Jan 16, 2008

Eight-X (14)

Hello distinguised guests, today we have another round of Eight-X. Three works from those days when we still had a curtain, today the russians are all over the place, and a ruble sounds much more funky than a dollar. Bauhaus named itself after a school in Germany that combined crafts and the fine arts that operated from 1919 to 1933. The Bauhaus school was founded by Walter Gropius, it's style became one of the most influential currents in Modernist architecture and modern design, absolutely nothing gothic about it . But then their first subject, Bela Lugosi , the man who had played Dracula and frightened the thirties public which had been into all things ' undead ' for the preceding years, specially after WO I. Vampires still sell, anyway Bauhaus' first single stayed in the indie charts for 2 years, it set them up for a short but succesful span of four albums in 4 years after which Bauhaus became undead only to be revived 14 years later. Torch Song, my second offering was another strange choice for the bands name as a torch song is a sentimental love song, typically one in which the singer laments an unrequited or lost love, where one party is either oblivious to the existence of the other, or where one party has moved on. Not much of that going on one their debut album Wish Thing, there 's too much emphasis on high production values for that, in fact the feel of the album is futuristic, which gets all to clear on their Star Trek..Prepare to energise....a real torch song artist likely would have lamented..beam me up scotty... Anyway my third band of today is the surprisingly unforgotten It's Immaterial, they made just two albums of which the second one flopped..undeservedly.The debut album made the idea behind the band's name clear " Life's Hard And Then You Die " This of cause was rather counter the prevailing and rising high of the late eighties, never the less they scored some hits, my favourite starts like this " everybody defines space in their own way, mostly by using barricades" great track and dry wit, well its available in two vibes.... And btw feel free to comment, the world is still a beautiful place even if so many of us forget or worse ignore it.

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Bauhaus - In The Flat Field Extended (80 , 77 min ^ 183mb)

Bauhaus formed in 1978 in Northampton, England. Guitarist/vocalist Daniel Ash, bassist/vocalist David J (born David Jay Haskins), and drummer Kevin Haskins had played together as a trio called the Craze before forming Bauhaus with vocalist Peter Murphy. Originally, the band was called Bauhaus 1919 after the German art movement; by 1979, they had dropped the 1919 from their name.

In August of 1979, the group released their debut single, "Bela Lugosi's Dead," on the independent record label Small Wonder Records. Although it did not make the pop charts, it became the de facto goth rock anthem, staying in the U.K. independent charts for years. Three months later, the group signed with Beggars Banquet's subsidiary label, 4AD. The group's second single, "Dark Entries," was released in January 1980. Following their first European tour, Bauhaus released their third single, "Terror Couple Kill Colonel," in the summer of that year, which became a hit on the indie charts.

After touring America for the first time in September, the group released a version of T. Rex's "Telegram Sam." In October, they released their debut album, In the Flat Field, which reached number one on the independent charts In October 81.
Few debut albums ever arrived so nearly perfectly formed; that In the Flat Field practically single-handedly invented what remains for many as the stereotype of goth music -- wracked, at times spindly vocals about despair and desolation of many kinds, sung over mysterious and moody music -- demonstrates the sui generis power of both the band and its work. This said, perhaps the best thing about the album isn't what it's supposed to sound like, but what it actually does -- an awesomely powerful, glam-inspired rock band firing on all fours, capable of restraint and complete overdrive both, fronted by a charismatic, storming frontman. In the Flat Field propelled Bauhaus' career with a near-perfect bang.

They released their second album, Mask, which revealed a more ambitious musical direction; the new direction, which featured elements of metal and electronic sonic textures, made the music more accessible without abandoning the dark, foreboding core of their music. Mask was a commercial success. Fall 82, the group had a hit with their version of David Bowie's "Ziggy Stardust." The success of the single propelled their third album, The Sky's Gone Out on the album charts.

