Review: Angelyne sophomore LP, Driven to Fantasy is the latest great album to get reissued as part of Dark Entries' 15th-anniversary celebration. Defined by her voluptuous, Barbie-esque allure and hot pink Corvette, Angelyne emerged as an enigmatic figure in 1984 who graced LA billboards with a provocative presence. The mystique and allure around her built to a peak and culminated in this second solo album released in 1986. Featuring eight tracks of bubblegum-hued new wave, Angelyne blends LA punk grit with flashy synth-pop on sassy titles like 'Sex Goddess' and 'Skin Tight.' This cult classic, now pressed on pink Corvette-coloured vinyl, includes a 2-sided poster with lyrics and commemorates the legacy of a true Hollywood legend.
Review: Bezier returns to Dark Entries with Valencia, a six track rumination on memory, geography, and transmutation. Multi-instrumentalist Robert Yang's Bezier project has appeared on Dark Entries many times over the last decade, most recently with the 2018 LP Parler Musique. Says Yang, "What started as a project to investigate the love of the sound and scenery while living in San Francisco quickly developed into a passionate search for interlocking melodies and driving rhythms." On Valencia, Bezier invokes twinned places. The Valencia Street of San Francisco is channeled, which was the center of the city's vibrant new wave scene in the 1980s. But also echoed is Valencia, Spain, and La Ruta del Bakalao aka La Ruta Destroy, the Spanish clubbing scene throughout the 80s and 90s famed for its aggressive and synthetic sounds. Valencia is a darker record for Yang, exploring themes of submission and catharsis with nods to SF's gay leather bars of the 70s and 80s. The high BPM salvos of "Valencia" and "Scrupulous" capture the frantic energy of Bakalao and Valencian wave acts like Oltima Emocion. Elsewhere Yang mines the dreamy space disco and Hi-NRG sounds they're known for, like on the brooding "Past the Marshes" or the anthemic "Reservoir", which features their partner Len.Leo on vocals. Bezier deftly navigates past and present, light and dark, pain and pleasure, the stasis of memory and the flux of time. Valencia was mastered by Alex Michalski, with EQ for vinyl done by George Horn. Gwenael Rattke designed the sleeve, which features an 80's punk zine-esque geometric grid pattern mirroring San Francisco street maps. Also included is a 5x7 postcard with notes.
Review: Dark Entries have locked in Oakland band Blues Lawyer for a third full-length that offers plenty of big pop-roc moments. Like so much music out there right now, this record was put together during the pandemic and moves away from the handle pop of their earlier work towards a more 90s-infused alt-rock sound. It's an album built on breezy melodies and easy-going grooves that range from upbeat to laidback but are always smooth and enticing. The song craft is well-honed and the detail is tight as can be.
Review: Blues Lawyer returns to Dark Entries with a fresh new 7" that revives some late summer sun with lovely alt-pop grooves. This new one comes hot on the heels of their debut on this label and expands the Blues Lawyer universe across four tunes that were recorded in the final days before Elyse Schrock - the band's singer, songwriter, drummer, and music video creator - left her Bay Area home of ten years to head for somewhere cheaper to live. There are new songwriting styles evident here on tunes like 'True Love's Only Name' which guitarist Ellen Matthews developed with lyrics by Miller and singing from Schrock. It is one of a great mix of tracks that show real musical development from Blues Lawyer.
Review: Romanian producer and DJ Miruna Boruzescu aka Borusiade has always dealt in brilliantly futuristic sounds that are both austere yet hypnotic. Now they're back on Dark Entries with third full length THE FALL: A Series of Documented Experiences after many great outings on the likes of Comeme, Pinkman and Cititrax. This latest work explores memory and embodiment through nine moody tracks that blend melancholic synths, deep basslines and powerful drums into introspective soundscapes that muse on love and loss. We're told that 'Save Me' and 'The Fall' are born from heartbreak but distil pain into something beautiful while tributes to artists like Porn Darsteller and Genesis P-Orridge also appear in this fantastically personal album.
