Left Ear Records

10/11/2023

LER 1033: Poetical Licence - Footprint b/w Room 101
Officially released and hitting Melbourne stores today
Formed in 1986 and consisting of Aotearean musicians Mark Airlie and Keri Ansley. This record that has been on high rotation for many a year and resonates deeply. That said, we’re really happy to be able to share it again and hopefully introduce it to a new audience
Also given the seal of approval / review from Instant Peterson - “Amazing 7", sublime ethereal rock from the old country. Fans of Vazz will appreciate this one”
Limited to 250 copies worldwide
📷 Wig Smalls

27/10/2023

This weekend we'll be stepping out of our sheltered existence and joining forces with a stellar line up of local independent labels for the inaugural label showcase
We'll be selling our back catalogue, some limited edition prints and our yet to be released limited edition Poetical Licence 7"
We'll also have some T-shirts, stickers, archival CDs to give away with purchases and will also be providing adequate-to-good banter
The exchange will run from 10AM-5PM at Masaya Reception, 70 Stott St, Thornbury on both Saturday & Sunday
That said, would be lovely to see some familiar and unfamiliar faces. Hope to catch you there X

24/10/2023

Colleen St. Ledger’s “Little Light” (pictured) is a painting from the second of her two exhibitions held in the 1980s, “Rembetika”and “Flowers In The Grass”.
Colleen’s work as you may have observed was featured on the cover of our ‘Picture Music’ release from last year and also on the original cassette from ’86. She initially came in contact with the Picture Music crew as she rented and worked from a small back room at their studio space in Brisbane
Colleen’s paintings were inspired by the music and poetic-lament songs of Rembetika (songs of the Greek underground 1925 - 47). There were approximately 40 paintings from these two shows, with a common theme being the indistinguishable and hypnotic female character juxtaposed against a backdrop of colourful patterns, flowers and to***co
Colleen was well known and regarded within the Brisbane creative community. Her works were well received engaging attention and purchases by high profile private collectors. Queensland Art Gallery acquired her 1986 International Year of Peace Calendar
Whilst researching and archiving the music of the Picture Music collective it was hard to look past the distinctive cover art of Colleen and her impact in the significance of the release, luckily while we were locating the master tapes in Rainer Guth/Jan Archurch’s garage “Little Light” was located
More challenging was locating Colleen, who had stepped aside from the scene. Luckily her niece Harriet reached out on social media and we were able to connect with Colleen, where we recently caught up in Brisbane and decided to collaborate on a small run of 33 hand numbered and signed prints for sale at the as part of the festival this Saturday and Sunday in Thornbury at the Masaya reception centre
Specs: 42 x 56cm giclée print, on Hahnemuhle archival 100% cotton 308gsm paper

05/10/2023

Psyc-ed to announce the release of Rainbow Generator’s – Dance Of The Spheres LP (LER 1034)
In the mid 70’s, the Woolloomooloo squatters took it upon themselves to explore the possibilities of the interface between psyche and sound and in doing so created one of the more enduring and unique records to come out of Aus during that period.
As always, more hours and resources than could reasonably be conceived went into making this re-release possible and we couldn’t be happier with the results. We’re especially pleased to be able to add to the original release. In particular, detailed liner notes that include an amazing collage of archival images by hoof (swipe left to see)
Big thanks to both Dave & Rob for entrusting us with their work, as well as everyone else involved. In particular:
for the mastering
for the collage/insert
for the design
Hitting Melbourne stores today. For global distribution get in touch with
See you on the other side 🌈

10/07/2023

Just uploaded Rainbow Generator's - 'Rainbow Raga' to the tube.

Rainbow Generator are Australia’s first true experimental electronic music group. The Sydney squatters consisted of David Labuschagne AKA Mojo, and Rob Greav...

