Here we have another obscurity from the vast Dutch home-taping realm of the 80's. It Is Not A... is a totally unknown project that doesn't give any information other than that it was played by AF + Adulaar. The dark cover artwork that is hidden inside the uniformic beige cassette case only adds to the mysterious nature of this release. There is no year of publication given, nor any indication given about the place where this was made and there's no tracklist.
The minimalist nature of the artwork is also reflected in the music of It Is Not A... Basically the tracks revolve around the drum sounds of the Roland TR-606 in combination with simple basslines that are accompanied by analog synthesizers, voice and tape collage. Another example of a minimal synth bedroom production that stresses simplicity as a protagonist artistic means. It also reflects the cold signature sound approach of the 80's. A total mystery from the Drumatix shadow world...
We advice to play this cassette with loudness, it will give an uncomfortable but paradisiac nerve-shaking ambience to the sound.
I figured that we're not going to end this month without some heavier hitting tunes for your living room/bedroom dancefloor (the only one that matters anyway). The Final Curtain is a project I have no information about, nor does the cassette reveal anything else than a plastic inlay displaying an abstract drawing with strange symbols or initials. It's a super obscurity from the Dutch home-taping era that only gives us a title and a year of release on the outer cassette case.
The fragile tape contains two great synth-wave tracks belonging to that outer space alien dancefloor realm where twinkling stars far above us prove us there must be more than this... An analog electronic sound shared by a few other Dutch acts from those days like Ende Shneafliet or No Honey From These. Perhaps some of these forces also forecasted the Dutch electro sound that would arise many years later through labels like Bunker or Viewlexx.
More lost minimal synth melancholia from the electric 80's cradle.
Betty Arden is an Amsterdam based musician and home-taper who released a couple of cassettes during the 80's. As a skilled multi-instrumentalist her musical output has been a combination of folk, new wave, minimal synth, ambient soundscapes and gloomy pop. I'm not sure whether Movements was her first release but I do know that some other cassettes came out later than this one, like her album Music for Films. In 1986 she also contributed a track to one of the mythical Oscar's X-Mas Carols compilations, which were created and compiled by Dutch music journalist and cassette expert Oscar Smit. During the 80's he wrote informative reviews about newly released cassettes for the Dutch music magazine Vinyl.
On Movements we hear great inventive and gloomy compositions (she plays all instruments by herself) quite reminiscent of the ethereal sound of groups on the 4AD label (Dead Can Dance etc.). That sound is comprised a.o. of electronic atmospheric elements, melodic acoustic guitar structures in combination with melancholic songwriting and other folk elements. It's a certain new wave sound of the 80's that was more composed in its musical approach, but also found different interesting ways of merging the atmospheric pieces with songs and composition all together on one album.
In that light Betty Arden's music also incorporates those elements, but she also shows she can be playful with her melodies and the usage of minimal synth sounds. Her compositions remind me somewhat of The Durutti Column or Deux Filles, but also of the Dutch new wave group Qua Dance I posted years ago. But ofcourse there are many examples in that musical realm.
It's always good to shed light on a female home-taper of whom we didn't hear much so far! I had to take a picture of the inner cover from a certain angle to reveal the information, because I couldn't get a right scan of that peculiar golden cover.
I'd like to take the opportunity to inform you about a few developments related to music, the blog and my own activities.
First:
Next month on May the 22nd a stunning vinyl compilation is being released by the Belgian StroomTV label that focuses on the musical output of Dutch home-taper Hessel Veldman (Y Create). I'm honored that I was asked by both the Label and Hessel Veldman to write the liner notes for this particular release. Hessel Veldman is also of great help to this blog and someone I consider as a musical mentor so I hope some of you will keep an eye on that release. Pre-orders are here: https://stroomtv.bandcamp.com/album/eigen-boezem
Second:
Next month on May the 25th another vinyl reissue will be released by the new and highly promising Futura Resistenza label. It's the first ever vinyl reissue of Jacques van Erven's Tunes & Scenery (Hard To Whistle). Van Erven is a Dutch multi-instrumentalist and artist who made this unclassifiable and incredible cassette in the 80's. Also in this case I am very honored to have written the liner notes. Definitely keep an eye on the future releases of this label too. You can pre-order your copy here: https://futuraresistenza.bandcamp.com/album/jacques-van-erven-tunes-scenery-hard-to-whistle-lp
Third:
My long time friends Oscar Olias and Matas Labašauskas from Berlin and Vilnius (creators of the Empty Brain Resort, Sucked Orange Gallery, Braille Satellite Festival and what not) have started a new label called Bigbandalone. They just released a marvelous double vinyl by the German home-taping duo Delta-Sleep-Inducing Peptide (Dieter Mauson and Siegmar Fricke) that existed during the late 80's and early 90's. These recordings show another missing link of music that was bridging the gap between the home-taping culture and the psychedelic dance-trance infusion that was rapidly seeking its way into the nervous system of the 90's. The vinyl compiles 28 tracks selected from 14 tapes. Find it here: https://www.bigbandalone.com/
Last:
Lately, by the kind grace of others, but also because of years of doing this blog I got a great opportunity to share yet more material with all of you. But because most of this material is Dutch, the overall consistency of the blog will perhaps be less varied. Ofcourse I will do the best I can to keep Archaic Inventions as international as possible in terms of content, but don't be surprised to see more Dutch tapes passing by here: I don't think it will underwhelm.