Review: Codek is the brainchild of Jean-Marie Salaun who grew up in Paris influenced by the folklore of the inner city. In 1978 he joined art rock group SpionS alongside Gregory Davidow and recorded two singles. Diving into the Paris post punk scene he met Claude Arto and designed the artwork for Claude's single on Celluloid "Kwai Systeme / Betty Boop." Robin Scott (M "Pop Music") had produced the SpionS first single and wanted to collaborate further. With Claude, Jean-Marie wrote "Me Me Me", intended for a choir, for M. Then SpionS split and Robin was off to Switzerland to record an album to follow-up his hit single. That left Jean-Marie alone in London, where he began working as Codek, a play on the brand name Kodak The "Me Me Me" single was released by MCA Records in 1980. Back in Paris, now with some studio experience, Celluloid Records hired Jean-Marie to produce records for Artefact and Les Orphelins. Over the next 2 years he began working on ideas for the next Codek single "Closer / "Tam Tam".
Review: In musical terms, Bill Converse is as iconic as the basketball sneaker with which he shares his name. He's a techno favourite and veteran of the Midwest scene who has come up under the likes of Claude Young and Traxx but very much fomented his own sound. Here the American ace returns to Dark Entries with a new seven-track exploration of raw, analogue-driven techno. His sound blends the acid grit of Relief Records, the hypnotic pulses of early IDM and Detroit's energy all with an unpredictability that mirrors that of his live sets. He makes fine use of classic hardware like the Roland TB-303 and modern modular synthesis to cook up off-kilter rhythms and abrupt shifts that keep you on edge. Another vital and visceral offering from this legend.
Review: Much is made of the love that Bill Converse from Austin, Texas, has for classic music making hardware (as opposed to the computer-based solutions most find convenient these days), but at the end of the day it's the results he gets rather than the means that have cemented his reputation as one of the most interesting names operating in the US today. This six track selection is no exception, suitably freed-up from convention or restriction and executed with a radioactive excitement that shines directly out of the grooves. Check the rapid fire snares of 'The Last Time', the eerie, horn-like screeches of 'Measurement (Of What?)' or 'Take Apart', with its ascending Detroit-style bassline, for further proof, or just dive in and enjoy the whole lot.
Review: Costantino Luca Rolando Kiriakos, an influential figure in Athens' electronic scene since the 80s, showcased his diverse talents as a composer, sound engineer, and installation artist under his Coti K. alias on this EP from back in 1994. The five tracks he offered up all explore Balearic-ambient bliss-scapes and now get reissued on Dark Entries complete with their smooth breaks, cosmic pads, and lush pianos. Reflecting his Hellenic roots, track titles like 'Argonauts' and 'Theros' bring global ambient vibes and spoken word by Konstantinos Bhta and cello by Nikos Veliotis all help add their magic to this nostalgic journey with a Mediterranean twist.
Review: School Daze is a killer compilation put together by the Dark Entries label and the Honey Soundsystem crew, collating some of the early recordings produced by Patrick Cowley in the years between 1973-81 and were later used as soundtrack material in two gay porn films. You will probably know Cowley for his Hi-NRG output or 'that' Donna Summer remix or his behind the buttons work on Sylvester tracks. Be prepared for a surprise (well quite a few as the 'explicit content' warning on the cover lives up to its billing) as this collection presents Cowley as a producer capable of many styles and moods. The closest School Daze comes to the sound Cowley is most identified is opening track "Zygote" and from here the collection runs through primitive electronics, short bursts of wave and more with a few extended gems that highlight Cowley's talent for arrangement. One of the compilations of the year!
Review: Best known for producing chart-topping disco anthems like the Sylvester-fronted 'Do You Wanna Funk?' - that still crop up in DJs like Juan Atkins' sets to this day, Cowley died in 1982 due to an AIDS-related illness. He left an incredible body of work but since 2009, the Dark Entries label has been working with Cowley's friends and family to uncover the singular artist's lesser-known sides such as his soundtracks for gay pornographic films. Malebox brings us six more recent discoveries from the hidden archives, very much in the churning disco-funk and hi-NRG areas that we've come to know and love as trademark Cowley. Recorded from 1979-1981, one of Patrick's most creatively exciting periods, this bumper pack includes early Paul Parker demos 'If You Feel It' and 'Love Me Hot', a demo version of 'Low Down Dirty Rhythm' with Jeanie Tracy's vocals, plus 'Floating', 'Love and Passion' and 'A Wicked Tool', all infectious and brimming with joyfulness and futuristic exploration. Also included is an air mail envelope containing a letter from Patrick Cowley to French disco producer Pierre Jaubert as well as liner notes and hand-written lyrics. Malebox will be released on November 12, the 40th anniversary of Patrick's passing.
