Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project; UK Industrial Music

I've already posted numerous videos from early industrial bands like Cabaret Voltaire, Clock DVA, Monoton, Ramleh and Destroy All Monsters but here's a few similar odds and ends.

ROBERT RENTAL & THE NORMAL ~ "SONG NUMBER 6";


Robert Rental (real name Robert Donnachie) was a Scottish pioneer of the the early electro industrial scene working with Thomas Leers and Daniel Miller (Mute Records founder) as The Normal starting in 1978. He released a few records including working with Throbbing Gristle and touring with Stiff Little Fingers. He died of cancer in 2000.

ROBERT RENTAL & THE NORMAL ~ "SONG NUMBER 7";


Both of these vids are from his first album on which the songs have no titles. I used films shot by Andy Warhol in the 1960's as part of his "Screen Tests".

YELLOW ~ "YES TO ANOTHER EXCESS";


Yellow were actually Swiss, not British but I don't know where else to put them. Anyway this vid uses an early rare horror film by DW Griffith based on Edgar Allan Poe's "The Cask Of The Amontillado". The cast includes Henry Walthall (who would later star in "Birth Of A Nation" with supporting roles by Mary Pickford, Mack Sennett and Linda Arvidson, Griffith's wife.

NURSE WITH WOUND ~ "SWAMP RAT";


Nurse With Wound are a UK group who have been around in various formations since 1978 with literally dozens of albums ranging from Industrial drone to Kraut Rock. For this vid I used an old silent fantasy film.

ORCHESTRAL MANEUVERS IN THE DARK ~ "DAZZLE SHIPS";


OMD were known for their series of synth pop hits however their early work was more experimental including this track from their fourth album for which I used a 1905 Segundo De Chomon film.

OMD ~ "UNIVERSAL";


For this later track vid I used a French silent film from between 1904 - 1908 which includes some early animation.

Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project; UK New Wave

Assorted UK New Wave;

PUBLIC IMAGE LTD;
The post Sex Pistols project of Johnny Lydon (nee Rotten) had little in common with the Pistols but would be effectively the first Post Punk band and would be a huge influence on the likes of Joy Division, Gang Of Four, Bauhaus, the Banshees, Killing Joke, Clock DVA and pretty much every other artsy dark and moody UK band ofthe 1980's by eschewing the thrashy power chords of punk for funky-dub bass lines and shards of angular guitar and Lydon's keening vocals. The classic albums were the first self titled debut and the second "Metal Box" with it's iconic film can packaging. PIL would carry with an ever fractious lineup. At the end of the eighties they suddenly took an unexpected turn to more conventional sounds for their last three albums. The Pistols would briefly reform in the nineties.

PUBLIC IMAGE LTD ~ "ALBATROSS";


For this video I used an early Gothic horror film from French director Maurice Tourneur "The Wax Figures" (1914)

SUBWAY SECT; Subway Sect were part of the first wave of London punk bands but they were radically different than than the thrashing three chord punks. Led by singer Vic Goddard the Sect filtered their slower Stooges chords through a low-fi artsier lens. They only released a few singles (including a minor hit with "Ambition") while the album they recorded sat on the shelf unreleased to this day after Goddard fired the rest of the band before completely restructuring them as a non-rock cabaret act for a few years. Subway Sect's time in the limelight didn't last long but their crude, droning art-punk and drab black and grey visual aesthetic would have an influence on the next generation of art punks like the Fall, Wire, Magazine, Joy Division and the Psychedelic Furs. The Jesus & Mary Chain would go on to cover "Ambition" in their early days.

SUBWAY SECT ~ "CHAIN SMOKING";


For this vid I used some footage of a London Cabaret in the 1930's

SUBWAY SECT ~ "WE OPPOSE ALL ROCK & ROLL";


This vid uses footage from a 1930's newsreal of a rally by the British Blackshirts and leader Sir Oswald Mosley that turned into a riot.

MAGAZINE:

Magazine were formed by singer Howard DeVoto after leaving the Buzzcocks. They had several albums and a few hits from 1977 - 1981. After the band petered out guitarist John McGheogh went on to Visage (first album) and three highly regarded albums with Siouxsie & The Banshees finally ending up with Public Image Ltd by the late eighties. He died in 2004. This song was later covered by Bauhaus singer Peter Murphy on his first album and also by Trotsky Icepick.

MAGAZINE ~ "THE LIGHT POURS OUT OF ME";


This video uses some street scene footage from 1920's Wiemar Germany.

FINGERPRINTZ;

Fingerprintz were a Scottish group who put out three highly regarded but not very successful albums between 1979-1983. Each of their albums were quite different with the first album being artsy guitar based, the second more power pop and the third slick and dancable. In spite of getting great reviews nothing quite worked and they broke up with singer Jimmie O'Neil and guitarist Cha Burns reforming as the Silencers who would face a similar fate.

FINGERPRITNZ ~ "SYNCH UNIT";


This early instrumental with a spaghetti western feel uses a clip of a silent western starring Jack Hoxie, (in the white hat of course).