05/07/2023

Sydney Squatters the Rainbow Generator held court at their Woolloomooloo studio from the mid 70s until they were forced out in the early 80’s
The aptly titled ‘Letric Loo’ studio as the “heads” called it, acted as a sanctuary for recording and creating
A number of images from the archives highlight the making of their sole album ‘Dance Of The Spheres’. Including pics of: Mojo, Ras, Naomi Leago & Damien Burnett
Pre-orders live on Bandcamp: https://rainbowgenerator.bandcamp.com/album/dance-of-the-spheres?label=3055618479&fbclid=PAAabyZm2WzTagaWcLBBGJzWuDfurrp3aGeuRB5mOrsW3P0b_98-NGnhd3zPc_aem_AdPdslxEu3adUfC84xd-gN3hl7L9pdo8a7mniCYpo4C5Iu4GJxgrEUWOdzoyHUo9A4E

06/06/2023

LER 1034: Rainbow Generator – Dance Of The Spheres
Rainbow Generator are Australia’s first true experimental electronic music group. Consisting of David Labuschagne AKA Mojo, and Rob Greaves AKA Ras. Starting in the mid-70’s, the pair took it upon themselves to begin exploring the possibilities of the sonic dimension and began investigating the interface between psyche and sound
In 1976 David established the ‘Lectric Loo’ studio in Woolloomooloo, Sydney. The 3-story building was owned by the Department of Main Roads, and slated for demolition. So, it was that the entire block became a haven for squatters, and while Mojo had the main 3-story building to himself, the rest of the buildings were taken by a hotch-potch of people that included Anarchists, a Clown School and a collection of other random squatters
Recording in the ‘Lectric Loo’ provided them the ability to record freely. In 1975 they began to experiment, putting Mojo’s Fender Strat through effects pedals, playing with sounds while manipulating shortwave radio stations and further challenging conventions. By 1976 they had built a kit synthesizer and shortly after purchased a full Roland 100 Synthesiser set-up and were on their way
In 1978, with little resources, or any form of distribution they released their sole LP ‘Dance of the Spheres’ and in doing so expanded their exploration of the interface between psyche and sound. Dance of the Spheres incorporates elements of 70’s psych and folk with spoken-word and of course the emerging sounds of the synthesizer and drum machines. Furthermore, the addition of traditional instruments such as the didgeridoo and the Indian technique of a Raga add a timeless layer, all seamlessly complementing the other elements and launching the album to another dimension
Mastered by: Dan Elleson
Design: Asger Behncke Jacobsen
Insert: Dainty Hoof
Distro direct in the Antipodes, or through Rush Hour Store for the rest of the world. Due out late July

13/04/2023

After a few challenging years, and a number of setbacks, Litia Loe's - 'Life Love Dance' LP is finally here in the flesh and we couldn't be happier with the final product
Their LP will officially be hitting Melbourne stores today and globally this week. Link up in the bio to secure a copy 🟣

10/03/2023

LER 1032 / MS09. Left Ear Records and Mixed Signals team up again to refresh LITIA=LOE’s mid-90s album Life Love Dance. On this timeless release, the group channel the golden age of Nu Groove, foundational Warp releases, and the Ibiza days of New Order, all rooted in a uniquely Chicago sound.

Five years after their EBM-tinged cerebral house anthem “Each Dawn Every Dawn”, the Litia~Loe (Life In The Insane Asylum = Life On Earth) crew dropped a lush album of wider proportion — six songs that feel more mature, more confident. Yet, despite this cultivated style, they continue to maintain the distinctive jest of their first outing. Grant, Leon, and Simeon’s new approach was more exploratory, traversing adventurous channels of pop, wave, IDM, and house. Not only are the songs more varied, but the growth of the trio’s technical skills are apparent. These songs feel more considered, like they have been refined over time, given just the right amount of polish without losing the ecstatic rawness that gives them breath and bounce.

Life Love Dance captures the sound of primetime Chicago melodic house music, but offers something more expansive. Uninhibited by the borders of genre, the trio took a more inclusive approach to their music, which catalyzed in a playful and peerless production style which makes their work stand out from the droves of generic dance records from that era.