Review: The final part of Dark Entries' long-running series of archival Patrick Cowley releases showcases tracks originally recorded for Afternooners, a late '70s gay porn film by director John Coletti. As with previous Cowley releases on Dark Entries, the double album also contains previously unheard material rediscovered from the Fox Studio archives. It's another essential collection of atmospheric synthesizer music in the producer's distinctive style, all told, with tracks ranging from the whistling cheeriness of "Hot Beach" and the sparkling, cowbell-laden throb of "One Hot Afternoon" to the dubbed-out, semi-ambient dreaminess of "Bore & Stroke" and the humid, upbeat "Jungle Orchid".
Review: The excellent Dark Entries returns to shine a spotlight on the legend that is Patrick Cowley with a newly remastered release of 'Kickin' In.' Although Cowley left behind an extensive archive of unreleased work, Dark Entries has honoured his legacy with many great previous releases. This one came about after Cowley heard rising star Frank Loverde perform at San Fran's The City, a disco cabaret, and invited him, Linda Imperial, and Peggy Gibbons to collaborate on recordings. The result was a nine-minute cybernetic disco anthem embodying Cowley's hi-NRG style. Originally released in 2015 by Honey Soundsystem, this remastered edition features a new mix and includes two sleazy 1980 tracks, 'Thief of Love' and 'Make It Come Loose.' Another great tribute to a great artist.
Review: Dark Entries has assembled a superb collection of covers celebrating 60s garage and soul music by the one and only Patrick Cowley. This LP showcases another side of the great producer's diverse influences, in particular his psychedelic San Francisco roots which can be heard in most tracks. They were mostly written between 1980 and 1982 when he was in prolific form and highlight his virtuosity while paying respects to the music that shaped him. The collection features a reimagined version of Loverde's 'Iko Iko,' a hi-NRG cover of The Doors' '20th Century Fox,' and a haunting take on The Who's "Shakin' All Over." It concludes with a swinging rendition of the Four Tops' 'Baby I Need Your Loving' and is another essential one for the collection.
Review: Much loved and hugely influential disco maestro Patrick Cowley is back on regular home label Dark Entries with From Behind. The label has done much great work to highlight his indelible contribution to the world of disco after he left a remarkable legacy before his death in 1982 from AIDS-related illness. Known for his chart-topping disco hits, this one is a collection of vibrant covers of 60s garage and soul classics recorded during his prolific period from 1980 to 1982. From Behind then is full of all of Cowley's influences and blends psychedelic sounds into dancefloor-ready tracks that honour the songs that shaped him. The album arrives on both CD as here, but also vinyl, complete with great artwork.
Review: Having previously impressed with their reissue of Patrick Cowley's brilliant, all-synthesizer soundtrack to obscure '70s gay porn flick School Daze, Dark Entries and Honey Sound System once again join forces to shine a light on the high energy disco pioneer's work for San Francisco's Fox Studios. Unsurprisingly, it's another impressive collection, and features material recorded for a number of different pornographic films. There are naturally more up-tempo moments - see "Somebody To Love Tonight", which would later be re-recorded with Sylvester, and the synth-weirdness-meets-jazz-funk brilliance of "5oz of Funk" - but it's the impressively cosmic and exotic ambient moments, such as the stand-out "Timelink" and "Jungle Magic", that really stand out.
Review: Having previously impressed with their reissue of Patrick Cowley's brilliant, all-synthesizer soundtrack to obscure '70s gay porn flick School Daze, Dark Entries and Honey Sound System once again join forces to shine a light on the high energy disco pioneer's work for San Francisco's Fox Studios. Unsurprisingly, it's another impressive collection, and features material recorded for a number of different pornographic films. There are naturally more up-tempo moments - see "Somebody To Love Tonight", which would later be re-recorded with Sylvester, and the synth-weirdness-meets-jazz-funk brilliance of "5oz of Funk" - but it's the impressively cosmic and exotic ambient moments, such as the stand-out "Timelink" and "Jungle Magic", that really stand out.