THE PSYCHEDELIC FURS;

The Furs started out as an artsy post punk band with a droning cacophonous sound of the Subway Sect/Wire school. After original producer Martin Hannett had to bow out in order to rescue New Order after the death of Ian Curtis the Furs went to Steve Lillywhite who had previously produced the first albums by Siouxsie & The Banshees and Ultravox. (Note; Another young band also being produced by Hannett also ended up with Lillywhite, that band was U2). Lillywhite would produce the Furs first two albums.

THE PSYCHEDELIC FURS ~ "SO RUN DOWN";


This track from the first album uses a 1908 George Melies film.

THE PASSIONS;

The Passions were a band a female singer (Barbara Gogan), who put out three well reviewed albums between 1979 - 82 with two classic hits including "I'm In Love With A German Film Star" and "African Mine" before they broke up. Later guitarist Kevin Armstrong later went to play with David Bowie in Tin Machine, Iggy Pop, Morrissey and Sinead O'Connor. And that's about it.

THE PASSIONS ~ "I'M IN LOVE WITH A GERMAN FILM STAR";


I naturally used an Andy Warhol screen-test of Nico because of course I did.

THE CULT; The Cult started out as a murky proto-Goth band as The Southern Death Cult who released a couple of singles and ep's before briefly shortening it to the Death Cult with another ep before finally settling on The Cult who finally settled on a cleaner big guitar and vocal sound with some psychedelic imagery on the "Dream Time" and "Love" albums which finally became, um, cult hits in the UK and Canada. By 1987 they evolved into a more 1970's hard rock sound with "Electric" and it's follow-up "Sonic Temple" which finally broke them into the U.S. market. It didn't really last though and the next few albums got diminishing results and cock-rock gave way to grunge. Eventually they broke up and singer Ian Astbury joined a reformed version of the Doors with Ray Manzerek.

THE CULT ~ "PHOENIX";


For the opening track off of "Love" I used an old film "A Trip To Mars".

THE CULT ~ "NIRVANA";


For this track from "Love" I used some early animation from German Dada film-maker Walter Ruttmann from the 1920's.

THE FIXX;

The Fixx were one of the last groups of the post-Joy Division Simple school of artsy, atmospheric, keyboard heavy, New Wave with their first album coming out in 1982 although they had been kicking around for a few years. Unlike the likes of Simple Minds, Ultravox and Japan however the Fixx surprised everyone, including probably themselves, by scoring a series of hits on both sides of the Atlantic, helped no doubt by the rise of MTV. This track off of the first album uses a short art film made for the Dadaist Fluxus Film collective circa 1967.

THE FIXX ~ "THE FOOL";


This track off of the first album uses a short art film made for the Dadaist Fluxus Film collective circa 1967.

THE FIXX ~ "THE SIGN OF FIRE";


This track uses an early film about a home invasion.

THE CHAMELEONS;
The Chameleons (sometimes called the Chameleons UK in the USA for legal reasons) were a band from Manchester with a loud echoey guitar sound and deep voiced vocals somewhat midway between early U2 and Sisters Of Mercy. They put out three albums between 1983 -86 before breaking up and reforming a couple times including a reunion tour this year. The first album was the best.

THE CHAMELEONS ~ "DON'T FALL";


This song of the first uses a clip from a Harry Houdini adventure movie from the 1920's.

THE CHAMELEONS ~ "SECOND SKIN";


Another song from the first album using an early French film about a stalker.

ERASURE; One of the bigger synth-pop bands, Erasure were a spin-off from Depeche Mode starting in 1985 with a number of hits. ERASURE ~ "SHIP OF FOOLS";


This vid uses an early colour film (1926) using dancers from Martha Graham's modern dance troop.

Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project Pres; Siouxsie & The Banshees pt.3

I already made a bunch of Banshees vids but then I stumbled on to some more stock footage and there's always room for more Siouxsie.

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES ~ "LOST LITTLE GIRL";


This is a Doors cover off the "Through The Looking Glass" album and uses some footage from a 1923 silent film "Brass" starring Marie Prevost who you may recognize from the nick Lowe song.

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES ~ "LITTLE JOHNNY JEWEL";


This cover version of the Television song off of "Through The Looking Glass" uses some test footage from some 1960's Hammer Studios horror films.

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES ~ "FOLLOW THE SUN";


This song form the "Hyena" era uses some test footage from a 1960's caveman film.

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES ~ "TAKE ME BACK";


Another track from "Hyena" this time using some stop-motion footage of a flower blooming.

Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project; Cabaret Voltaire pt.3

I already made a bunch of Cabaret Voltaire here and here but since then I've made a few more so....

CABARET VOLTAIRE ~ "THE SET UP";


For this early track I used an early colour film by George Melies.

CABARET VOLTAIRE ~ "PREMONITION";


This vid uses another George Melies short "Satan In Prison".

CABARET VOLTAIRE ~ "NO ESCAPE";


This vid for a live version of a cover of a Seeds song uses an early short about an attack on a train.

CABARET VOLTAIRE ~ "IF THE SHADOWS COULD MARCH";


This bid uses a distressed fragment of a short doc showing a ship entering a harbour in Holland. Sountrack taken froma short track off the second album slowed down multiple times.

CABARET VOLTAIRE ~ "PARTIALLY SUBMERGED";


This vid uses footage of Edie Sedgewick from Andy Warhol's "Poor Little Rich Girl" (1965)

CABARET VOLTAIRE ~ "NEWS FROM NOWHERE";


This vid uses more footage of Edie, this time doing her laundry

CABARET VOLTAIRE ~ "WALLS OF KYOTO";


This vid for a live version off "Hai! Live In Japan" uses an Op Art film by George Cupp from 1977.