But enough with the talks. Enjoy the music! Stay safe and sane out there! - Bence AI
After accidentally providing something that was already available the last post I return to the essence of this blog: sharing something we have been waiting for to surface, not to be found before.
Dojoji were an excellent New Wave and Funk group from Rotterdam, The Netherlands that consisted of
Pien Selleger and Ted Langenbach (Bass), Ron Louers (Bongos), Ferdinand Rolle (Drums),
Leo Anemaet (Guitar), Trubus (Percussion), Hans Rath (Saxophone), Rudy Zinc (Synthesizer) and Fee Arnold (Vocals).
On this Cassette EP, Dojoji meets the funky jungle (Fungle) and plays lengthy pieces of energetic funk music with a new wave attitude. Dojoji released a very nice 12 Inch EP on Plexus records in 1984 and also a cassette with live recordings a year before that one. Both of their releases were uploaded a long time ago here and here. They remind me of other Dutch funk wave groups with electronic touches on the Fetisj tape label like Richenel or Necronomicon, but it even has hints of the band Sukursaal I posted not long ago.
Dojoji furthermore resembles some bands on the Cherry Red label like Rip, Rig and Panic or Medium Medium, but it's mainly fueled by the 80's New York styles in-between like James Chance's funky no-wave sounds and many of the boogie and 'break' records from old-school hip-hop. Actually Dojoji were quite unique in Holland and I like this cassette a lot due to the use of the synthesizer additions and the percussion elements. Nice stretched out tracks full of life one just has to dance to! It once again shows how Rotterdam was always the most New York oriented city of The Netherlands.
Even though 'low-key' this was already digitized I figured to rip this anyway to shed some more light on this band since the music is really good, sometimes even better stuff than some of the wave reissues that came out throughout the years.
Sukursaal were a Dutch wave band (Nederwave) consisting of Marc de Reus, Maarten de Reus, Marijke Bruggink and other collaborators. They made this one cassette that came out on the Pion Tapes label from Delft (a small picturesque city in between The Hague and Rotterdam where for example famous Dutch painter Johnannes Vermeer was born). Pion Tapes also released the new wave band La Peste that was posted on No Longer Forgotten Music ages ago.
Sukursaal played interesting poppy new wave music that displayed a classic Dutch wave sound, synthetic minimal synth tracks, but also used funky basslines and a jazzy impro sound. The Dutchness is emphasized in tracks like 'Dikes (Protect Me)' where the lyrics are: "Dikes protect me from being washed under", yep most of Holland is still under sea level and we really need those dikes.
The music reminds me a lot of the Rotterdam band Dojoji, of electro-jazz outfit Niew Hip Stilen, but also of Malice In Wonderland (just a lot less batcave style of new wave). The tracks are quite distinct from each other and also quite clean because of the studio recording production. The highlights are the tracks with female vocals and the electronic ones.
Many many more Dutch tapes from the home-taping era still to come to the blog this year!
Malice In Wonderland was a classic underground new wave band from The Netherlands (we call that style Nederwave) consisting of Ronald Israëls (bass), Job Goedhart (guitar), Simone Koch (singer), Peter Jansen (keyboards, voice) and Michel Didier (drums). Their music has a distinct bat-cave type new wave style with punk influences that also reminds me of other Dutch groups like Qua Dance (posted before on the blog), WAT or maybe even Soviet Sex.
All tracks on Violence & Passion were recorded live at various Dutch venues that were mostly dedicated to the underground of the 80's in those days. Because of the female vocals, quite elaborated song-writing and the evident use of keyboards it even has something B-52's like to it, maybe something of X-Mal Deutschland too. It's a great relic from the prime of new wave in The Netherlands in its purest form when youth centre's were inhabited by Siouxsie haircuts, extravagant make-up and vleermuis fashion.