Review: Dark Entries makes the rather impressive milestone of 300 releases with a superb triple album from the Creative Technology Consortium. These tunes were written during the worst of the Covid pandemic lockdowns and find Traxx, Andrew Bisenius, and Jason Letkiewicz all combine to explore film and television music of the 80s and 90's through their vast array of vintage analog and digital synthesizers. The 25 resulting tracks are not just retro homages to those times but bring plenty of EBM, funky bass and cosmic chord patterns to the dancefloor.
Review: Veneno is the most beloved transgender TV star in Spain and now she arrives on the equally revered Dark Entries label as part of Madrid Pride on June 30th. Cristina Ortiz was a sex worker when she was discovered by the TV program "Este Noche Cruzamos el Mississippi." She became a regular on it with a great sense of wit and a unique way of relaying stories about her work on the streets. Her career in music started in 1996 and has seen her serve up big Eurobeat tunes like 'Veneno Pa Tu Piel' and house cuts such as 'El Rap De La Veneno'. Two mixes of both of those hit tunes are presented here and are enduring gay anthems that will light up any party.
Review: Having spent much of the last 12 months furiously re-issuing classic Italo-disco bombs, Dark Entries has finally got round to releasing some more contemporary cuts. The man behind this EP is Victor Lenis AKA Cute Heels, a Barcelona-based Colombian who last appeared on the imprint in 2014. As usual, the two new productions showcased here see him explore a range of vintage electronic music influences, presenting them in a typically stylish and authentic way. "Third Skin" melds the muscular sweatiness of EBM to the jackin' energy of Chicago acid, while "Lipstick Information" offers a master-class in dark Italo-disco and early Detroit techno fusion. Steffi and The Hacker both give the title track a thorough going over, with the former's deliciously hypnotic, psychedelic take being particularly potent.
This zine showcases Dark Entries' visual aesthetic, bringing together some of the most iconic designs that the label have released
Notes: Compiled by Josh Cheon and Eloise Shir-Juen Leigh To celebrate 15 years of Dark Entries, this zine showcases the label's visual aesthetic, bringing together some of the most iconic designs that Dark Entries have released. While Dark Entries' sonic mission has included sounds as diverse as synth-pop, Italo disco, darkwave, house, and techno, it is equally staggering to see the breadth of visuals the label has encountered and collected over the years. Included here are selected typography, logos, and illustrations from the label's extensive catalogue-well over 300 releases to date. Designs have been created using DIY analogue techniques as well as more contemporary digital approaches. A full discography is included at the end for reference and an essay by Shawn O'Sullivan (Led Er Est, Further Reductions). This zine serves as a source of inspiration for artists as well as a means of preserving and documenting these distinct graphics. Dark Entries Records is a San Francisco-based record label that was born in July 2009. Helmed by Josh Cheon, a vinyl-focused DJ and collector, the label has focused largely on excavating the 1980s underground era-but releases have spanned from sultry vintage disco to bleeding-edge contemporary techno. Graphic designer Eloise Shir-Juen Leigh has been responsible for most of the label's artwork, whether reproducing original designs accurately for reissues or creating exciting new ones. Much care and attention is given to each release to represent the music in a memorable way as well as tell the stories behind these projects.
Hand-stamped and limited to 200 numbered copies. 64 pages with neon cardstock covers. Measures 5×7 inches.
Review: Dark Entries label regulars De-Bons-en-Pierre are back with more of their scuzzy delights in the form of their Card Short of a Full Deck EP. It's drenched in textbook sludginess as is often the way with Beau Wanzer and Maoupa Mazzochetti ever since they came together in 2016. These tunes were all originally written back in 2019 for live performances and really find the pair pushing at the boundaries of accepted social norms. The absurd sounds pair skipping rhythms with dark and freaky basslines and plenty of eerie rave chords to make for an all-new kind of dance floor energy.
Review: Dark Entries welcome back the inimitable Doc Sleep aka Melissa Maristuen for a superb new album of ghostly and ethereal house and techno. This is a welcome follow-up to last year's ambient and IDM exploration, Birds, and shows another side that draws on Maristuen's years of queer clubbing. It fuses aspects of New York house, Berlin techno and West-coast breakbeats and is "a love letter to the West Coast's magnificent natural landscape, the light of the Pacific sunrise." That is reflected in the sublime synths and silky rhythms which manage to both move your body but also captivate your mind. It's another cracking album from the Doc.