Murphy contracted pneumonia at the beginning of 1983, which prevented him from participating in the recording sessions for Bauhaus' fourth album, Burning From the Inside. Consequently, the record featured substantial contributions from Ash and J, who both pursued more personal and atmospheric directions. After Murphy recovered, the band toured Japan and then returned to the U.K. to promote the summer release of Burning From the Inside. The album was another hit, yet in July, Bauhaus split up.

After Bauhaus' breakup, Murphy formed Dali's Car with Japan's Mick Karn and then pursued a solo career. Ash continued with Tones on Tail, a project he began in 1981; Kevin Haskins also joined the band after Bauhaus' split. J made some solo records and joined the Jazz Butcher briefly. Ash, Haskins, and J formed Love and Rockets in 1985 after a proposed Bauhaus reunion fell apart because Peter Murphy wasn't interested in the project. More than a decade later, however, with the careers of both Love and Rockets and Peter Murphy at a standstill, Bauhaus re-formed for several live dates in Los Angeles, mounting a full-blown tour in 1998; the two-disc Gotham documented the reunited group's performance at New York's Hammerstein Ballroom.

After being together for six weeks, Bauhaus entered a studio for the first time at Beck Studios in Wellingborough to record a demo. The band recorded five songs and one of the tracks from the session, the over-nine-minute-long "Bela Lugosi's Dead", was released as the group's debut single in August 1979 on Small Wonder Records. The single stayed on the British independent charts for two years. Way to go and it certainly deserves a place on this extended Flat Field as it ' foreshadows' the preceding and following 4 AD singles of the In The Flat Field album.

Tracks 1, 15: originally released in January 1980 on 7" single AXIS 3 Dark Entries.
Tracks 2 to 10: originally released in November 1980 on LP as CAD 13 In The Flat Field.
Tracks 11, 12, 17: originally released in October 1980 on 12" Single as AD 17T Telegram Sam.
Tracks 13,14: originally released in June 1980 on 7" Single as AD 7 Terror Couple Kill Colonel.
Track 16: originally released in December 1982 as a 7" flexi-disc A God In An Alcove free with Flexipop magazine.



Bauhaus - In The Flat Field Extended (80 ^ 432mb)

01 - Bela Lugosi's Dead (9:39)
02 - Boys (3:11)

03 - Dark Entries (3:51)
04 - Double Dare (4
05 - In The Flat Field (4:59)
06 - God In An Alcove (4:08)
07 - Dive (2:11)
08 - Spy In The Cab (4:28)
09 - Small Talk Stinks (3:33)
10 - St. Vitus Dance (3:29)
11 - Stigmata Martyr (3:41)
12 - Nerves (7:04)
13 - Telegram Sam (2:08)
14 - Rosegarden Funeral Of Sores (5:31)
15 - Terror Couple Kill Colonel (4:22)
16 - Scopes (1:28)
17 - Untitled (1:24)
18 - A God In An Alcove (4:08)
19 - Crowds (3:13)

Synchronicity...news just in about a new Bauhaus album

“I come with this darkness and go away white.”

‘Go Away White’ was recorded in 18 days at Zircon Skye in Ojai, with singer Peter Murphy, bassist David J, guitarist Daniel Ash, and drummer Kevin Haskins playing together as a band in one room, taking first takes as final cuts. So, a new record but apparently a final one, the band having decided to release it as a posthumous swan song.To be released on March 4th, 2008 worldwide.

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Torch Song - Wish Thing (84 ^ 96mb)

Torch Song was a British synthpop and dance band of the early 1980s consisting of William Orbit, Laurie Mayer and Grant Gilbert. In 1985, Grant left to pursue other projects and long-time friend Rico Conning officially joined the group. After the release of 'Exhibit A' in 1987, Torch Song as a group was put on the back-burner while William concentrated on solo work, he recorded several largely instrumental solo albums under the name Strange Cargo which features vocals by Beth Orton, Laurie Mayer and Joe Frank. He has also produced and remixed songs by numerous other artists. He continued to write with both Laurie and Rico and in 1995 they released the ambient 'Toward the Unknown Region.'