01/03/2023

A few snaps from our recent Antipodean Anomalies 2 launch Thanks to everyone that came down, was great to see so many new and familiar faces, as well as finally meet
some of the artists in person

09/02/2023

LER 1031 - Antipodean Anomalies 2.
Officially released today - 10/2/2023
Huge thanks to all involved, especially all the artists, who have entrusted us with their work. It’s a great feeling to be able to share this with the world.

03/02/2023

After a number of delays due to manufacturing issues and sadly, one previously abandoned launch, we’re happy to announce the ‘RE-LAUNCH’. We have safely received our ‘Antipodean Anomalies 2’ (AA2) stock in Naarm/Melbourne and are excited to finally be able to share the release with you all
AA2 is our most ambitious project to date, a release that includes 17 AUS/NZ artists across two discs. Spanning the years from 1981 – 1992 AA2 includes an eclectic mix of archival and unreleased tracks by artists that forged their own path that evolved out of the micro-scenes that were present amongst the maverick landscapes of the Antipodes during the 80’s and early 90’s
We’ll be having our RE-LAUNCH at Hub 301 (301 Johnston St Abbotsford) on Saturday the 11th of February, from 2-5pm. There will be some alcoholic and non-alcoholic beverages provided on the day, including Lemonade from the good folks
There will also be music by Henry G, Bridget S & Guy B.
That is all, see you there. X

28/11/2022

Celebrating the arrival of our most ambitious release to date – ‘Antipodean Anomalies 2’ a project that took over 4 years to license and includes 17 Antipodean artists spread across a double album.

The music focuses on the lesser known musicians the forged their own path and evolved out of the micro-scenes that were present amongst the maverick landscapes of the Antipodes during the 80’s and early 90’s.

We will be providing alcoholic beverages of some description on the day and of course some non-alcoholic courtesy of too.

There will also be music by Henry G, Bridget S & Guy B.

That is all, see you there. X

22/11/2022

Extremely saddened to hear of the passing of legendary Perth guitarist, architect and Left Ear collaborator Errol H. Tout. Our hearts go out to his family.

Errol managed to leave his mark on so many people and was always held in such high regard, that every time we mentioned his name people would sing his praises.

He will be missed, but he will live on through his music. Rest In Peace.

21/11/2022

Super excited and relieved to finally have Twin Cosmos’ – ‘Double Action’ in the flesh, a project we worked on with brothers Morihito and Yasuhito Ito for the past couple of years.

As usual we took the long road and decided to do liner notes on an insert in both in English and Japanese, which was both time consuming and rewarding. Working on an album that was made by twin brothers contributing to a single side of an LP each and with distinctly unique styles certainly warranted an explanation.

Special thanks to all those that made it possible, including Liz and Yoko Bitar for the translations, Asger for the Insert and design, Dan Elleson for the re-mastering and for sitting through countless test-presses and of course both brothers for trusting us with their music and story.

But, most importantly we’re now able to share the album with the world tge music and have begun fulfilling Bandcamp orders. The rest of the records will be distributed around Melbourne and Aus later this week, with copies in EU arriving shortly at RH and your local stores.

24/10/2022

LIME - Farmarimba Solo
“In the late 1970s and early 1980s I was exploring the notion of 'context' in music as well as in information systems more generally. I was involved in folk music, was working as a professional classical double bass player, was dabbling in jazz but more directly I was exploring improvisation and the contexts in which music could be created interactively and spontaneously. The group LIME (Live Improvised Music Events) was a vehicle we used to realize these ideas. The group came out of the Improv lab at Latrobe University and used found objects and home-made instruments as means of releasing us from the shackles of modern western instruments and finding other frames or contexts in which music (or something that we felt was music) could emerge
There were some notable failures, it was experimentation after all, but there were also some notable successes. Interestingly, in the 2010s one of LIME's albums was re-released in Japan where it had found a niche following. At the time, I was also composing music in a more traditional western art music tradition but the focus was still on contextual experimentation. It was here that I used computational tools to create highly interconnected and self-referential melodic and harmonic frames from which the music could emerge. It seemed to work”
-Gavan McCarthy
Original LIME poster circa 1983, courtesy of Gavan McCarthy
LIME's - 'Farmarimba Solo features on our forthcoming 'Antipodean Anomalies 2' compilation