CABARET VOLTAIRE vs QUEEN ~ "WE WILL NAG YOU";


This track is a mashup of the Cabs and Queen and uses another Op Art film by George Cup from the 1970's

Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project Pres; Black Sabbath & Monster Magnet

This week on my Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project; Black Sabbath and Monster Magnet.

You wouldn't normally think of Sabbath as subject for some artsy film mashups but there's a couple.

BLACK SABBATH ~ "EMBRYO";


This one uses one of the earliest short clips from Edison Studios circa 1894.

BLACK SABBATH ~ "FX";


For this little effects noodle I used some Edison Studios footage taken from the 1901 Pan-Am Expo in Buffalo which was incidentally where President Willaim McKinley was shot.

MATMOS ~ "FX";


This cover of the Sabbath song was from a Black Sabbath cover album and I used some more Edison Studios footage, this time of the aftermath of the San Fransisco earthquake and fire of 1904.

MONSTER MAGNET ~ "INTO THE VOID";


This epic cover came from yet another Sabbath tribute. Uses a Polish film based on the Gogol story "The Portrait".

MONSTER MAGNET ~ "EGO THE LIVING PLANET";


With their 1995 album "Dopes To Infinity" album Monster Magnet produced the greatest album Black Sabbath never made. More footage from the Edison Studios footage of the San Francisco Earthquake for this instrumental.

MONSTER MAGNET ~ "MASTERBURNER";


For this track I used a short art film made by Yoko Ono as part of Flux Films, a Dada art Collective in 1967.

MONSTER MAGNET ~ "KING OF MARS";


This video used another art film, by Robert Breer from 1970

BLUE CHEER ~ "MAGNOLIA CABOOSE BABYFINGER";


Before there was Black Sabbath there was Blue Cheer. This vid uses some test footage from a horror film from the British studio Hammer Films in the 1960's

Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project Pres; Ramleh

Ramleh were one of the bands to emerge from the early Dada-Industrial scene of Northern England led by the likes of Throbbing Gristle, Cabaret Voltaire (who also made a series of vids for to be scene here and here) and Clock DVA (ditto here). Starting in 1982 they have continued (with an ever shifting lineup) to today releasing records on various small indie labels. Ramleh differ from the other bands mentioned in that while these bands would embrace electronic and even dance music, Ramleh have continued to work within the original Noise-Rock framework of traditional guitar, bass and drums drenched in screeching feedback, distortion, droning echo, shouted vocals (if any) and long, apparently free-form jams.

RAMLEH ~ "FAG-ENDERS";


For this track off the 1994 "Homeless" I used an early silent animated film by Winsor McCay, the father of animation, who incidentally I've also written about here. Note that the "Fag" in the title probably refers to the British slang term for cigarettes but I can't be 100% sure since the vocals are completely indecipherable.

RAMLEH ~ "CHICKENHAWK";


This track from "Homeless" uses a weird early sci-fi film from the great French director Abel Gance ("Napoleon") which includes some hallucinogenic camera tricks.

RAMLEH ~ "MAGIC TIGER";


This track uses another early French film, this time from George Melies which includes some early hand-tinted colour.

RAMLEH ~ "THUMB BUSTER";


This track uses a short art film made by Yoko Ono for the Fluxus Film art collective in New York in about 1967

Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project Pres; Monoton

More from my Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project. This week; Monoton.
German electro group Monoton was actually Konrad Becker who released a debut album in 1982 of dark atmospheric drones called "Monotonprodukt 07". The album was quite obscure at the time but it has since been cited as an influence on later electro-minimilists and was re-released in 2003.

MONOTON ~ "FIRE";


This video uses an early 1908 DW Griffith film "The Lonely Vila", about a home invasion. I also used this film for a Cabaret Voltaire video but couldn't decide which I liked better so I kept both.

MONOTON ~ "NEW";


This video uses one of the early Edison Studios shorts from 1898.

MONOTON ~ "WHEREAMI";


This one uses another Edison Film, "Uncle Josh In A Haunted Hotel" from 1900. Uncle Josh was a recuring character of a rural rube who has adventures in the big city as the subject of a series of Edison shorts. This one is notable in having a supernatural theme.

MONOTON ~ "SINGSANG";


This video uses an ealy french film "Arab Sorcerie".

MONOTON ~ "SOUND SEQUENCE";


This video uses a short art film by Joe Jones made for the Flux Films collective in 1966.

MONOTON ~ "VIBRATIONS";


Another art film from the Flux Collective, "Exit" by George Brecht.

MONOTON ~ "SHORT WAVE TRANSMISSION";


For this one instead of using a vintage silent film I used a modern silent short "Locked In" by Mathew Zellner that I thought needed a soundtrack.

Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project Presents; Jass

The Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project presents, Jass;

I don't actually know very much about this band but their music is perfect for soundtracks. Jass were apparently a Shefield based band from the early to mid 1980's and part of the same scene as Cabaret Voltaire and Clock DVA and they tread similar ground to the Cab's circa "Three Mantras" and "Red Meca" era. Albeit in a more minimalistic and trance-like way. One of their tracks ("Trap Drip Drop") also shows some influences from Steve Reich's tape-loop works "Come Out" and "It's Gonna Rain". Their entire recorded output seems to consist of an album of demos recorded in 1985-86 and a live album from 1987 and that's it. Needless to say the videos I made are the only ones for this band. Incidentally the group's name comes from the original 1900's spelling of the of the word "jazz".

JASS ~ "OLD FILM LIFE";


For this video I used an early French Pathe film "Sculptures Moderne" which features some crude stop-action animation.

JASS ~ "FRONTIER JUSTICE";


This one uses another Pathe stop-action film.

JASS ~ "SUNKEN SOLDIER BONES";


For this track I used a 1960's silent op-art short made for the Fluxus Art Collective by George Maciunas.

JASS ~ "TRAP DRIP DROP";


This track uses another art film made in the 1960's for Fluxus, this one a series of performance art films made by Frenchman Ben Vautier

JASS ~ "UNTITLED LIVE TRACK NO.2"


This track off the live album uses another film by Ben Vautier although this one is essentially a home movie

Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project Presents; Japan

The Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project Presents; Japan:

Japan is another one of those bands like Simple Minds and Ultravox, who went from being a guitar-oriented Post-Punk band to a more atmospheric sound using keyboard washes, guitar arpeggios and funky basslines to make atmospheric and occasionally danceable music that seemed perfect for film soundtracks.

JAPAN ~ "LIFE IN TOKYO";


After two ablums of forgettable glam funk Japan introduced some electro-dance (via producer Georgio Moroder) as well as thier first flirtation with Asian music although at this point it's basically limited to J-Pop. Accordingly for this video I used a Segundo De Chomon film "Hombres Chinoises".

JAPAN ~ "VISIONS OF CHINA";


For this song off of the 1981 album "Tin Drum", which more deftly incorporated Asian influences, I used a 1908 French silent film

JAPAN ~ "METHODS OF DANCE";


For this song off of the 1980 album "Methods Of Dance" I used a 1962 French performance art film by Ben Vautier which basically consists of him sitting on a jetty holding a sign that says "Look At Me" while the camera records their reactions. It actually kinda works out with the "dance" theme.

JAPAN ~ "GENTLEMAN TAKE POLAROIDS";


For this track off the same album album I used a 1965 Dada German film short by Wolf Vostell, "Sun In Your Head". I also used this film for a Cabaret Voltaire track which I liked better but I thought this one still works.

JAPAN ~ "A FOREIGN PLACE";


This instrumental uses travel footage from 1950's Hong Kong

JAPAN ~ "OIL ON CANVAS";


This instrumental track is off the "Oil On Canvas" live album and uses a short film made by John Cale in 1967 as part of the Fluxus Film Dada art collective.

JAPAN ~ "TEMPLE OF DAWN";


This is another insturmental track off of "Oil On Canvas" using another Fluxus Films short, this one "OPUS 2" by Eric Anderson.

Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project Pres; Killing Joke

This week on my Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project; Killing joke.

Killing Joke's 1980 first album practically invented Industrial Rock. There had been Industrial bands since the mid seventies with groups like Throbbing Gristle, Cabaret Voltaire and Destroy All Monsters. But these groups largely rejected traditional rock & roll lineups, riffs and song structures, aside from a few exceptions like Cabaret Voltaire's "Nag Nag Nag" or their cover of the Seeds' "No Escape'. Killing Joke however were clearly a rock and roll band with punishing riffs and pounding drums.

KILLING JOKE ~ "CHANGE";


For this song off the second 1981 album I used footage from the end of the 1916 German Expressionist Horror film "Homunculus". Although little known now this film was one of the influences on later horror films like "Frankenstein".

KILLING JOKE ~ "BLOODSPORT";


This instrumental off the first album uses an early American film "Fire".

KILLING JOKE ~ "$0.36";


This one, also off the first album, uses an earlier fireman film, Edwin S Porter's "Life Of An American Fireman from 1903. I also used this film for a Siouxsie & The Banshess film but decided to keep both versions.

KILLING JOKE ~ "TOMORROW'S DREAM";


Another song off the first album, this time using a short art film "Bad Burns" by Paul Sharits from 1982 made of spliced together strips of over-developed film. Note I had some sound problems on this one. Note also this is not a cover of the Black Sabbath song.

KILLING JOKE ~ "THE FALL OF BECAUSE";


This song off the second album uses a French Pathe film

KILLING JOKE ~ "HARLEQUIN";


This one is off of the fourth album, "Fire Dances", and uses a British film that features some early claymation

The Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project Pres; Savage Republic, pt.2

This week on my Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project; Savage Republic pt.2.
Once again we return to my favorite obscure post-punk-indie band (American division) with their unique spaghetti-western-surf-guitar and industrial-tribal drums.

SAVAGE REPUBLIC ~ "EXODUS";


This echo and feedback drenched track form the first 1982 "Tragic Figures" album uses Edison Studios newsreel footage from a huge fire in Berkley, California.

SAVAGE REPUBLIC ~ "ATTEMPTED COUP; MADAGASGAR";


Another track off the first album this time using footage from another one of Spanish film-maker Segundo De Chomon's late period actualities, this time shot in Venice in 1912.