Review: The brilliant Dark Entries celebrates its 15th anniversary by going back to its roots and offering up a reissue of its inaugural release: New York collective Eleven Pond's 1986 classic, 'Bas Relief'. This mega-rare record has become a stone-cold cult classic album revered by dark pop devotees. It features James Tabbi, Jeff Gallea, Jack Schaeffer, and Dan Brumley on a mix of guitars, synths, vocoders and drum machines and is a sound inspired by seminal labels like 4AD and Factory Records, and moody acts like Joy Division and Fad Gadget. For this reissue, it has been remastered to correct previous reissue flaws and comes in a screen-printed jacket with a lyric sheet, postcards, and a bookmark. Only 500 copies have been pressed so don't sleep on this one.
Review: There had apparently already been much feverish speculation around the true identity of the musician lurking behind the moniker Forbidden Overture because of the exceptional soundtrack to the 1982 queer bath house fantasy 'Turned On'. When a few of the more astute observers of the 1986 women-in-prison exploitation flick 'Bad Girls Dormitory' spotted some overlapping use of the same music from 'Turned On', it was revealed that Forbidden Overture was in fact US electro pioneer Man Parrish - a fact that seems obvious once you know. Using his unmistakable classic production techniques - only employed in very different ways to his dancefloor smashes - the building, oozing 27 minute epic 'Primal Overture' and the cheekier, more wry 'Strictly Forbidden' form one of the soundtracks of all time, even if the bath house frolics of the film itself have retreated into the changing rooms of obscurity since. Its director Steve Scott commented: "It took us about two weeks to find the right piece for the jockstrap scene. But it's like anything else-you know when it's right." The same could very easily be said of this must-not-miss release.
Review: Dark Entries are masters of Italo reissues and they have a number of them dropping at the moment. This one is of Garland's 'Heartbeat' which comes original from 1986. It is a true dancefloor gem that bares all the hallmarks of the era that still remain so loved today. Claudio Corradini produced it with Massimo Filippi and Art Deco singer and songwriter Claudio Valenti used this project for his more club ready sounds. 'Heartbeat' (song version) is a mid tempo tune with sleek staccato bass and a sing-along-worthy chorus that echoes Bronski Beat. The Dance Version is extended for DJs. A postcard with lyrics and liner notes is also included.
Review: Dark Entries are reusing two albums from Philadelphia-based experimental duo The Ghostwriters. their debut as well as this follow-up, Objects in Mirrors Are Closer Than They Appear from 1981. Formed by the late Buchla innovator Charles Cohen and multi-instrumentalist Jeff Cain in 1971, the duo initially performed as Anomali before evolving into The Ghostwriters. Their work is a mix of improvisation and composition and it always stood out for its unique electroacoustic sound shaped through collaborations with visual artists and choreographers. Objects in Mirrors delivers eight minimalist tracks to get stuck into from the chaotic groove of 'Fix It in the Mix' to the ethereal "Moon Chant.' This remastered edition includes photos, and liner notes, and will donate proceeds to SOSA (Safe from Online Sex Abuse).
Review: Dark Entries returns with Remote Dreaming, the ambient masterpiece by The Ghostwriters aka Philadelphia duo Buchla master Charles Cohen and multi-instrumentalist Jeff Cain, with proceeds benefitting SOSA (Safe from Online Sex Abuse). Formed in 1971 as Anomali, the duo adopted their Ghostwriters moniker and blended improvisation with structured composition. Following their debut Objects in Mirrors Are Closer Than They Appear, they crafted Remote Dreaming over nine months across various studios. Cain played electric and acoustic pianos, the Juno 106, and the Mirage sampler, while Cohen used his Buchla 200 Series. This double LP has been freshly remastered and includes five additional tracks, four of which are previously unreleased.
Review: Hackney Electronica is a collective of underground stalwarts who came together during COVID. It comprises the mad prolific Quinn Whalley of Paranoid London, Warmduscher and Decius, as well as Unai Trotti from Cartulis Music and Margo Broom of Hermitage Working Studios. They deal in acid-laced sounds which are a perfect fit for Dark Entires and here explore twisted late-night club sounds that are alluring yet austere. As their name suggests, they capture the vibe of Hackney's backstreets in their music with 'H.E. Nuestro Circuito' and 'Whispers from the Depths' bringing 1980s DIY electronics to a contemporary dancefloor, while 'Efecto Perfecto,' 'The One' and 'Nueva Ola' deliver potent electro powered by big breakbeats. It's a superb EP of tension and transcendence.