18/10/2022

Electric Hand - Daintree

“Peter Farnell/Williams (born 1946) grew up in Melbourne’s south-east. Electronic sound first captivated him with the likes of Dick Hyman’s Moog classic ‘The Minotaur’ and the whirling tones of the Booker T’s Hammond B3 on ‘The Melting Pot’ as well as the synth explorations of Herbie Handcock. In the late 70’s, Peter began frequenting Pipe Records, a store in the Cathedral Arcade, Melbourne, run by Daniel Janecka. Pipe was integral in fostering the emerging electronic music scene in Melbourne as it was the main importer of cutting edge European electronic music. Here Peter met with other enthusiasts such as Steve Law from Guild of Fire, Peter Johnson, Darren Verhagen and Mark Tittle.

Peter tuned into RRR radio show Metal Beat (1982-1984) hosted by Joseph Sgro from Dono-Detti. Metal beat played emerging industrial hard-edged sounds like Liaisons Dangereuses, Chris and Cosey and local material from Human Backs and others. Pete was also an avid listener and later guest of PBS radio show ‘The Electronic Influence’ which played progressive electronic music. In 1982 Peter began purchasing music gear and later attended a ‘Sound of Synthesis’ course offered by the Council for Adult Education. Inspired by Vangelis, Jean-Michel Jarre, Tangerine Dream, Klaus Schulze, Ymo and Kraftwerk, he began experimenting with his own creations.

In 1988, he self-released an eight-track cassette titled ‘Terra Australis’ under the name ‘Electric Hand.’ Featuring ‘Daintree’ and other ambient tracks inspired by the Australian landscape, it was created with three Pro 1s, a Jupiter 8, TR-808, Korg Mono/poly and Polysix. All tracks were recorded from ’86 to ‘87 using a Tascam 4-track tape recorder. A few of Peter’s other tracks were featured on early Melbourne compilations such as ‘The New Age Melbourne.’ Peter unfortunately passed in December 2013. He is sadly missed but his music plays on” - Pat Farnell

Electric Hand’s – ‘Daintree’ features on our forthcoming ‘Antipodean Anomalies 2’ compilation and is up on our youtube channel. Link below.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3dZbwbSFrZ8

14/10/2022

Drone - Music For Guitar + Piano (‘89 Film-Clip)

“Music for Guitar & Piano was written in 1987 in Auckland NZ and released on the self-titled debut album in 1989. The lyrics reference the precipitation cycle. Circularity was also part of the music making method, based in part on observations of the natural world/pagan concepts and less emphasis on personal narratives” - Darryl Hocking

Drone’s - ‘Music For Guitar + Piano’ features on our forthcoming ‘Antipodean Anomalies 2’ compilation

Drone - Music For Guitar + Piano will feature on our 'Antipodean Anomalies 2' compilation. AA2 is our most ambitious project to date, a compilation that to...

12/10/2022

BIt the bullet and did an ‘interview’ for Bandcamp’s Melbourne special this week. Thanks to Andrew Jervis for the invite.

Music from Justine Bradley, Mariana Ingold, Twin Cosmos (Morihito Ito), Brother Resistance & Buchanan Holbrook

https://bandcamp.com/?show=592

05/10/2022

Clout - Two Can Too

“Tony Kastanos and I started recording music together around the end of the seventies and still do. Initially in Brisbane, later and now again in Adelaide and most particularly as the 2ABUs who released 3 CD albums recorded in Sydney in the noughties. (Still available at the itunes store). This track was also recorded in my Lab D'avoid studio in Brisbane around the mid eighties. Though strictly speaking not a part of the CLOUT project (a performance unit I directed after the demise of ZIP) it was one of two tracks by us as a duo included on the CLOUT 'Information Grotesk' cassette release from 1986.