SAVAGE REPUBLIC ~ "EMPTY QUARTER";


For this one I used another Edison Studios newsreel footage of a fire, this time a gas refinery in New Jersey in 1900.

SAVAGE REPUBLIC ~ "WHEN ALL ELSE FAILS";


Another track off the first album and one of the bands rare vocals. This time using George Melies film "The Haunted Convent".

SAVAGE REPUBLIC ~ "ON THE PROWL";


For this track I used "The Hasher's Delirium", an early piece of animation.

SAVAGE REPUBLIC ~ "ZULU ZULU";


This short track off the first album uses a short Dada art film made by Paul Sharits for the Fluxus Film collective in 1966.

Throwback Thursdays Retro Videos Presents; Savage Republic, pt.1

This week on my Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project; Savage Republic.
Savage Republic may well be my favorite obscure 1980's post-punk band (American division). This California group with an ever-shifting line-up combined epic spaghetti-western-surf-guitar with tribal drumming, industrial distortion and some occasional ethnic seasoning to create a moody, atmospheric sound completely their own. They also had a striking visual style for their record covers as they had access to an antique off-set printing press and a willingness to use it. They put out a series of albums starting in 1982 to about 1992 before splitting into various spin-off groups, some version of Savage Republic exists to this day. They made no actual videos which is a shame as I always thought their cinematic music especially well suited for the medium.

SAVAGE REPUBLIC ~ "TABULA RASA";


This is a song off the 1988 fourth album "Jamahiriya" using an early DW Giffith film "Edgar Allan Poe" in which Poe is inspired to write "The Raven" in order to find money to feed his dying wife. The actor does bear a striking resemblance to Poe.

SAVAGE REPUBLIC ~ "JAMAHIRIYA";


Another track off the fourth album this time using a 1908 film "The Haunted House" by Spanish film-maker Segundo De Chomon, a contemporary of the Frenchman George Melies whose style he expanded on.

SAVAGE REPUBLIC ~ "TRUDGE";


The group were in full-on Ennio Morricone on this epic track off the 1986 "Trudge" ep. For the vid I used a George Melies film "The Alchemist".

SAVAGE REPUBLIC ~ "TREK";


The other epic track from "Trudge", this time using a perfromance art film by Dutch film-maker Franz Zwartjies.

SAVAGE REPUBLIC ~ "TARANTO";


This track uses another Segundo De Chomon film "Les Grenouille" from 1908.

SAVAGE REPUBLIC ~ "VALETTA";


For this Mediterranean influenced track I used a documentary film "Burgos" about a Spanish city made by in 1911 by Segundo De Chomon in one of his rare docs, it's also one of the earliest colour films. The music runs out before the video ends and normally I would have junked it but the imagery matches up with the music so perfectly I had to keep it.

Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project Pres; The Silver Apples And Syrinx

This week on my Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project; The Silver Apples and Syrinx.
Back in the late 1960's while everybody else was slinging guitars, organs and the occasional sax the Silver Apples and Syrinx were among the first groups to use synthesizers. Although both groups were hopelessly obscure and mostly forgotten by all but the nerdiest of rock-snobs (like yours truly) they pioneered a path leading directly to the synth-pop, industrial and techno bands from the 1980's onward. Especially fellow New Yorkers Suicide.

The Silver Apples were one of the weirdest products of the New York underground scene of the 1960's. And this was a scene that included the Velvet Underground, the Holy Modal Rounders, Lothar & The Hand People, Albert Ayler and Moondog. Starting in 1967 as a fairly conventional psychedelic band that included the electo-noodlings of Simion Ross. The Moog synths of the day were massive affairs, with a jungle of patch-chords and vacuum tubes. They were not only huge but also expensive so Simion didn't actually play one, instead he built his own jerry-rigged contraption of various electronic pulse generators, effects pedals and feedback. The resulting mountain of gear took up two tables and was referred to as the "Simion". This ungainly monster was capable of an arsenal of whirring feedback and hypnotic tones for a spacey, ethereal sound that sounded like literally nothing that had ever came before (or since). This cacophony soon drove all of the other members of the band out as superfluous save the drummer, Brian Taylor. Influenced by Mitch Mitchell, Taylor developed an intricate rapid-fire style that filled up the space left by the now departed guitars and drums. On top of all this Ross added his own ghostly tenor vocals and the occasional banjo or flute.

Somewhat amazingly these weirdos actually got signed to Kapp Records, an otherwise thoroughly conventional home for acts like Loouis Arsmtrong, Cher, Burt Bacharach and Bob Wills (although they also had Budgie). They even managed to put out two albums in 1968 and 1969 which, in an unexpected development, failed to get any airplay or press. They had recorded a third album which was not released before Kapp gave up on them. After that they broke up and returned to the void from whence they came. In the 1990's the group was rediscovered by a small group of electro-nerds and their two albums were released on one CD in 1994 and Simion Ross reformed the group (minus Taylor) albeit using more conventional synths and samplers as his original "Simion" had long since been broken up and tossed away. In 1998 Taylor discovered the master tapes of the lost third album which was finally released as well. Taylor died in 2005. Simion Ross continued to record and tour until a serious car crash badly injured his back and smashed his gear in 1998. After taking a few years to recover he has resumed recording and touring.

