Today it’s exactly 42 years ago that Iggy Pop released Lust for Life (29th August 1977). It was his second solo studio album and also his second collaboration with David Bowie, following The Idiot that was released earlier in the same year. As well as achieving critical success, it was Iggy Pop's most commercially popular album to date, and remains his only Gold-certified release in the UK. The recording sessions for this album took place at the Hansa Studio by the Wall (Berlin) between April and June ’77, almost immediately after the The Idiot promotion tour which ended on 16th April.

Pop has stated, "David and I had determined that we would record that album very quickly, which we wrote, recorded and mixed in eight days and because we had done it so quickly, we had a lot of money left over from the advance, which we split.”

Lust for Life reached number 28 in the UK Album Chart and is his second highest-performing release in that country after 2016's Post Pop Depression. Initially the album did well in the US too but the sudden death of Elvis Presley (16th August 1977) caused record label RCA to quickly reissue Presley's catalogue and any promotional focus for Pop's album was lost.

Bowie, Pop and engineer Colin Thurston produced the album under the pseudonym "Bewlay Bros”, a name retrieved from a track on Bowie’s album Hunky Dory.

Besides probably the most popular track Lust For Life, The Passenger also found its way to alternative clubs and dance floors all over the world. Even if it was initially released as the b-side track of the 7” single Success.

Siouxsie and The Banshees made a cover of The Passenger in 1987 for their all-cover-versions album Though The Looking Glass. Iggy Pop praised their version and stated: "That's good. She sings it well and she threw a little note in when she sings it, that I wish I had thought of, it's kind of improved it … The horn thing is good."

David Bowie covered Tonight (minus the opening lines referencing drugs) with Tina Turner, along with Neighborhood Threat, on his 1984 release Tonight.

Lust For Life (tracklist)

A1. Lust For Life
A2. Sixteen
A3. Some Weird Sin
A4. The Passenger
A5. Tonight
B1. Succes
B2. Turn Blue
B3. Neighborhood Threat
B4. Fall In Love With Me

DISCOGS

Gothic/Industrial Metal band AUTUMN STAY have just unveiled their new video for the single, "Closer To The Edge."

Lyrically, the song dives into the dark side of being an artist and how often artists push themselves to the very brink of insanity. This song has everything from heavy hitting guitars to head bopping synth, to vocal harmonies that make you feel like you’re listening to a Sunday church choir!

For fans of: Gothic/Industrial Metal

“Working with the creative team of Autumn Stay and producer Kevin Gutierrez, was an absolute blast. They came up with a story about the singer being haunted and or pursued, with a unique twist ending.

I tried to dramatically light the shots to not only give a classic dark aesthetic to it. But we also had a really cool location, this old church. So I wanted to capture some kind of dark beauty as well, especially with the deep red tones and lighting, I was able to add a frantic feel with some creative editing and color correction themes.” - Erik Gustafson (Erik Gustafson Cinematography)

www.facebook.com/AutumnStay

On this day, 28 years ago, Front 242 released their seventh studio album 05:22:09:12 Off or simply pronounced as “EVIL Off” as each letter preceding “Off” is represented by its equivalent numerical position in the alphabet. It was released by Red Rhino Europe, a sub-label of Play It Again Sam, on 23 August, only three months after their sixth studio album, 06:21:03:11 Up Evil. Sony released 05:22:09:12 Off worldwide on 2nd November 1993 through their Epic sub-label.

Upon its release the album was received with mixed feelings by fans and music critics. For the first time it featured female vocals, those of Christine "99" Kowalski, while Jean-Luc De Meyer only appeared on a few tracks. EVIL OFF also seem to have had no significant input from Richard 23 who also didn’t get cited on the album's liner-notes. On the other hand, a variety of new contributors were listed as members of Front 242 on these albums, for instance Jean-Marc Pauly and Pierre Pauly of the Belgian electronic band Parade Ground.

While most electro industrial bands stuck to their ‘successful’ 4/4 beat formula, Front 242 decided to leave this well-trodden path behind and embraced new musical styles and elements emerging in the electronic scene music at the time. The ambient and rhythmic atmosphere on the album can be seen as groundbreaking and innovative in those days, however the sudden style change left many Front 242 confused ranters behind.

However, we at Peek-a-Boo Magazine encourage you to dig these albums up from your archive and to listen to them again at high volume! Just like wine, this music, and most likely your brain too, needed some aging!

Front 242 ‎– 05:22:09:12 Off (RRE 22 CD)

DISCOGS

Darkwave duo THE COLD FIELD has just unveiled their highly-anticipated new full-length album, Hollows.

Conceived when hospitalized, songwriter and producer Ian Messenger wrote and produced a prolific forty-odd dark-minded songs the following year, of which ten were chosen for Hollows..

Depressive themes of gloom and emptiness pervade the album but there is also a triumph against the darkness, a fist-waving into the void, and intimacy along with detachment.

Built on the sonic foundations of drum machines, bass guitar, synthesizers, electric guitars and distorted, cavernous vocals, THE COLD FIELD’s sound not only harks back to the early 80’s and Joy Division but contemporary bands such as Lebanon Hanover and Soft Kill.

Available on CD, vinyl LP and digital formats from COLD TRANSMISSION MUSIC

www.facebook.com/thecoldfieldadelaide

Electro-Industrial Band, UNITCODE:MACHINE has unleashed their new full-length album, Themes For A Collapsing Empire. After three weeks on the DAC (Deutch Alternative Charts) and two successful singles, this new release comes as highly-anticipated.

Themes For A Collapsing Empire is a journey through the mind of Eric Kristoffer after a series of tragic events that 2020 brought. It explores a path of loss and regret, and struggling to cope with such stressful personal events while also trying to endure a global pandemic.

This release is written more from the perspective of Eric the person, and less UNITCODE:MACHINE the project.

Themes For A Collapsing Empire is available NOW on CD and digital formats.

www.facebook.com/unitcode.machine