Instant Hit: Vision - Love Dance

In all honesty, I had never even heard of these guys until a couple hours ago. They're just another in a sea of bands that eluded me during the 80's and I'm sure they won't be the last. Better late to the party than not at all. I did a little digging and this is the handful of info that was available. Basically, they were a five-piece synthpop band out of Rotherham UK. Like many others, they released a minimal amount of material and were never to be heard from again. This string of releases included six singles and one album between 1981 and 1987. The track I'd like to focus on is for the single "Love Dance". It was released in 1983 and reached #74 on UK singles charts. That's it! You now know as much about them as I do. That said, I'm loving this track and video. I decided it was surely worth sharing.

Author: Ty Voltaire

In Conversation: INHALT

 The gentlemen of the San Francisco based trio, INHALT, are currently locked away and hard at work on their upcoming EP titled "Occupations". This being the follow up to their "Vehicle" EP. A fine and entrancing four song vinyl collection of pulsing, vibrant, rhythmic, and sometimes a bit abstract electronic craftsmanship. I remember being absolutely smitten after just one listen to each of the one minute samples. I desperately needed to hear them in their full glory and finally got the opportunity  upon the official release. In fact, it was one that made it into our Top 20 EP's of 2012 list; rightfully so and well deserved.

Matia Simovich, Bryan Gibbs, and Philip Winiger incorporate the best bits and pieces of their early and current musical influences into their own songwriting. That said, they ultimately put their own personal spin on things. There is no blatant rehash to be heard here and that's something that's difficult to come by these days. The aforementioned three took some time out, from their recording, to answer a few questions i had. Here is what they had to say.

Soft Metals Announce Their Second Album for July 16th

Soft Metals are back!! Los Angeles based duo have announced the release of their second studio album Lenses which will be released on Captured Tracks on July 16th. The album will be available on CD/LP and MP3. "Tell Me" will be the first single to be taken from the album and it can be streamed on YouTube. Artwork provided by Shaun Kardinal and Erin Frost.

Reissue: Near Paris

May 9th will see the release of a glorious reissue by Near Paris. A Columbus, Ohio based synthpop duo who, unfortunately, released only one 12" EP during their time together in the early 80's. The band consisted of Gerald F. Nelson and Dana Riashi who made quite a name for themselves around the Columbus music scene. In addition, they had the pleasure of opening for Section 25 as well as winning several local awards...not bad! Sadly, Gerald passed away in October of 2012. I'm more than positive he would have been proud and honored to see his and Dana's track given new life. Gratitude goes out to Medical Records in association with Crispy Nuggets Blogspot for making this possible.

Wait, because i'm not done yet! Did i mention that this release is to be housed on 180 gram oxblood opaque vinyl?! Oh but yes! Colored vinyl is always a serious bonus. Even more so when there isn't a bad track amongst the bunch. This just so happens to be the case here. The 11 tracks are comprised of the aforementioned 4 track EP as well as 7 previously unreleased others. This is to be a limited edition pressing of  650 copies. Slick, synthy, melodic atmosphere is what you're in for. Who in their right mind doesn't want that?

For a full listen and to order, please visit Medical Records Bandcamp.

WAW: Mirrors- Into The Heart

In Conversation: Brian Moss (Vicious Pink)

Vicious Pink, a synth-pop duo consisting of Brian Moss and Josephine Warden, originated in Leeds, England in 1981. Initially, they served as backing vocalists for Soft Cell under the name Vicious Pink Phenomena. Despite releasing several singles in the early part of the decade, their breakthrough came with "CCCan't You See," produced by Tony Mansfield of New Musik fame.

During the early 1980s, Vicious Pink stood among the few bands considered pioneers of the techno sound. They are credited with coining the term to describe music in 1982, well ahead of its adoption by Detroit DJs in 1986.

For a detailed exploration of their musical journey, influences, experiences with labels, and more, delve into an exclusive interview with Mr. Brian Moss further below.

November Group

November Group was a synth-pop group from Boston which was previously known as Wunderkind. The band was confronted by two women, the husky voiced guitarist Ann Prim and keyboardist Kearney Kirby. The name of the band was taken from a group of German expressionist artists from early 20th century.

Even though dance oriented as many groups of that time, the November Group found their own formula of a new dance which was influenced by early dark dance groups like New Order and A Certain Ratio. It was powerful rhythm section which provided a great militant sound which was for both dancing and marching and it was probably coming from a factory hall. The central figures of the band were the lead singer Ann Prim and Kearny Kirby on synthesizers. Ann Prim’s vocal were modern and slick while her image showed 30’s and 40’s imagery.

Between 1982 and 1985 they released three albums on three different record labels: their s/t debut album in 1982 on Modern Method Records, ‘Persistent Memories’ in 1983 which also featured the song “Put Your Back To It” for which the video was made and "Work That Dream" which was released in 1985 on A&M Records. Their songs also appeared on several compilations and there is also an unofficial release of ‘Working That Dream’ which features songs from all three LPs.

Nancy Nova

Carol Holness, better known by her stage name Nancy Nova, is a singer songwriter from London, UK, largely active from 1978 to 1983. She is the daughter of Bob Holness and sister of Ros Holness of  Toto Coelo. She was a founder member of Toto Coelo, but left before they achieved popularity due to her signing a worldwide contract with EMI.

Nancy started her career at the age of fourteen playing guitar and singing in clubs in North London. She then studied for three years at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School.She initially found success as a songwriter for Jesse Green, writing the single "Flip". She was a featured artist on Italian TV Show "Non Stop" for six weeks and her single "Akiri Non Stop" was used as the theme tune. She also wrote songs and sang on albums for other artists including Lena Zavaroni and Cleo Laine.

After working in theatre and television for a while Nancy committed herself full time to her recording career, signing to Ritz Records. She made a name for herself in Europe fronting a TV show for two months in Italy and appearing on Radio and TV promoting her album. Back in the UK she received massive radio play for her single, "The Force", which became a huge disco hit. More hits followed including "Made in Japan" and "No No No" before it became quiet for Nancy. 

In 2004 Nova released a compilation of her 80s songs on CD as 'The Force'. A year later an album of new material in the Jazz style called 'Nancy Sings Jazz'. The latest album "Blowout" is currently only available through iTunes. Now, after a long break from public appearances largely spent on her farm in Devon, Nancy continues to sing and still writes prolifically. She has a huge catalogue of self-penned songs and is recording a new album.

Source:
http://nancynova.com/biography.html
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nancy_Nova

Next Wave: Hotel Motel

Hotel Motel is an interesting trio whose sound is a perfect combination of soulful vocals, nice synth lines and raw guitar riffs. Recently I discovered them on MySpace. Currently they are recording their debut EP which is going to be released soon. Below you can check their first single "Sucker Man."

Check these guys at
http://www.myspace.com/hotelmotel/

Instant Hit: De Film- Cuba Libra

There's limited information available about the band that released two LPs during the 80s, with variations in the artist name spelling such as De Film, De-Film, DE-FILM, and DeFILM. They seem to have been a six piece from Copenhagen Denmark. A recent discovery is the music video for their song "I Saw You Dream," which is now available on YouTube. The track "Cuba Libra" is one of our favorite tracks on their self-titled album.

Instant Hit: The Nits- Slip Of The Tongue

Probably best remembered for their single "In The Dutch Mountains", Nits have released over 50 singles during their long lasting career. "Slip of the Tongue" was one of the songs from their early opus, released in 1983. It was taken from Nits' third studio album Work, released in 1981 in the Netherlands for CBS where the Nits originally came from.