Not surprisingly there is no live or video footage of the band. When I went about making some I decided the abstract shorts made by German Dada film-maker Hans Richter in the 1920's and the Op-Art films made in the 1960's by George Maciunis would perfectly suit their ethereal sound.
THE SILVER APPLES ~ "OSCILATIONS";


Using a 1966 film made for the New York Flux Films collective.

THE SILVER APPLES ~ "I HAVE KNOWN LOVE";


THE SILVER APPLES ~ "WATER";


~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

Unlike the Silver Apples Toronto's Syrinx actually did use a proper Moog and could be considered perhaps the first real synth band, along with the Germans Tangerine Dream with their first albums coming out in 1969. Syrinx consisted of Moog player John Mills-Cockell along with Doug Pringle on sax (often played through various effects) and Alan Wells on percussion. Their sound was more lush and conventionally melodic compared to the droning cacophony of the Silver Apples. The trio were also trained musicians while Simion Ross was an inspired amateur (although Apples drummer Derick Taylor did have jazz training) which allowed Syrinx to weave longer, more complex pieces similar to those being toyed with by the similar sounding Germans Tangerine Dream (first album in 1969) and Terry Riley. They put out two albums ("Syrinx" in 1970 and "Long Time Relatives" in 1971) which were released only in Canada and did some touring and played on the CBC before breaking up. Mills-Cockell would go on to do film and TV soundtracks while Pringle would go on to found Toronto punk one-hit wonders The Poles with his performance artist wife Michelle Jordana. The Poles would go on score a classic hit single with "CN Tower" before fading away. In spite of their status as electro pioneers Syrinx were quite forgotten about for years while their German contemporaries Tangerine Dream would go on to decades long world-wide success with a similar approach. In 2017 their long out of print collected works were put out as a box set and short film doc was made.

Unlike the jarring other-worldly noise of the Silver Apples the more contemplative sweep of Syrinx seemed to lend itself to more conventional film narrative.

SYRINX ~ "December Angel";


This mournful track off the 1971 album uses newsreel footage from the Titanic.

SYRINX ~ "FATHER OF LIGHT";


This track uses footage from the 1915 German sci-fi horror film "Homonculus". This largely forgotten film was a major influence on the later classic German Expressionist films as well as "Frankenstein".

SYRINX ~ "FIELD HYMN";


For this track I used a film by French director George Melies, "The Airship".

The Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project Pres; Destroy All Monsters pt.2

Another in my Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project. This week; Destroy All Monsters pt.2;
This collection features videos using films made by Flux Films from 1965-67. Flux Films was an American Dada art collective that made a series of silent short films meant to be played at art showings, usually on a repeating loops. Some of their members included Yoko Ono and John Cale.

DESTROY ALL MONSTERS ~ "TO PLANET M240";


Made with a short film by George Maciunas

DESTROY ALL MONSTERS ~ "GO FOR IT"


Made with a short film by Robert Watts.

DESTROY ALL MONSTERS ~ "ELECTRO BANSHEE";


Made with another short film, an Op-Art piece by George Maciunas.

DESTROY ALL MONSTERS ~ "FADES BEFORE FIVE";


Another George Maciunas film, a collage called "Sears Catalogue".

DESTROY ALL MONSTERS ~ "NIXONOXIN";


This track features Richard Nixon's resignation speech, apparently recorded off the TV (one of the group can be heard clapping). Accordingly for this track I made a collage of still images of Nixon charictures.

The Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project Pres; Destroy All Monsters pt.1

Another in my Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project. This week; Destroy All Monsters.
Possibly the first American Industrial band, Destroy All Monsters were formed in Detroit in 1974 as an experimental performance art/noise band making numerous recordings (mostly crude instrumentals) but had few actual releases until 1977 by which time most of the original members had left and been replaced with Ron Asheton (ex Stooges and Micheal Davis (ex MC5) who turned the group into a more conventional punk band. This latter version of the band is better known, Sonic Youth's Thurston Moore oversaw a three CD box set which included most of the original band's work. Given the band's obscurity it's probably safe to say my videos are the only ones.

DESTROY ALL MONSTERS ~ "CHURCH";


This track uses a snippet of footage of an American TV play from the mid-1930's. Almost no TV footage exists from this era and this footage was shot by somebody aiming a home movie camera at a TV screen. Little is known about the actual show.

DESTROY ALL MONSTERS ~ "CONGA";


This track uses newsreel footage from the 1904 San Francisco earthquake and fire.

DESTROY ALL MONSTERS ~ "CRUNCH DRONE";


For this track I used a 1909 film "Airship Destroyer".

DESTROY ALL MONSTERS ~ "SPACE BEAT";


This video uses a short abstract art film by Robert Breer from 1970.

DESTROY ALL MONSTERS ~ "THRONE OF CHAOS";


This one uses another Robert Breer film, "Eyewash" from 1959.

DESTROY ALL MONSTERS ~ "IT HURTS ME";


This one uses a 1900 Edison Studios film "Faust & Margarite", one of the first films to have a supernatural/horror theme.

The Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project Pres; Wire

This week on my Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project; Wire.

