Yön - I Dream (1987)

Here we have a 7" that I consider to be one of the 'holy grails' of US minimal synth/wave. I know that term gets thrown around a lot, but this dark-tinged gem sure seems to qualify. It's extremely rare and I'm not sure too many people are aware of its existence yet. There's no cover sleeve version that I'm aware of, and the band members are listed as "Mr. M/Britain", which for me wasn't very telling. The record was released on Tekno-Wave Records in Texas, which has also been a dead end in my search for further info. I've been quite curious about this one so if anyone out there knows anything please speak up! I'll let the sound speak for itself here, instant winners on both sides. Enjoy!

Track List:

A - I Dream
B - Knowledge

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Leidenschaft - Leidenschaft (1986)

If I'm honest about it, this is perhaps one of my favorite discoveries to date. Every aspect of this obscure tape leaps out and tugs on each of my musical heartstrings. Leidenschaft were a short-lived but highly undervalued duo from France. I don't know very much about the members, other than their first names: Thierry and Denis. I'm completely unsure if either of them ever were involved in any other projects, but they certainly contributed 3 gems here. The best way I can describe this is if you took the best aspects of Xymox and Echo, then added a drop of French coldwave in the mix. That comparison is best noticed in "The Cities Of The Red Night", an immediately club-ready jam. It's tough, but the hit for me has to be "Who Cares?", which thankfully has a video to go along with it (see below). The last track settles down into a slower but quite beautiful ballad. You're going to love this one. Enjoy!

Track List:

A1 - Who Cares?
A2 - The Cities Of The Red Night
B1 - A Long Way

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Chanson Deux - Hinter Den Dingen (1986)

Here we have a long sought-after LP from Germany. It contains the well-circulated track "Der Staat" and, not surprisingly, a few other gems. Unfortunately this isn't the best rip, but I tweaked it as well as I could... so it'll have to do for now. Other faves from this one would be "Où", "To Je Pravda", "Je Suis Seule", and "Masse Mensch". I've gotta run for now, have a nice Sunday, everyone. Enjoy!

Track List:

A1 - Masse Mensch
A2 - To Je Pravda
A3 - Der Staat
A4 - Mirrors
B1 - Je Suis Seule
B2 - Play For Love
B3 - Où
B4 - Hinter Den Dingen

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Picture Book - Laughing In My Hand (1984)

Ok, so it's been kind of a while. I've had a few different requests lately. Everything from, "Hey, can you post the b-side of Picture Book?"... to... "Hey, where the hell did you go? Post more shit, asshole!". Yes, I admit, I've been absent for a long time. Sorry about that. The personal life has kept me quite busy, but I should also mention that hidden 80s gems, although plentiful, have for the most part been uncovered. Very few diamonds left to uncover, I wager. Not to suggest there's nothing left to find. There is. I just have much less time on my hands to hunt them down. What's more, I've wanted to keep the quality of this blog's posts at (what I consider) a very high level. I never intended this to be endless. A new post every week just for the sake of posting. So that you can download it, skip through it, yawn and/or roll your eyes, and never listen again. There are a lot of blogs out there that can serve that need. I will probably never shut down this blog altogether, but posts will be much more sporadic and random. I do have a completely badass tape from France planned at some point in the not too distant future. You'll love it. Ok, enough out of me, I've wasted enough time.

You've heard the title track of this 7-inch on CN4 but as I said above, the b-side has been requested... so here it is! Pretty slick record and extremely rare, that's for sure. There happens to be a copy of it up on eBay at the moment, so bring your A-game if you plan to be the new owner. By A-game, I mean a lot of money. Anyway, Picture Book were a UK trio: Steve A, Lesley, and Steve B. They appear on the excellent Subtle Hints compilation, as well as another compilation called "Against The Tide". I haven't heard the song featured there, but I surely would like to. It's called "Scarlet Everywhere", so if anyone out there can help, please do! The band has a Facebook and are very friendly, go give them a like and say hello. Enjoy!

Track List:

A - Laughing In My Hand
AA - Reflex Action

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P.S. You can here an alternative version of the song, here.

All Fall Down - Arecibo (1983)

Here we have yet another hidden wave gem from the UK. This one was instantly catchy from the second I dropped the needle. After a couple rounds of chorus I assumed I'd gotten everything the song had to offer, but then it dropped a bit of female vox into the mix -- a pleasant surprise. The b-side isn't as upbeat, but a quality track indeed. Enjoy!

Track List:

A - Arecibo
B - A Changing Face

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Académie - Rendez Vous (1985)

Here's a 7" from France that should feel a bit familiar if you've been following the blog for a while. This was another project of Odile Arias of the band Vienna (which I've shared here and here). The sound is very similar, as there's almost no difference between the bands other than name. So, if you liked Vienna you'll like this too.

Other things of note: Two unreleased songs by the bands posted on CN5, and another Académie song here along with other great videos by both bands.