Wish Thing was Torch Song's first album, released, the track "Prepare to Energize" was a surprise dance-floor hit, being played in nightclubs and discos as well as appearing in the 1984 Tom Hanks movie Bachelor Party.



01 - Don't Look Now (6:45)
02 - Telepathy (4:19)
03 - Ode To Billy Joe (4:12)
04 - Another Place (4:01)
05 - Prepare To Energize (5:08)
06 - Tattered Dress (4:44)
07 - Sweet Thing (4:46)
08 - You Said You Were Coming (3:26)
09 - Water Clock Secrets (2:03)

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It's Immaterial - Life's Hard And Then You Die (86 ^ 388mb)

It's Immaterial were formed by three former members of Yachts - John Campbell, vocals, Martin Dempsey, guitar, and Henry Priestman, keyboards - in addition to Paul Barlow, drums. By 1984, the band had been reduced to a duo - Campbell and Jarvis Whitehead, guitar and keyboards, who joined in 1982.

It's Immaterial has qualities that can't be discerned from one listen, at least on the band's debut album, Life's Hard and Then You Die. Patience is really needed to let this record's oddball hooks kick in. Musically, the album is all over the place -- new wave, country, blues, folk, and synth pop. Somehow the smorgasbord of styles works, because the bandmembers aren't being eclectic just for the sake of it; they simply have a wide canvas, keeping the album fresh from beginning to end. When Campbell talks, it isn't because he can't sing; the man has a lovely voice, especially during the transcendent chorus of "Space. It's Immaterial manages to stay focused, never allowing its genre-bending to veer out of control. "Like much of Life's Hard and Then You Die, it grows on the listener. When "Festival Time" erupts into total chaos -- pulsating keyboards, brazen horns, samples of horses, operatic voices -- it sounds like a mess at first, but repeated spins reveal how well crafted it is.



01 - Driving Away From Home (Jim's Tune) (4:12)
02 - Happy Talk (5:29)
03 - Rope (3:38)
04 - The Better Idea (5:41)
05 - Space (3:57)
06 - The Sweet Life (4:39)
07 - Festival Time (3:52)
08 - Ed's Funky Dinner (3:09)
09 - Hang On Sleepy Town (4:20)
10 - Lullaby (6:24)
11 - Washing The Air (5:29)
12 - Ed's Funky Diner The Keinholz Caper) (5:53)
13 - Driving Away From Home (I Mean After All It's Only 'Dead Man's Curve') (6:30)

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All downloads are in * ogg-7 (224k) or ^ ogg-9(320k), artwork is included , if in need get the nifty ogg encoder/decoder here

8 comments:

Anonymous said...

thank you for the Torch Song LP...

viagra online said...

I really like Bauhaus' music because it is very different from what usually listen to.

pharmacy said...

Indeed the torch song is just incredible.

winston said...

do you have Torch Song in FLAC?
thanks for your work!
winston

Rho said...

Hello Winston Torch song album was a vinyl rip by me., at the time januari 2008 flac wasn't around and diskspace was still rather expensive hence i deleteded the wave rip after compressing it with ogg, this file however isn't available currently

winston said...

Thanks anyway! I'm sure somebody somewhere will get around to ripping it in FLAC some day. I have the vinyl, just no high end player to rip it with.
cheers, winston

Matt said...

Nominating 'In The Flat Field' for a re-up. My first 'ficial g'friend' expressed her sentiment that "most bands first records represented their best work and that anything after would be always be a let down" as a kind of argumentative question as to why should I pay any attention -at all- to you? I've enjoyed considering this argument for years - in the case of Bauhaus, it may apply ...

CC51 said...

Would you be so kind to re-upload:

Bauhaus - In The Flat Field Extended (80 ^ 432mb)

Thanks!