It has the electro – percussive feel reminiscent of so much I liked in that era though with a softness that suffuses much of the music Tony and I have made over the years. It also features a vocal snippet of my mother. Tony and I have recorded a lot of music and soundscape material that has featured in a variety of art projects across the decades. Notably Per Chance To Dream that toured extensively around the country in the second half of eighties and the ambitious Museum of Dreams project originally commissioned by Sydney Festival in 2004. This also featured my mother and other family and friends”

- Tim Gruchy

‘Two Can Too’ features on our forthcoming Antipodean Anomalies 2 compilation.

27/09/2022

Just uploaded Buchanan Holbrook's - 'Hunger' to the Tube. An unreleased minimal-jazz jam from 1988 that was destined for their 2nd LP which never eventuated.

Luckily the track will feature on our upcoming Antipodean Anomalies 2 compilation -due out 'soon'.

Buchanan Holbrook's - 'Hunger' features on LER 1031 - 'Antipodean Anomalies 2'. AA2 is our most ambitious project to date, a compilation that took over 4 yea...

21/09/2022

Thanks to Bandcamp for featuring Twin Cosmos’ - ‘LosAngeles City’ as the opener to their weekly show. A good listen all around.

https://bandcamp.com/?show=586

Alhaji Waziri Oshomah beams in from Nigeria to spread the spiritual vibes, plus new gems by BCUC, Bjork, and Yanna Momina.

18/09/2022

LER 1031 -Antipodean Anomalies 2

Our most ambitious project to date, a compilation that took over 4 years to license that includes 17 artists across a double LP. AA2 picks up where the first iteration left off, with co-compilers Chris Bonato & Bridget Small continuing to dig through the music of the geographically isolating and maverick landscapes of Australia & New Zealand.

As with the first iteration, Left Ear continues to excavate the music from these vast micro-scenes that evolved out of a number of small community-focused domains creating their own unique reinterpretation of musical influences from near and far, spanning the years 1980 – 1992.

The compilation scopes an overlooked epoch from Adelaide, presenting acts such as the DNA Lounge, TCH & Will Kuiper. A close-knit community of like-minded mates that made distinctive electronic music together throughout the 80’s, all of which remained unreleased until now. Buchanan Holbrook capture the ambiance of Perth’s heat prodded afternoon’s perfectly with their track Hunger. David Watson & Colin Offord use samplers and handmade instruments to offer a more abrasive and experimental aesthetic.

Furthermore, Jane Stevenson, discovered a 7” at an op-shop and found the needle stuck on the word, ‘Aloha’. Using tape loops, she chose to highlight imperfections rather than hide them creating 'Soloaloha'. This ethos echoes the compilation's vision, to champion artists that implement impromptu creativity, and who have a desire to create regardless of their surroundings and resources.

Mastered by: Dan San

Art Direction: Lewis Fidock

Design: Asger Behncke Jacobsen

Special thanks to Henry Guala

Available for pre-order now: https://leftearrecords.bandcamp.com/album/antipodean-anolmalies-2

Distribution in EU & NA through Rush Hour or direct in the Antipodes/rest of the globe.

17 track album

14/09/2022

Another track from Morihito Ito uploaded to the Tube, this time 'Space Flight', courtesy of our friend Kyle McCarty and his channel Contain Yr Brain. Thanks for sharing, enjoy!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=e-exI023V2w

Blast off with this tune by Morihito Ito originally from 1982 ✨ the full Twin Cosmos record with his (twin) brother Yasuhito Ito is now reissued on the Left ...

13/09/2022

Morihito Ito's ethereal gem 'LosAngeles City', now live on our youtube channel.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_q08mxVukw

LER 1030: Twin Cosmos – Double Action is a conceptual album by Japanese twins Morihito & Yasuhito Ito, with each brother contributing to one side of the LP i...

11/09/2022

Morihito Ito – the second half of Twin Cosmos, pictured here in his home studio in 1980.