Enjoy!

Track List:

A - Rendez-vous
B - Rendez-vous (Instrumental)

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Cry - Looking To The Future (1983)

Looking for a fix of that melancholic, DIY minimal synth sound? Well strap up, here comes an injection. The UK, land of so many nuggets, is responsible yet again for this one. The title track is a true gem of driving, pulsing synth and just the right touch of guitar mixed in. The b-side is a sleepy guitar-only ballad, but you won't mind when you go back to the a-side for another listen.

The band was supposedly going to release an LP, although I'm "fairly" certain that never happened (I hope I'm wrong). Maybe it was recorded, though. Maybe someone out there knows. Maybe a band member will see this and let us know. Maybe.

For now, Enjoy!

Track List:

A - Looking To The Future
B - Alone

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Various Artists - Crispy Nuggets (Vol. 5)

I was going to say this could be the last compilation I'll ever post, but I thought I wouldn't do another after vol. 1, so who really knows! I don't want to sacrifice quality at any time in the series, so if these start to get lame, don't be afraid to tell me. That being said, this is one of my favorites of the bunch. Hope you'll agree.

Quite a bit of never released material this time, just over half I think. Don't have much time for commentary this morning, need to get to work! I'll be more than happy to answer any queries as best I can, later on. Enjoy!


Track List:

01 - Form - One Is One
02 - City 19 - Heart (Subtle Hints Mix)
03 - Fantasia - Pictures In My Mind
04 - Aaah...! - She Melts And Flows
05 - Final Program - Phase One
06 - Vienna - Six Pieds Sous Terre
07 - Kremlyn - Misterios En La Tierra
08 - Clä-Sick - Every Night
09 - The Trial - Sex Story
10 - Imago - Going Through The Motion
11 - Academie - Push Me Down
12 - First Aid - The Train
13 - Corps Diplomatique - Cnossos
14 - Artistic Control - So Long Love (Live in Studio)
15 - Endless Nostalgia - Dance Of The Pessimism


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Collage - Mit Den Puppen Tanzen (1984)

Oh my, I've really been slacking haven't I? [Yes, you have, what kind of crappy blog is this?] Sorry about that! Lots of nice things right around the bend, I promise.

I finally had enough time to drop the needle on this 12" tonight. Deutschland: the gift that keeps on giving! This one is particularly interesting to me as it involves members of Stahlnetz and Schwarze Bewegung. Up-tempo tanz beats throughout, lots of synths and female vocals. A great Friday night record. Enjoy!

Track List:

A1 - Mit Den Puppen Tanzen
A2 - Schwarze Nacht
B1 - Niemals Zurück
B2 - Harter Film

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L'An III - Les Internés De La Raison (1990)

Ultra obscure self-released tape from France. Very dark and upbeat throughout, with a mix of male and female vocals (always a plus). This is the 2nd (and last?) release by the band, the first of which you can get over here. The discogs entry for this tape has an extra track (hand-written in on the image). Not sure if it was intended to be included, but my copy doesn't have it. Maybe someone can shed some light on the matter. Enjoy!

Track List:

A1 - Les Vatours
A2 - No
A3 - Ciel Bleu
A4 - Grida
A5 - Raison
B1 - Mister G
B2 - Place Chinée
B3 - Pas De Ce Monde
B4 - Interdire
B5 - Artistes

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Ulrich - Message Pirate (1980)

Consider this a hold-me-over until I have a bit more free time. I've got some tapes and the like, which require a bit more attention, but they are coming rest assured! And so is Crispy Nuggets Vol. 5!

Here we have a French 7" that should appeal to fans of bands like Nuit Des Stars, Partenaire Particulier, etc. The title track is instantly catchy (check out the injection of echoing female vox). Unfortunately, the b-side is a total snoozer. Maybe save that one for right before bed. I have his LP and it's just as bad, otherwise I'd post that too. But yeah, Message Pirate! Check it out. Enjoy!

P.S. I didn't bother with scans, and just stole the image from discogs, but if you want higher quality images, just shout.

Track List:

A - Message Pirate

B - Il Neige Sur Paris-Nord

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The Parapluies - The Parapluies (1984)

Excellent tape from Germany, on one of the best labels for German minimal synth: P.A.P. I would like very much to hear all of the releases from that label, wink wink, nudge nudge. Here's one of them. You won't regret checking out that gem, trust me on that. As for this little nugget, you are likely familiar with the brilliant track "Necessities", which is by no means the only worthwhile song on the tape. It's quite good throughout, with female vox flowing across waves of bass and synth. The lead-off track starts out a bit on the corny side, so soldier through that and you'll hear the goodies that follow it. Enjoy!

Track List:

A1 - Bruno
A2 - Fallen Dream
A3 - Necessities
B1 - Heart And Facts
B2 - Stranger In Paradise
B3 - Leaving You

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