SLEEPLESS – Thurst EP (1985)

We have a very gloomy extended player for this next post…The group consisted of four and was led by a bleak sounding gothic induced female lead singer – Cloudia Wintermute…This four song set chugs it’s way along a trail of dissonance and funeral atmospherics that only a pure post punk goth record can dish out…The clear standout is the 5+ minute title song “Thurst”…The record was recorded and produced in Venice, CA, but the group themselves is from Germany….An enchanting voyage for the goth and post punk fans….

And here is some additional information gleaned from the web:::
“Sleepless were originally known under the German name Die Schlaflosen. Formed in 1982 when guitarist Arch Stanton met up with Singers Cloudia Wintermute & Lucretia, and bassist Roland Hammerl. They immediatly found they had an amazing chemistry together and improvasation was the key to their sound. Never really having a permanent drummer they usually used drum machine for rehearsing and recording and would have a guest drummer at shows. Later joined by Saxopone player, Summer, they began playing the L.A. Gothic Scene and were regulars at Club Lhasa and The Anti-Club. In 1984 they opened for the Cramps at Perkins Palace. An EP came out in 1985 which marked the change of name from Die Schlaflosen to Sleepless. "No one could pronounce the german version of the name" was the complaint of some, so they finally changed it when the EP came out. Lucretia left the band while the recording was in progress. After almost a years absence from shows the band began playing again, but finally broke up in early 1987.”

DOWNLOAD ME

RIC TANGLE & THE SQUARES – Singles (1982)

Here is an underground power pop band from the Houston, Texas scene in the early 80’s. These singles seem to be the only formal releases by the band…They come from the obscure various artists compilation Third Coast Underground, which highlighted some of the up and coming indie bands in the Houston area…It may have been a battle of the bands as well…who knows…If there is more out there from Ric and crew, please get in touch…otherwise if you’re not into the power pop scene, please stand clear….

DOWNLOAD ME

BAD BABY – s/t LP (1985)

The Bad Baby LP is an unknown obscurity that came out of Hamburg, Germany in the mid 80’s. This talented foursome renders an atmospheric synth laden set with male and female vocals coupled with light guitar flicks...It sometimes gets a tad gloomy like in the dramatic song “Cry Baby Cry”…The album has quite an intriguing sound throughout with all sorts of background sound shaping effects… A private label pressing with gatefold cover and a few warm instrumental tracks sprinkled throughout…Here are some highlights:::
“Broken Hearted”

“Cry Baby Cry”

“Glasshouses”

QUIRK’S – Silicon Man 12” (1983)

Here we have some manic new wave synth for your holiday fix action. This rare unknown single comes to you out of Sacramento, CA and was released via S.O.L. International Records. It’s a one sided, one song special edition twelve incher made especially for the purveyors of new wave synth pop, so take it away…

DOWNLOAD ME

GUILT – The Truth Hurts EP (1986)

An eerie looking outfit is on tap for this next posting…They produce a gothic alternative sound with evil intentions – just look at them on the back jacket picture…Gothic overtones with some trippy guitar licks and feedback…It almost hits psychedelic areas…Next to nothing to be found about them other than they released this quite obscure EP on NED Records out of Nashville, TN..of all places..…A lively set of 5 tunes to get you into a medieval mood….

DOWNLOAD ME

NOCTURNAL EDUCATION – Live And Learn EP (1986)

Born from the ashes of The Skinny Kidz comes this alternative indie obscurity out of Santa Barbara, CA. The group consisted of two members and traversed in a new wave alternative mode…The four songs within contain two layered vocal tracks and unsuspecting instrumentation…Released on private label ACK! Records...Let’s just share the press release:::


DOWNLOAD ME

CLOX – The Animals Came 7” (1985)

Here is some unknown United Kingdom synth wave from a two member group. A private pressing via B Flat Records….You get some passion on the B side tune…And cover drawing courtesy of Stuart Brown, titled “The Fading Eye”…Here you are….

DOWNLOAD ME

LUCKY MARY BLONDE – Let The Moonlight Burn LP (1987)

Sole full length album by this indie alternative band who made home in St. Louis, MO. Production efforts were under the helm of Steve Lamberson, who had worked with such notables as REM, Jason and the Scorchers and Heart. Their delivery is simple but effective guitar pop oriented music that was ripe during the mid-late 80’s. This trio had highlighted the importance of having a successful live performance on stage, so they intentionally kept the arrangements fairly straight forward and not too intricate…obscure alternative vinyl collectors should seek this one out..it’s available in limited quantities in the online marketplace..Private label pressing…Some sound samples below…
“Farewell To Grace”

“To The West”

M OVER M - Walk Away 12" (198?)