Review: Dark Entries takes it back to New York City in around 1982 for this previously unreleased record from Ike Yard. This cult crew was made up of Stuart Argabright, Michael Diekmann, Kenneth Compton, and Fred Szymanski and they worked in their own realm somewhere between proto-body music and No Wave peers in New York. They disbanded just a year after forming having dropped an EP on Les Disques du Crepuscule in 1981 and then a self-titled album for Factory in 1982. Using the Korg MS-20 and the Roland TR-808 they cook up plenty of hybrid electro-acoustic sounds and ramshackle rhythms that are underpinned by moody baselines and perfect to get bodies moving in the club. Whether you're a post-punk fan or lover of weird electronics, this is well worth checking out.
Review: Linea Aspera is the London duo of Ryan Ambridge (Synths/Programming) and Alison Lewis (Vocals/Synths). They began the project in November 2011, technically drawing inspiration from electronic music from the early 1980s. Within the duo, Alison writes and performs all vocal elements, while Ryan is responsible for the writing and performing of the electronics, as well as recording and mixing of the final recordings. For their debut album they utilized small, simple analog synthesizer set up: Roland SH-09, Roland Juno 6, Vermona DRM MKiii, Korg Poly 800 and Analogue Solutions Semblance. Linea Aspera's sound includes clear influences from early electronic body music, classic synth-pop and, in some instances, industrial and noise. Lyrically the band incorporates the sciences of osteology, neuroscience, and anthropology weaving a new medical language around themes of desire, despair and renewal. Linea Aspera serve up an icebox of dark doom riding on Alison's powerful vocals with a soft but sharp touch.
Review: The ever-popular and always innovative Dark Entries welcomes Lust Pattern for more deviant electro explorations here and i isn't the first time the artists has graced the label in such fashion: Ryan Armbridge has previously done so as Linea Aspera many times before, exploring coldwave revivalist sounds alongside Zoe Zanias. With this alias, though, he looks to post-punk and electro-funk for inspiration. Opener 'Forming Lines' is redolent of Drexciyan squelch with plenty of live drumming powering it on. 'Choreography' has a similarly aquatic feel but with faster drums and more urgent funk and 'It's Right There In Front Of You' then slows to a predatory and menacing crawl. 'No Floor' is a motorik workout with the squelchiest of mutant synth sounds and rickety rhythms.
Krispy Kat Whack - "Live At The Lube Room" (26:32)
Review: "The Next World Sound Series is a collection of work by contemporary sound artists working in long form instrumental composition and translated to the tangible medium of vinyl. These modern day offerings capture the analog quality and experience of last century electronic recordings, presented to you with today's technological advances in home playback, for your environmental listening pleasure." Or so say heads at the iconic and truly enigmatic label Dark Entries of this latest addition to their catalogue. A collection of work that spans the strangely frantic sci-fi tones of 'Oberenginen 0930' to the almost monastic drone of 'Soma', dubbed and muffled drums and vocals on 'Lixsm', club-ready broken beats of 'Destruct', and the evocative futurist refrains and samples of 'John Gore'. As expansive as it is exploratory and adventurous, you'll need to set aside some serious listening time for your first play here.
Journals of Patrick Cowley, with illustrations by Gwenael Rattke
Notes: Mechanical Fantasy Box is Cowley's homoerotic journal, or as he called it, "graphic accounts of one man's sex life." The journal begins in 1974 and ends in 1980 on his 30th birthday. It chronicles his slow rise to fame from lighting technician at The City Disco to crafting a ground-breaking 16-minute remix of Donna Summer's "I Feel Love" to performing with Sylvester at the SF Opera House. Vivid descriptions are told of cruising in '70s SoMA sex venues to primal highs in Buena Vista Park and composing pornophonics in his Castro apartment. The entries are introspective and show a very out-front, alive person going through the throes of gay liberation post-Stonewall.