Morihito is the younger of the fraternal Twins and in contrast recorded his side of the LP entirely in Japanese.

His music is carried by vocal harmonies, guitar strums, and floating synths to create an ambiance which effortlessly drifts from one song to the next through samples of flowing water & rockets launching into space.

HIs track LosAngeles City is now live on the Tube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=W_q08mxVukw

10/09/2022

Yasuhito Ito (Angin Ito)- one half of Twin Cosmos, pictured here outside the Statue of Liberty in 1979.

Yasuhito Ito the eldest of the Twin brothers lived between LA & NY in the late 70’s and recorded his side of the LP entirely in English to reflect his experiences in a “foreign world”.

His track GOD. TRUTH. LOVE. Further explores the western notion of Christianity & is now live on the Youtube: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eDH3myd3H9o

📸 Katsunori Himori

06/09/2022

Morihito Ito & Yasuhito Ito (Angin Ito) of Twin Cosmos Pictured here in their home studio in Yokkaichi of the Mie Prefecture, Japan - 1980.

Pre-order of their ‘Double Action’ LP now live Rush Hour Store

03/09/2022

LER 1030: Twin Cosmos – Double Action

Twin Cosmos is not only the name of the musical output of fraternal twins Morihito Ito & Yasuhito Ito (Angin Ito), but more philosophically, an album that encapsulates, “the universe of twins”.

The pair were born 1953 in Yokkaichi, Mie Prefecture. A port city 50 kilometres west of Nagoya, famous for its chemical plants. Despite their surroundings, they grew up in an environment that fostered learning and self-expression. From an early age, they began to carve out their own paths.

Morihito was fascinated with scientific endeavours, space travel and spirituality. His father, an electrician by trade - motivated him to build his own musical equipment. This led him to attend an acoustic engineering school in Tokyo from 1972-1974, after which, Morihito returned to Yokkaichi where he worked in the instrument and audio section of a department store. This helped him keep up to date with the latest equipment, while allowing him to simultaneously work on his own musical endeavours.

Morihito’s side of the ‘Double Action’ LP is a cohesive piece, which effortlessly drifts from one song to the next through samples of flowing water and rockets launching into space ,that were recorded while visiting his brother in the States. His music is carried by flowing vocal harmonies, guitar strums, and floating synths to create an eternal dreamlike ambiance.

In contrast, Yasuhito gravitated towards philosophy and the arts and in 1976 followed his Englsih teachers’ advice and moved to the ‘foreign world’ of the United States. It’s here that he further explored his interests in Christianity, sadomasochism and poetry. He was exposed to artists like John Cage and Sun Ra, as well as a variety of ‘Do It Yourself’ recording techniques that enabled him to record remotely.

Using samples, poetry, and an original approach to traditional folk & rock songs, he recorded his side of the LP. The outcome being provocative, dark and confronting realisations, which solely used English lyrics to represent his experiences in the ‘Western world’. In 1980, Yasuhito was wooed back to Japan by his brother and the prospect of a combined record release.

The self-released album ‘Double Action’, was completed at Victor studios in Japan. Without a distribution network, the release was sold mostly to family and friends and fell into obscurity. Despite not reaching commercial success, the pair have continued to make music over the past four decades, crediting it as their driving force in life. This 2022 release includes an insert with archival images & liner notes in both English & Japanese.

Pre-order now: https://twincosmos.bandcamp.com/album/double-action?fbclid=IwAR21xCKPVl3Wy0UNzc2tPG5ai0sRw8cK7tyFogWsYeZzCvIjNrF0Uc-hlqE

29/08/2022

Taken from the original master tapes, a fully remastered version of Picture Music's - Hole In The Wall is now up on the tube.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=7nJRRBgSp9E

Concocted in a share house in the South of Brisbane in the mid-’80s, a small collective of well-acquainted musicians including Rainer Guth, Jon Anderson, Gar...

15/08/2022

Detailed and informative article that continues to shine a light on the members and times of the Picture Music collective.