One of the first generation of Art-Punks (along with Siousxie & The Banshees, The Fall, Ultravox, Subway Sect, Alternative Televison, Soft Boys and Desperate Bicycles), Wire quickly gained a different approach from the basic three chord thrash on their three albums from 1977 to 1979, plus a live album in 1981. After breaking up for a decade they reformed in 1987 and took up right where they left off and they're still at it to this day, albeit sometimes with a different drummer.

WIRE ~ "LOWDOWN";


For this classic from the 1977 second album, "Pink Flag", I used a clip from a 1920's western starring Jack Hoxie which seemed to fit the almost Ennio Morricone feel of the song. Too bad the last few seconds of the fadeout got cut off. I also used this vid for a Fingerprintz vid.

WIRE ~ "STRANGE";


WIRE ~ "FRAGILE";


This one uses some 1920's aerial footage of Wiemar Berlin

Another song off "Pink Flag" this time using a 1907 film by Spanish film-maker Segundo De Chomon, a contemporary of French director George Melies whose style he built upon. I used this film for a Siouxsie & The Banshees song but could decide which I liked better so I kept both.

WIRE ~ "STRAIGHT LINE";


A song off the first album using an early Edison Studios film with a crude attempt at special f/x.

WIRE ~ "A TOUCHING DISPLAY";


for this song off the "154" album I used "Bob's Electric Theatre" by Segudo De Chomon

WIRE ~ "FIELD DAY FOR THE SUNDAYS";


This song from the first album uses a short Dada art film made for the Fluxus Film Collective by George Maciunas circa 1967.

The Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project Pres; Ultravox & Visage

This week in my Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project; Ultravox and Visage.
Ultravox,led by Midge Ure are remembered for their series of 1980's New Romantic club hits like "Dancing With Tears In My Eyes", "Sleepwalk" and "Vienna". But there was an earlier version of Ultravox led by John Foxx who recorded three albums from 1976 to 1978 which were not hits but did became an influence on bands like Simple Minds, Joy Division, Japan, The Fixx, Comsat Angels, Killing Joke and especially Gary Numan with their icy guitar and keyboard sound and coldly moody songs about dehumanization, dislocation (also one of their song titles) and alienation.

ULTRAVOX ~ "CROSS FADE";


For this song off the 1978 third album "Systems Of Romance" album I used footage from the end of the 1915 German Expressionist Horror film "Homnonculus". Although little known now this film was one of the influences on later horror films like Frankenstein. I also used this footage for a Killing Joke song but couldn't decide which version I liked best so I kept both.

ULTRAVOX ~ "THE QUIET MAN";


Another song off the third album, this time using footage of a Navaho Indian dance for Teddy Roosevelt made by Edison Studios.

ULTRAVOX ~ "SLOWDOWN";


Yet another song off the third album using a film by Spanish filmmaker Segundo De Chomon short film, "Les Oeufs De Paques" from 1907. Chomon was a contemporary of George Melies whose style he built upon. I also used this film for a Siouxsie & The Banshess song.

VISAGE ~ "FADE TO GREY";


After John Foxx left Ultravox in 1979 he was replaced by Midge Ure who changed the focus and sound of the band into a more lush and dreamy feel which would eventually spawn the New Romantic scene. But first he also joined with other members of Ultravox and Magazine to form a band around scenester Steve Strange as Visage who put out two albums and had a hit with the atmospheric "Fade To Grey" which sounds tailor made for silent films. Here I paired it with footage from the 1915 German Expressionist horror film "Der Golem". This film (starring Paul Wegener) was remade in 1922 (also with Wegener) and both versions were hugely influential on the later "Frankenstein" movies. The 1915 version was long considered lost until these snippets from the ending surfaced a few years ago. There is enough here to tell that there were considerable differences from the later version, notably that this version was set in modern times while the later was set in medieval Prague. In both versions however Wegener's iconic costume and makeup are largely the same.

VISAGE ~ "VISA-AGE";


In xxxx Steve Strange reformed Visage to redo songs from their first two albums with a full orchestra. This video of a song originally off the first album uses aerial footage from Berlin in the 1920's.

VISAGE ~ "NEVER ENOUGH";


Another from the orchestral album for a song originally on the second album using a short old silent film from the 1910's with an extended dream sequence.

VISAGE ~ "NIGHT TRAIN";


Yet another from the orchestral album for a song originally on the second album using a short art film by George Cup & Steve Elliot from 1972.

The Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project Presents; Simple Minds pt2

More from my Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project. This week; More Simple Minds.

SIMPLE MINDS ~ "THIS FEAR OF GODS";


A song off the 1981 third album "Empires & Dance" using a 1924 abstract film "Symphonie Diagonale" by Swedish/German Dada film-maker Viking Eggeling.

SIMPLE MINDS ~ "70 CITIES AS LOVE BRINGS A FALL";


This song from "Sister Feelings Call" uses an odd silent short that features the miniaturized Denishawn Dancers circa 1910's

SIMPLE MINDS ~ "COLOURS FLY & CATHERINE WHEELS";


A track off the 1982 fifth album "New Gold Dream" using a 1912 film by Spanish film-maker (albeit working in France) Segundo De Chomon, a contemporary of George Melies whose style he built on.

SIMPLE MINDS ~ "KING IS WHITE & IN HER CROWD";


This video uses an old silent travel doc SIMPLE MINDS ~ "CATWALK";


This track off the 1984 "Sparkle In The Rain" uses another film by Segundo De Chomon, "The Japanese Butterflies" from 1908. I also used this one for a track by The Band Of Susans.