French-born artist and Berlin resident Gwenael Rattke works in collage, silkscreen, photography and Xerox graphics. Rattke's collage works borrow from the visual codes of the 60s and 70s. Intricate, ornamental and excessive, they present "an imagined past fired with beauty and sexual freedom." For this book Rattke created 25 original illustrations inspired by selected entries, 3 street maps documenting locations mentioned herein and 4 collages of photos, ephemera and notes Patrick stuffed inside the journal. We've included Patrick's doodles too, as well as introductory essays by Josh Cheon, Theresa McGinley and Jorge Socarras.
Review: Matt Cheon & Co. unearth yet more rare gems from old school electro fiends Caroline Herve & Michael Amato here, on the second volume of Lost Trax. As story has it, after the French duo met at a rave in their native Grenoble in the early '90s, they made music heavily influenced by 80s synth, post-punk and Italo disco. Bored by the techno scene at the time, they set out out to lighten the serious tone and bring a campy sexiness to the dour musical landscape. From the sexy, four-to-the-floor EBM of "Upstart", the Drexciyan style "Love On" with its aquatic bass assault, or the classic Miss Kittin & The Hacker sound of old on the monochromatic" The Building" featuring the former's trademark deadpan vocal delivery.
Review: It's been some six years since Caroline "Miss Kittin" Herve and Michel "The Hacker" Amato last delivered fresh material together. While we await further news of their long-mooted comeback, there's this tasty EP of previously unheard archive material to enjoy. Made up of tracks recorded between 1997 and '99 - when their production partnership was in its' infancy - The Lost Tracks Volume 1 contains a number of fuzzy, stylish, floor-friendly bangers, from the S&M-themed madness of opener "Leather Forever" and stripped-back electro gem "Nightlife" (a tribute to Berlin clubs of the period, apparently), to the high-tempo acid-loaded freakishness of "Loving The Alien". Top-notch sleaze.
Review: My Mine were an Italo disco outfit from Bologna, Italy active between 1983 and 1986. Composed of core members Carlo Malatesta and Danilo Rosati plus Stefano Micheli and Darren Hatch, they reformed in 2016 with Malatesta and Rosati together and new singer Ilaria Melis - releasing the new single "Like a Fool". Their catchy 1983 hit "Hypnotic Tango" is one of the essential underground anthems of the scene, so influential that it was remixed by Frankie Knuckles (his legendary 1987 Powerhouse mix is featured on this very edition) and sampled by Detroit innovator Carl Craig.
Review: Dark Entries are back with another one of their gold standard reissues, this time focussing on the next level synth punk album Music From Hell from LA band Nervous Gender. They formed in 1978 with Phranc, Gerardo Velaquez, Edward Stapleton, and Michael Ochoa all cooking up this weird and wonderful mix of post-punk, minimal synth, and early industrial music. It has been remastered for this album, which is also expanded onto a double LP. The album kicks off with unsettling shockers then goes son to a live performance the band labelled "an electronic bruto-canto dissertation on the banality of spiritual transcendence." It's packed with occult melodies and odd bleeps and whirrs to make for a beguiling and haunting listen.
Review: Dispatches From Solitude is their latest album from Ortrotasce on the mighty Dark Entries. For over a decade, the man behind this project, Nic Hamersly, has been making brooding yet propulsive darkwave anthems that draw on the similarities and differences between industrial and synth-pop, all while connecting past and present sounds. He recorded this album during the Covid and post-Covid era and it captures some of the prevailing moods of those times across eight expertly crafted synth-pop tracks that delve into grief, romance, and the weird and wonderful nature of our modern world.
Review: Parade Ground is the Belgian duo of brothers Jean-Marc and Pierre Pauly and they formed this project in 1981 as a way of blending post-punk, coldwave and electronic body music. The Golden Years compiles their influential singles and rare tracks from 1982-1988 and it's a great window into their world of sleek synths, skeletal guitars and expressive, evocative vocals. Collaborating with Front 242's Daniel B. and Patrick Codenys, Parade Ground released seminal works like Moan On The Sly and Man In A Trance and later they worked with Wire's Colin Newman on Dual Perspective. This remastered album includes a press kit with lyrics and photos which chronicle their lasting impact on Belgian electronic music.
