go on to release their only album, 'Under Influence', in 1979, along with a few more singles, before splitting up later that year. Today, 'Sign of the Times' is remembered mainly by collectors and fans of late-1970s punk and new wave as a small but interesting snapshot of that era’s restless, fast-moving music scene. 

 

Label: Arista – Arist 205, Arista – ARIST 205 

Format: Vinyl, 7", 45 RPM, Single 

Country: UK 

Released: 1978 

Style: New Wave, Power Pop 

 

Tracklist: 

A Sign Of The Times 3:12 

B Away From It All 2:28 

 

Other Versions: 

'Sign Of The Times' (7", 45 RPM, Single, Stereo) Arista, EMI Electrola [1C 006-61 598] (Germany, 1978)

'Sign Of The Times' (7", Single, 45 RPM) Arista [5C 006-61598] (Netherlands, 1978)

 

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