90’s by the semi legendary Mr. Concept from Leicester, UK (Cassette Pioneer and once a
recording artist for Alan Jenkins Label Cordelia and also a Citizen of Concept City) got finally
it’s release on March, 7th gloriously remastered by our associate Frank E. and can be listened
to in full at our bandcamp page. Extensive linernotes & exclusive twangs inclusive.
“The Last From The Portastudio Era….. XXXVII is a CD collection of nearly all the remaining
unreleased Mr Concept tracks from the Portastudio days.
It represents the end of an era in Concept City recording history… and we had to put them
somewhere as they were cluttering up the studio.
So my dear listeners sit down and relax in the privacy of your own underwear and drift back into the
1990’s!”
From Neo Nostalgia to Cyberpunk influenced Vaporwave the digital only debut 4 Track EP by
The Bitterman – FUTURE MEMORIES Vol. I [SP 015] is available since Janurary after quite
some time invested into graphics (by Vaesark) and concept by Adam Czarnecki who might be
known best for dark ambient project Mort Douce and his contributions to various
recommended Coil List Tribute Compilations published via ElseProduct.
This May saw the digital reissue of the 1991 Klappstuhl Tape EP “Cataplectic Episodes” by
DELTA-SLEEP INDUCING PEPTIDE [Trism 14], refurbished from the original Master and the
Artwork derivated from D.S.I.P. original minimal design. D.S.I.P. are Siegmar Fricke & Dieter
Mauson and they developed their own style of experimental ambient from 1989 to 1994.
Since 2013 they re-activated their collaboration and published five new Albums via various
Labels like Betenim Netlabel, Haze, Pharmafabrik, Noustalgie De La Bou and the latest
‘Clouding’ through Ressonus Recordings as limited Cassette and DL.
It goes without saying they are all recommended and to be judged on their own merits, the
complex sound development of Siegmar Fricke’s recent output as Pharmakustik is developed
further with an additional gentle and elegant touch in atmosphere and mood.
“experimental + subtle soundtracks which can be described as mind-cinema of the subconscious”
(D.S.I.P.) Find more infos and other remastered reissues at http://dsip2013.blogspot.de.
Out since End of May is “The Black Box” EP [SP 013] by our old ally Maurizio Pustianaz
whom I asked for something special and here are remastered excerpts of an 1986 GERSTEIN
recording session, instrumental only minimal electronic, synth, sequencers in the tradition of
the early experimental diy electronica from the UK perhaps. As bonus he added an exclusive
2017 Remake of one of the tracks and a video for this; ‘Dada Dada Dada Ist’ is also online.
Recently he issued a comprehensive collection “32 Years Of Rain” which shows his diversity
and ability to evolve through the times with his musical output.
For more info about this and other activities check www.noisebrigade.org
So with these releases we’re actually back in the chronological line and can & will continue
with SP 016 which is already assigned to Mik@’s latest collection of tracks mixed with
feelings of change and development.
It will be called “Ein Schiff wird kommen” and be a CD / DL Production.
ThisContinued Pt. 1
The Artist formerly known as Walt Thisney nowadays publishing as Rasalasad more
experimental drone ambient or hard to categorize soundscapes somewhere between the
chairs was again utterly busy this spring;
Check out Thissidence, Thissekta, Thisphoria for example.
ThisContinued Pt. 2
Digital Dizzy, the large online netlabel with hundreds of interesting releases up on
bandcamp – among them the fascinating Glove Of Bones and our favourite neo-trance Duo
CyborCosis from U.K. (see Numbers EP [SP 011] and the Trans Lives Album [SP 006] suddenly
disappeared without short notice. Only the Merzfunder Page is still active and their
soundcloud or facebook accounts.
Whatever happens with the large back catalogue is currently unknown.
ThisContinued Pt. 3
Martin 17’s solo Project Closed Circuit is currently shut down from the public focus due to
his wishes to sort his digital archive and re-present them when the time is right. This means
“The Dignity Of Labour Vol.2” [SP 005] and “House Fragments” [Schrey 006] are now
offline and unavailable until further notice. So as of now the only Closed Circuit still available
is the Closed Circuit EP from 1996 as mp3 per Amazon and the one odd track.
This also means that a seminal best of which was already close to finishing state remains
unreleased.
Marco Milanesio, formerly of DsorDNE and nowadays active as 9cento9 thought with his
colleagues from former projects about suggestions to reissue more of the deleted releases as
Carceri [SP 009] which is still available and they found an interested partner for repressing
their first Album “E’ Un Sole” which never was issued as CD either in Dark Entries, USA. A
Label which specializes in electronic new wave postpunk and italo disco (?) reissues
nowadays. So I’m looking forward for a remastered replica this year and also for an 12” with
exclusive mixes. Hopefully it all works out. I’ve also heard rumours about an forthcoming
Cassette (!) release of a recent Movie score he made so keep your eyes and ears open.
R E V I E W
SP 010 Mr. Concept : XXXVII
With me being trained in matters of history, I know the title stands for ’37’ in Roman numbers
but my memory is not that well trained that I recognize the name Mr. Concept straight away from
the old cassette days (daze more likely) and yet it sounded vaguely familiar. Maybe I saw it on a
blog when those started to delve the mines for all that obscure stuff. Behind Mr. Concept is one
Rob Grant, who released his last cassette “Conceptum Umbilicus” (Concept City) twenty years
ago, then spend time of his family and gardening, and now presents eighteen pieces he recorded
from 1988 to 1992. Some of these pieces had a digital release in 2007 as “While My Sitar Gently
Beeps”, but that is now deleted and presented here as well. So what is it that Mr. Concept does,
what is his concept? I am not sure if there is really a bigger concept behind all of this, except for
making some synth pop music; armed with a guitar, a rhythm machine, bass guitar and keyboard,
plus very occasionally vocals or sampled voices, everything is recorded on a Portastudio 4-track
machine, which I guess is the classic way of going about for any good old Do It Yourself musician.
The guitar sounds from time to time quite twangy, vibrating and resonating against the beats
produced. All of this bringing us some very joyful pop tones, quite upbeat but without being
quirky. Songs are between three and four minutes (with a few exceptions, but then they are a
bit shorter) and, as said, mostly instrumental. Now, perhaps, that is the only downside to the
music; why not go the all-pop way and add more vocals or silly samples, like Margaret Thatcher
in ‘Do It’, which sounds very much retro electro from the late 80s, including that ubiquitous
political message. A bit more of those kind of vocal tracks and in any event we hope to see Mr.
Concept around earlier. (FdW)
Thanks Frans De Waard (Vital Weekly). Also thanks are due to Carsten Olbrich (Radio X) and
Lord Litter Lord Litter for Airplay from various Klappstuhl Releases !
carsten s.
(Chairman)
For any questions, anecdotes and more ……….. feel free to contact
klappstuhl.records[at]framed-dimension.de | www.klappstuhl.bandcamp.com
