Dark Entries Records is back with a full plate of releases lined up for 2012. Our first two come from Europe, Belgium (SIC) and France (BUZZ) to be exact. We have spent extra care restoring and no-noising the tapes for these releases to create the highest quality vinyl editions. All 7 songs from BUZZ's "See You Sioux" cassette and the 6 SIC demos have never appeared on vinyl before until today!
DE-023 SIC - Thought Noises LP
Dark Entries is proud to shed light on underground Belgian New Wave pioneers, SIC, with the career-spanning release “Thought Noises.” SIC were a post-punk band from the industrial city of Charleroi in the francophone part of Belgium. They were formed by Francis Pourcel, Alain Neffe (Bene Gesserit), Micheline Dufert, and Mario Berchicci in 1977. Francis and Alain had previously played with Krautrock band Kosmose in the mid 70s. In 1978 Alain left the group to launch the cassette label Insane Music.
The new trio released their debut 7” “Voltage Control” in 1979 on Artibano Records. By 1980 Mario left and was replaced by a Korg KR-55 drum machine. As a duo, SIC self-released the “Cover Girls Smile”/ “Between” 7” in 1980, which was played by John Peel on Radio 1 in London. Unable to replicate the studio sounds for live concerts, the duo recruited three additional musicians, Wilhelm Dunker (bass), Henry Krutzen (saxophone) and Danièle Daoust (synthesizer). In 1981 their final 7” single, “Free Radio Stations” was self-released and the band recorded a demo tape to help secure live gigs. SIC continued to play live over the next two year but eventually broke up in 1983.
SIC stray from more conventional post-punk, mixing the affordable Korg MS-20 and Roland RS-09 synthesizers with jazz and funk elements. All three 7”s and demos are united by strong, watery Rickenbacker bass chords reminiscent of American jazz legend Jaco Pastorius and UK bassist Mick Karn (Japan). A heavy reliance on rhythm and Micheline's strong, insistent voice give SIC its own moody personality. More of a European group than a Belgian one, SIC take cues from Magazine, “Live At The Witch Trials”-era The Fall, Delta 5, The Raincoats and Kleenex. Their lyrics are original and autobiographical, documenting commercialism, technology and communication as we enter the 1980s.
"Thought Noises" compiles all three SIC 7" singles released from 1979-1981 plus 6 unreleased demos from a 1981 recording session. All songs have been remastered for vinyl by George Horn at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley. Each LP includes a lyric sheet insert. More than 30 years later, SIC are a document of a mutant strain of new wave ripe for discovery.
DE-022 Buzz - See You Sioux LP
Dark Entries is honored to present the "See You Sioux" cassette by BUZZ for the first time ever on vinyl. BUZZ began as the brainchild of J-C Van Thienen in Lille, northern France, ten miles from the Belgian border. He released one album in 1985, the highly limited demo cassette See You Sioux. In the late 70s and early 80s J-C witnessed the punk explosion while studying and working abroad in England.
He regularly attended concerts by Adam and the Antz, The Sound, Siouxsie and the Banshees, Ski Patrol, Spizzenergi, The Cure, interviewing the bands for a fanzine. Returning to France, and feeling inspired, J-C bought a Soundmaster drum machine and two second-hand synthesizers in 1983. He started composing songs applying the DIY punk ethos akin to Cabaret Voltaire and Fad Gadget, who like him were eccentrics in a pop-rock world.
Borrowing a 4-track Portastudio from a friend, J-C recorded 7 songs that would become the skeletons for the "See You Sioux" album. The local radio station provided studio time for free so BUZZ enlisted help from the guitarist (Vincent) and drummer (Franck) of The Figurines. His neighbor, Béatrice, added backing vocals. The result was the entirely self-produced See You Sioux cassette, recorded in one take. BUZZ combined new wave dancefloor appeal with the abrasive textures and irreverent attitude of post-punk. Lyrically, they addressed topics such as the Cold War, post-World War II tension in Berlin, the assassination of Kennedy, Pablo Picasso’s minimalism - all in a manner that was as sarcastic as it was politically-charged. The overall sound of "See You Sioux" fits nicely beside their French contemporaries: Opera Multi Steel, Norma Loy, Little Nemo, Taxi Girl, but is more aligned with their Belgian neighbors the Neon Judgement and Trisomie 21.
Artwork for the cassette jacket was all done by J-C using letrasets, scissors, glue, coloring with markers and hand-numbered in an edition of 250 photocopies. Over the years, BUZZ's demo cassette travelled from bedrooms to dancefloors around the world, and even into the purse of Anne Clark around the time BUZZ supported her in Ghent and Paris. The success of See You Sioux landed BUZZ a deal with Danceteria Records, who would release four maxi 12” singles from 1986-1989. Around 1990 BUZZ took a break, eventually restarting in 2005 with the release of a career spanning compilation and remix album. J-C continues to write and release music today with his project Vuduvox.
All songs on "See You Sioux" have been remastered from the original C-60 metal master tape for vinyl by George Horn at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley, CA. Each LP includes a fold-out, double-sided insert with photos, lyrics and liner notes by Anne Clark. 27 years later these demos provide a glimpse of the bleak post-industrial European wasteland as seen from the bedroom window during the French coldwave scene.