SIMPLE MINDS ~ "SHAKE OFF THE GHOSTS";


An instrumental track off "New Gold Dream" using a 1924 by German Dada film-maker Walter Ruttmann, an associate of Viking Eggeling.

SIMPLE MINDS ~ "A BRASS BAND IN AFRICA CHIMES";


Another instrumental track, used as the b-side to the 1984 "Don't You Forget About Me" 12in single but most likely recorded earlier during the sessions for their sixth album "Sparkle In The Rain" in 1983 since they used the same producer in Steve Lillywhite. This is another film by Segundo De Chomon, "The Red Spectre" from 1907. SIMPLE MINDS ~ "BRILLIANT THINGS";


This is a demo of an instrumental track that would later become "Book Of Brilliant Things" off of "Sparkle In The Rain" using some test footage from "The Wizard Of Oz" including actors Judy Garland, Bert Lahr, Roy Bolger, Jack Haley and Margaret Hamilton.

The Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project Presents; Simple Minds

More from my Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project. This week; Simple Minds.

I know everybody remembers them from "The Breakfast Club", "Don't You Forget About Me", and that terrible hit album they followed it up with, blah, blah blah. But they had actually been around for several years by that time having recorded six fine albums full of atmospheric, almost cinematic songs (including several instrumentals) that naturally lent themselves to silent film. At least I always thought so.

SIMPLE MINDS ~ "PLEASANTLY DISTURBED";


The epic closer off their 1979 first album "Life In A Day" mashed up here with a 1915 film "The Portrait", based on a Nikolai Gogol story directed by Polish director Władysław Starewicz, who would later be better known as a pioneer in stop action animation. This little known film is one of the first real horror films and was an obvious influence on the later German Expressionist films especially the classics "The Student Of Prague" and "Faust".

SIMPLE MINDS ~ "REAL TO REAL";


A song off the 1980 second album "Reel To Real Cacophony" using an odd French farce "The Magic Prisoners", which experiments with backwards projection to show some prisoners apparently falling upstairs and breaking into jail.

SIMPLE MINDS ~ "SCAR";


Another song off the second album using a using a short art film, "Tails" from 1976, by Paul Sharits. This film spliced together the faded, underdeveloped ends of other films, hence the title. I used this same film for songs by Cabaret Voltaire and Siouxsie & The Banshees but couldn't decide which version I liked better so I kept them all.

SIMPLE MINDS ~ "CACOPHONY";


An instrumental off the second album using a 1907 film "En Avant Le Musique" by Spanish director (albeit working in France) Segundo De Chomon, a contemporary of George Melies whose style he built upon.

SIMPLE MINDS ~ "VELDT";


Another instrumental off the second album using yet another Segundo De Chomon film "Les Lanatiques" from 1908.

SIMPLE MINDS ~ "FILM THEME";


Yet another instrumental from the second album, this time using some newsreel footage from Edison Studios of an gas refinery explosion from the early 1900's.

SIMPLE MINDS ~ "KANT KINO";


Another track off of "Reel To Real", this time an instrumental, using an early (1902) stop action film "The Destruction Of The Star Theatre" by Edward Armitage

SIMPLE MINDS ~ "ROOM";


Another track from "Empires & Dance" using a 1969 performance art film by Ben Vautier

Next time; More Simple Minds.

The Throwback Thursdays Retro Video Project Pres; Siouxsie & The Banshees (pt.2)

More from my Throwback Thursday Retro Video Project. This week; Siouxsie & The Banshees, pt.2.

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES ~ "HALLOWEEN";


This is a song off their best album, "Ju-Ju" from 1981. The video uses a 1907 short by the Spanish-French film-maker Segundo De Chomon, a contemporary of the more famous George Melies, whose style he expanded on.

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES ~ "VOODOO DOLLY";


Another song off of "Ju Ju" using a Segundo De Chomon film.

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES ~ "LET GO";


This song is a b-side off the 1984 "Swimming Horses" single using another Segundo De Chomon short film, "Les Oeufs De Paques" from 1907. I also used this film for an Ultravox song.

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES ~ "PULLED TO BITS";


This song was originally a b-side that later appeared on the 1983 live album "Nocturne" using newsreel footage from the collapse of the Tacoma Bridge in 1946.

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES ~ "SWITCH";


A song off their debut 1978 album "The Scream" using an Edwin S Porter film "Life Of An American Fireman from 1903.

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES ~ "ISRAEL";


This track uses an odd short film featuring miniaturized versions of the Denishawn Dancers, an influential Modern Dance troupe from the 1910's.

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES ~ "WE HUNGER";


This is a song from the 1984 "Hyena" album. This is a clip from a longer film "Shoes" (1916) directed by Lois Weber and seemed to fit the song perfectly.

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES ~ "THE RAPTURE";


This epic track is obviously in need of a video, here using a chapter from a 1923 British serial about the "Dr Fu Manchu" character. Note the ending of this chapter has been lost.

SIOUXSIE & THE BANSHEES ~ "TURN TO STONE";


This track off the 1986 album "Peep Show" uses another film by Segundo De Chomon