Review: Dark Entries welcomes back the Brussels brothers Jean-Marc and Pierre Pauly for this superb collection of B-sides and unreleased tracks. Formed in 1981, Parade Ground pioneered a more emotional take on their homeland's signature electronic body music sound by blending drum machines icy synths and guitars with Jean-Marc's powerful vocals. The Hidden Side spans 1982 to 1989 and explores their cold, dark aesthetic from menacing coldwave tracks to danceable cuts like 'Hollywood (The Sexiest Fish') to magically melancholic freakouts like 'Looking Through Keyholes'.
I'm Losing Control (extended Bass-ment club mix) (8:01)
Review: Dark Entries presents a reissue of Shawn Pittman's 1989 Dreams, an obscure and highly sought-after private press gem produced and written by Art Forest. An undersung figure in the development of the late 80's Detroit techno sound, Forest collaborated with, produced, or penned material for many of the key players in the movement, including Inner City, Suburban Knight, and the Belleville Three themselves (on Kreem's "Triangle of Love"). This reissue gives Forest's own productions some shine while providing a thrill for both dancers and collectors.
Review: Greek electronic music legend Lena Platonos returns to Dark Entries with Balancers, an LP of previously unreleased material recorded between 1982-1985. Athens-based Platonos has worked with the label previously to reissue her three solo LPs - Gallop, Sun Masks, and Lepidoptera - as well as to release three accompanying 12" EPs featuring modern remixes of her work. She is renowned for her forays into cutting-edge electronic experimentation as well as her striking, impressionistic poetry and lyrics, always recited in Greek. Also included is an insert with lyrics in both Greek and English.
Review: Robert Rental is an artist as influential as he is overlooked. An anchor of the early British DIY and post-punk scene, his name is most frequently uttered alongside illustrious collaborators such as Thomas Leer and Daniel Miller. Dark Entries and Optimo ally to illuminate some of Rental's early solo works with an expanded reissue of his debut 7" Paralysis /A.C.C.. Both labels have previously excavated Rental's catalog; we reissued the collaborative LP with Glenn Wallis in 2017, and Optimo released a collection of demos in 2018.
Review: Robert Rental is back on the mighty Dark Entries as the cult label reissues his Mental Detentions album as an expanded double pack. Rental is a Scottish pioneer of DIY electronic music who played a key role in shaping the UK's countercultural sound alongside collaborators like Thomas Leer and Daniel Miller. Though he released little solo music, his 1979 cassette Mental Detentions was a standout of the era that featured raw demos made with budget equipment like a Roland drum machine and Stylophone keyboard. Tracks like 'Stuck' offer a distorted take on the classic motorik sound, while 'Vox' delivers an 18-minute ambient journey in which it is easy to get lost. Rental's work captures the spirit of experimentation and innovation in the face of limited resources.
Review: It would be fair to say that Series-A's Evolution Technology is something of a long-lost electro classic. Written and produced by Detroit friends DJ Maestro and Kid Fresh in 1987, 50 promo copies of the record were pressed before the label they'd signed to, California's Satellite Records, went bankrupt. This was always a shame, as "Evolution Technology" is something of a killer: a spellbinding chunk of futurist electro that updated the Cybotron blueprint for the emerging Motor City techno generation. As well as the original 7" and Dub versions, this first "proper" release also features a brand new rework from Tad Mullinix (under the JTC pseudonym), which appropriately re-casts the track as a spacey Detroit techno shuffler.
Review: Dark Entries picks up Severed Heads yet again for Ear Bitten, a double LP reissue of some of the band's earliest material. Pegged as early pushers of the Australian underground industrial scene, Severed Heads emerged in the wake of a former project also shared between three members, Tom Ellard, Richard Fielding and Andrew Wright: Mr. And Mrs. No Smoking Sign. The edgier name Severed Heads was also, conveniently, snappier, and the sonic result of this resignal act would soon prove it a good decision. Though they say they aimed simply to take after forebears like Throbbing Gristle or Suicide, Ear Bitten proves much more than the simple fact of stylogeny. The 22-track record was born of an anarchic assemblage of found domestic and street-larked objects (as well as specialist musical instruments) blurring the lines between the two: using every sound-making tool from cassette deck, to rare Korg or Kawai synth, to proverbial pots and pans, to open-reel (and thus implicatively fuckable-with) dictaphones, Ear Bitten offers a diabolical vision of the sheer, wordless length of the post-punk deserts parched by their 70s, New York precursors.
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