MuhMur Radio Broadcast July 20 2023

 

This programme is very cassettecentric. Starting off with a new cassette release on Industrial Coast by The Seer. "The Drop" features two thirty minute pieces entitled 'Drop 1' and 'Drop 2'. This is where I claim to know very little about The Seer other than it is the project of Conny Prantera. 

Conny is an Italian performance artist, Illustrator and musician based in South London. Copies of the tape can be found at : https://connyprantera.wixsite.com/themoonseer. It's because there is only one cassette player at the SoundArt Radio studio I play a slice of vinyl so I can exchange the tapes ... first piece is from Drekka. '7' is from the one-sided 12"EP "Verjaardag". The EP is Drekka (Michael Anderson) reworking tracks by Annelies Monseré. Released in 2016, Annalies is a Belgian based vocalist and pianist with releases on Horn Of Plenty <O, More Records and Stroom. Copies of the LP can be found at Bluesanct : http://bluesanct.com. 

As mentioned on the last broadcast, MuhMur Radio received a great package from William A. Davison which included five CDRs and the split cassette by Six Heads and Urban Refuse Group. The cassette was released in 2019 (as William says) "On the occasion of our gig with Seymour Glass, A.K.A. Gland Of External Secretion". All things William A. Davison and Six Heads can be got at : http://www.recordism.com. (When First played the cassette at MuhMur HQ the track seemed to last about 20 minutes or so ... when it came to playing it again and this time timing the track it played out at thirty minutes, so when recording for broadcast I was totally surprised that the track stopped after 20 minutes or so..... apologies to Six Heads as I don't think the full piece is played here ... ) ... still sounds good though!

To The Finland Station were a London based trio who only released the one 7"EP "Domino Theory" on Melodia Records. Melodia Records was a label operated by To The Finland Station and A Popular History Of Signs, and that is about all I know. I heard this track on John Peel back in 1982 and loved it ever since. Some time in the late 1990's an old friend of mine starting corresponding with Finnish musician Mika Vainio. They met through the Bill Nelson Fan Club. Cassettes were exchanged with my friend posting very early Dieter Müh sounds and receiving tapes from Mika and his (then) project called To The Finland Station. Obviously both projects were inspired by the Edmund Wilson book of the same name, we did tell Mika there was already a great band of that name in the UK .... and then there was Ø and Panasonic. I still have the old To The Finland Station cassettes, I must dig them out and give them a play. 

Back to cassettes, and a cover version by Lincolnshire's finest .. The Instant Automatons. "All You Need Is Love' is on their 1980 cassette album "Blues Masters Of The Humber Delta".

Released on their own Deleted Records label, 1980 was a busy year for the Automatons with three tape releases and the excellent "Peter Paints His Fence EP" on 7". At this time The Instant Automatons were Mark Lancaster on guitar and vocals, Mic Woods on guitar and Basso Protag (Martin Neish) on bass. I used to correspond with Mark at the time, it was the time when a pound note or a stamped addressed envelope would get you the latest Deleted Records release. After the demise Protag went on to play with Zounds, Blyth Power and Alternative TV. Mark has written a book about The Instant Automatons and Deleted Records, published by Waterden "The Luxury Of Dreams" is available from Amazon and Waterden (if, like me, you don't want to buy from Amazon). http://www.instant-automatons.com.  The Second Layer track is from their 1979 7"EP "Flesh As Property". Second Layer were Adrian Borland and Graham Bailey who went on to form The Sound. Pre Second Layer Adrian was in The Outsiders who I was fortunate to see live in 1978 at AJ's in Lincoln. They were part of the 'Business Unusual' tour alongside Skunks and UK Subs. 

The latest release by Takahiro Mukai is called "Out Of Place". Takahiro is no stranger to listeners of MuhMur Radio. I try and get hold of his releases and play them on the radio. "Out Of Place" is on the Oklahoma based label Fixed Rhythms. (Yeah, I had to pay US Postage for this one!). Takahiro has a band camp page : https://takmuk.bandcamp.com. 

'On This Day' in 1977 Eddie & The Hot Rods released their classic single 'Do Anything You Wanna Do'. I was 14 years old when it was released. I remember well my older sister (Julie) bringing the single home from school for me to listen to. This was a habit of Julie. Being a couple of years older than me she would bring home records that her friends brought in to the Upper 5th form common room to listen to and discuss. It is how I came across bands like Ultravox!, The Damned, The Stranglers in 1977 ... I even remember her having a copy of 'Anarchy In The UK' on A&M. 'Do Anything You Wanna Do' spoke to me and still does. It is the only song I like by Eddie & The Hot Rods.

                                                          Takahiro Mukai & Hauras tapes.

The latest release from Hauras is called The Gyre on the Californian based Katukto Collective label (yeah, more US Postage). Hauras is the project of American sound artist Howard Ryan. Here I play the complete side A of the cassette. I first became aware of Hauras through their 2020 cassette "In These Coming Days" on Helen Scarsdale Agency and (like Takahiro Mukai) try and get hold of every release. "The Gyre" does not disappoint. 