Thanks to Martyn William Pepperell for taking the time to write the piece.

https://www.testpressing.org/magazine/picture-music-a-soundtrack-to-our-nighttime-lives?s=07&fbclid=IwAR3IqhcjD1C0-m5bfY3Vf-KEGLKzBxRWiqjcjTQAy_azjTwJPYODoKp0xio

In late January 2020, amid muggy Southern hemisphere summer heat, Melbourne’s Left Ear Records label made an Instagram post. They’d acquired some deadstock of an obscure Australian ambient cassette tape titled Picture Music, originally recorded three decades earlier. Intrigued by the artwork and...

01/07/2022

LER 1028: Picture Music - Picture Music

After almost a year of delays, it feels surreal to finally have copies of Picture Music’s self-titled 1987 cassette only album, available on Vinyl for the first time.

This 2 X LP release taken from the original master tapes and remains an evocative representation of the music that resulted from the late-night, dimly-lit, atmospheric-enabled environment, that sparked the creativity of a group of like-minded friends in a tiny corner of Brisbane.

Arriving at Melbourne stores this weekend.

Distro through Rushhour in EU, or direct in the Antipodes.

18/05/2022

LER 1029: Influenza Prods. - Mémoire (in the flesh).

To say we’re delighted to hold this one in our hands would be an understatement.

Thank you to Bruno and Giovanna of the IPs for trusting us with their fetching homespun recordings, providing a charming insight into their lives during the 1980’s. It has been a pleasure sharing stories with the duo and putting this compilation together.
Hitting local stores this weekend, or get in touch with Rush Hour Store for global distribution.

29/04/2022

In response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine, Left Ear alumni Olev Muska has just released a compilation of some of his electronic folk music of Estonia entitled 'Estonian Notes - Ukraine emergency appeal'

All tracks are based on popular Estonian folk songs and dances and represent works produced between 1983 and 2022.

All proceeds from this release will be donated to UNICEF Australia Ukraine Emergency Appeal.

If this is something that you're interested in and have the means please donate, and of course, enjoy the music.

https://olevmuska.bandcamp.com

11 track album

18/03/2022

LER 1029: Influenza Prods. - Mémoire

After a tonne of delays, we’re resurfacing with a compilation of music from Italy’s original “homewave” band the ‘Influenza Prods.’

Bruno De Angelis and Giovanna Gulinello unwittingly met in London in the late 70’s, after being introduced by a mutual friend. Although, it wasn’t until Bruno rescued Giovanna from an awkward date that the pair became a couple. At the time, music was just something they did for fun. Bruno already had an acoustic guitar and G bought a bass. Those were the days when you could start a new band, whether you could play or not, and new independent labels were springing up. Rough Trade Records was literally around the corner.
In 1981 the pair moved back to Italy and found an apartment in Rome. It’s here that they began to focus on their music and where they started ‘recording’ their tracks. First, they would lay down the rhythm, maybe add the Gigster (the name of their “cheap drum machine”), the bass, and then, as they made a copy of the first cassette onto a second cassette they would add guitar, more synth, or both at the same time. After that, it was not unusual to copy from the second cassette back into the first cassette adding even more “stuff”.

As with many artists during the early 80’s, the Influenza Prods’ sound was the direct result of the accessibility of emerging electronic instruments and the recording equipment available to them. The duo’s homespun recordings found a web of admirers in the unofficial distribution of tape trading and mail-art scenes. Despite the DIY ethos and the fact that most tapes were handmade, the Influenza Prods still managed to ‘release’ three albums which comprised of the Greatest T**s (1983), Cheek-A-Bomba (1984) and Quasi Solo (1985). Bruno and Giovanna were sadly subjected to serious family problems, including the loss of loved ones in their lives and eventually parted ways. However, to this day they remain close friends who keep in touch regularly.

Compiled by: Chris Bonato & Bridget Small

Design: Lewis Fidock & Bridget Small

Mastered by Dan Elleson

Distribution directly in the Antipodes, or via Rushhour for the rest of the globe