Violence & Passion was released on cassette in 1984 and came with an extensive booklet showing information on the different tracks, nice pictures and no-future poetry. Quite surprising that Malice In Wonderland hasn't been covered too much, even though so much new wave music has been given attention the last years. I couldn't find it on Discogs.
The cassette shows quite some white-noise since me and my friend found this tape in a quite dusty and old state, probably in the record store since 1984. Still quite some nice wave pop-songs on it!
Niew Hip Stilen is one of my favorite Dutch bands. They came from Rotterdam and played an amazing style of electronic synth wave jazz with some hints towards the urban music culture of early eighties New York City (remember New Order going there which led to the Blue Monday period). Nevertheless their sound is also very Dutch and akin to the other great electro jazz group from Rotterdam called Kiem. Niew Hip Stilen consisted of Maarten van Gent – bass, drums,
guitar, percussie & vocals; Jan Willem van Mook – bass, sax,
keyboards, percussion & computer; Rutger van Otterloo – sax, drums
& percussion. They had one self-released single in 1981, which came out on the label of the Quarantaineweg, the legendary artist squats of Rotterdam. On the back of the single a plan of the squats can be noticed. Other bands connected to the squats were a.o. The Black Sheep and Dull Schicksal. Niew Hip Stilen made one album on Eksakt records called Heartsounds and Murmers that still stands as one of the most inventive and interesting Dutch albums from the eighties. As for these two songs: this week I found some self-recorded cassettes: blank with handwriting on them. All full concerts of eighties bands that played in Holland. Some of them contain the recordings of the legendary Pandora's Music Box Festival that took place three times in Rotterdam from 83' to 85'. It was a unique festival of new wave, avant-garde and industrial music. You can find a blog dedicated to the festival here. Bands like Fad Gadget, Clock DVA, The Durutti Column, X-Mal Deutschland and SPK all played the first edition. Most of those recordings are available online. Niew Hip Stilen also played and even released a hyperrare cassette with those recordings that was uploaded here. So as you can see the recordings are actually already available there, but here we have two of the songs in a slightly better sound quality since it was broadcasted by the VARA Moondogs radioshow. Moondogs was a Dutch radioshow from the eighties dedicated to interesting contemporary music with in depth specials around certain bands. Also you can hear the host talking about the band. Get two rare Niew Hip Stilen live songs HERE
The general worldwide consensus is that the Dutch language is quite an ugly one. I wouldn't disagree with that as someone who speaks Dutch. Even for native Dutch speakers (either in Holland or Flanders) music in which they sing Dutch is often hard to stomach. Luckily there are some exceptions in our world of the odd. For example: Belgian wave band Aroma di Amore, the third album of Dutch Ultra-band Minny Pops, Mecano-member Ton Lebbink and a list of stuff from the sixties etc.
P.E. De Oskars is a highly obscure group that fits in perfectly with all the aforementioned bands. I can't find any information on them other than that they were from Rotterdam. I don't know if they ever made more music other than this. This cassette, which translates to "No poleaxes, but drums", is a cool and exceptional EP from Holland in which new wave, rock in opposition and some crypto-ska come together. Actually the saxophone and organ really make this music a treat. The lyrics are often political and poetical in the right squatting-mentality manner of Holland in the eighties. It also reminds me of The Schismatics, The Black Sheep and more bands that were based in Rotterdam and connected to the legendary artist squats of the Quarantaineweg in the eighties. Good stuff.
Qua Dance was a new wave band from the Dutch city of Groningen. They existed from 1981 to 1984 and consisted of Huib Westerbaan (bass), Roel Steenbeek (drums), Kees Douma (guitar) and Marieke Smit (vocals). They released one single in 1982 on the Frisian Top Hole Records which was posted a long time ago here and to be heard here. Also someone wrote a small article on Qua Dance over here.
This cassette might be from 1981, because bands tend to self release their material before they get picked up by any record label. It's a cassette-only EP release that contains five different tracks. As for the music: I guess you could say that this was one out of the thousands of obscure little bands worldwide that arose in the wake of new wave music in the early eighties. Qua Dance has a sound that fits right in with all the Siouxsie and the Banshees, The Cure or X-Mal Deutschland type of influential wave bands. Nevertheless, they do sound quite dark, minimalistic and use electronic sounds, but overall they do make pop songs. It's not entirely groundbreaking, but I'm sure people investigating every small wave band from the eighties are going to be happy with this (especially from Holland).