Originally released in 1989 on vinyl by Parade Amoureuse and on CD by Staalplaat, "Stoneface" by Nocturnal Emissions has been re-issued on vinyl by French label Ferns Recordings. 

The 1980s were particularly fruitful for The Nocturnal Emissions, later dropping 'the'. Starting in the early second wave of industrial music, they quickly began experimenting with different styles. Electronic pop, for lack of a better or the industrial electro breakbeats of 'Viral Shedding' (a personal favourite of mine) and then, for a somewhat more extended period, coming ambient soundscapes with the residue of industrial cling clang. Around this time, 1986, the group, now effectively a solo project of Nigel Ayers (and in 2023 still going strong), the interest in magick, stone circles, techno–shamanism, neo-paganism, animism and Fortean research (I am quoting Wiki here) was added to the situationist interests. 'Stoneface' is from 1989, when the style was developed at its best, and the Emissions did some of their best work in this direction (along with 'Spiritflesh' and 'Invocation Of The Beast Gods'). However, it's all a bit in the no-longer-distant past. I wish I could say I play all of these records once a year; I don't, although 'Viral Shedding' is on my phone, so those tracks I hear on every random play the thing is on. As I played these nine pieces, I realized that what attracted me at the time and still does is the relatively straightforward approach to technology. I remember seeing Nocturnal Emissions a couple of times in those years. If I'm not mistaken, there were a couple of those early sampling devices, the Casio SK1 or SK5, with a 1,2 (or so) second memory, but when played through a bunch of stomp boxes, you could do a lot with relatively easy sounds. I always suspected Ayers to have altered his machines, but I am unsure. His sound palette includes animal sounds, kitchen utensils, voices, and whatever makes noise. I guess Ayers had access to some decent multi-track machine, and using many tracks gives these lo-fi samples some great depth. There are some great drones, some rusty percussion, some good use of reverb and excellent quality around here. Some phase shifting (play similar loops with minor intervals, so they never overlap in the same way) is used to significant effect here so that most of the time, you have no idea you hear only short loops. Yet, there is always movement, thanks to those very same loops being brief and to the point. An excellent record that has aged quite well and is a fine reminder to play some of the old ones again. Time is what I want, more time! (FdW) ––– Address: https://fernsrecordings.bandcamp.com/ The thoughts of Frans de Waard from 'Vital Weekly' #1393. 

"Dragon Loops" is a cassette on the Deceptions Order Blank label. I think around 50 were made to be sold at the MoogFest in North Carolina in 2019. Copies were also sold at Dilloway & Dalt gigs in New York. Aaron loops Lucrecia - chaos and beauty entwined. 

The broadcast ends with The Dickies and 'Hideous' ... and why not? (ⓒ Arnold Brown) ... 

You can listen to the broadcast here :

Mistakenly posted as "June" ... sorry about that!

https://www.mixcloud.com/tamsin-jane-cammack/muhmur-radio-broadcast-20-june-2023/

Playlist :

01: The Seer : "Drop 1" (Industrial Coast) 2023.

02: Drekka : "7" (Bluesanct/Red Frost Industries) 2016.

03: Six Heads : "Sideways" (Disembraining Songs) 2019.

04: To The Finland Station : "Domino Theory" (Melodia Records) 1982.

05: The Instant Automatons : "All You Need Is Love" (Deleted Records) 1980.

06: Second Layer : "Metal Sheet" (Torch Records) 1979.

07: Takahiro Mukai : "Out Of Place #532" (Fixed Rhythms) 2023.

08: Takahiro Mukai : "Out Of Place #533" (Fixed Rhythms) 2023.

09: Eddie & The Hot Rods : "Do Anything You Wanna Do" (Island Records) 1977.

10: Hauras : "I Can't Even" (Katuktu Collective) 2023.

11: Hauras : "Roeg Dreaming" (Katuktu Collective) 2023.

12: Hauras : "Chant For Geraldine" (Katuktu Collective) 2023.

13: Hauras : "On The Telephone" (Katuktu Collective) 2023.

14: Hauras : "Primary" (Katuktu Collective) 2023.

15: Nocturnal Emissions : "Grey Ladies" (Ferns Recordings) 2023.

16: Nocturnal Emissions : "Shivering Mound" (Ferns Recordings) 2023.

17: Aaron Dilloway & Lucretia Dalt : "Dragon Loops 1 - 4)" (Deceptions Order Blank) 2019.

18: The Dickies : "Hideous" (A&M Records) 1978.

It was good to have the family with me whilst pre-recording the programmes, drawing and running about in the Dartington Estate Gardens. 

The next pre-records will be later this month as at the time of broadcast I will be in France (South-West), so if I can provide a blog ..... we shall see ... 

Thanks for listening.