Some soulful UK indie new wave from sometime in the 1980s...There seemed to be a lot of this sound coming out of the United Kingdom during the decade...okay for an occasional listen and to change things up...Pressed out of Germany on KBC Records...

DOWNLOAD ME

TANTAL – Tantalized EP (1984)

So there has been a plethora of American based bands posted to the blog recently…We make a change here and go to Sweden....Tantal was an alternative Swedish foursome who were active in the early 80’s…They give us a worthy take on a European flavored synth pop sound. This six song EP is believed to be the only release and was self produced by the band. The stand out here is the 8 minute frenzied synth beats of “Inside Information”….indulge below…

DOWNLOAD ME

BOYS WITH TOYS – Going Blind EP (1984)

Stellar indie new wave from Michigan is the order of the day. This five song EP was self produced on private label UM Records out of Ann Arbor, MI. There doesn’t seem to be much information on these four guys, but one thing is for sure - they had a winning formula down for guitar influenced alternative indie pop…if there had been more notoriety or major label backing, the boys would have definitely seen success….Another rare obscurity unearthed....

DOWNLOAD ME

BIG:FRENCH – Diving For Pearls EP (1986)

A female fronted oddity out of New York City. Side B has the two songs that need to be heard on this 5 song EP. “Destination #1” is the clear standout with its tranced out synthesized arrangements laced with a seductive female vocal courtesy of leader Heidi…real solid…Its followed by the funky new wave number “The Jig-A-Bum Dance” …Side A is forgettable, but “My Guys” has some cheesy synth pop fodder to hear...Looks to be a scarce item…Obscure it is…

DOWNLOAD ME

ROD FALCONER – Rules Of Attraction LP (1984)

This forgotten one has a great early 80’s video and that’s really why it’s being posted. Rod Falconer was an unknown underground offshoot of the Rick Springfield type of delivery, look and music…and check out the band in the video – punk rockers and a kicking female drummer...It’s a 11 song catchy, up-beat new wave AOR album with a pleasantly surprising amount of synth work and a good spin for a dollar bin vinyl addict…Don’t pass it up for cheap if you desire a little variety in the new wave arenas…

THE FEVER TREE – The Pixie Shop In Boscastle EP (1985)

The wicked and wild lead vocalist for Indians In Moscow, Adele Nozedar breaks from the group and forms The Fever Tree in the mid 80’s…Adele and her 3 compatriots get into a more goth influenced alternative sound…They only produced this one three tune extended player on Plan B Records.

DOWNLOAD ME

DESIGN – Dancing In A Trance EP (1984)

An indie threesome coming from the influential Atlanta, GA alternative scene …Melancholic new wave beats emanate out of the four songs on display here. The title song is a standout track. This was pressed and distributed by Hib-Tone records, which was a small independent label founded by Johnny Hibbert, a then law student at the University of Georgia, in 1981. The label was short lived, but did manage to score the release of REM’s “Radio Free Europe” and it’s B-side “Sitting Still”….REM went on to bigger things and Design fell into the obscurity files…


DOWNLOAD ME

WAGNER – A Way Of Life EP (1986)

Additional synth wave served up American style, but this time it’s more of a solo effort by this new romantic looking dude…and has some dance oriented fare to offer…Check out “Dust” - quite a synth pop mover…..Wagner wasn’t alone in his electronica escapades and was assisted by friend Victor Loud from The Urge...These guys were out of Flushing, New York and had this only EP…


DOWNLOAD ME

VITAL SINES – Hearllucinations EP (1983)

There are a handful of groups from the 80’s new wave scene that went by the name of Vital Sines. This indie band comes out of the Southern, CA (Costa Mesa) market and self produced this quite charming synth dominated new wave extended player with five songs and five members….A private label pressing via Baroque Records out of Westminster, CA…The winner here is “Mandalay” with its urgent vocal arrangements, synthesizer complements and clapping beats…

DOWNLOAD ME

Z-ROCKS – s/t LP (1983)

An obscure indie trio out of Houston, Texas that works in the power pop new wave areas. The sounds are emblematic of the early 80’s power pop music scene with a dash of new wave rhythms to round things out – as in the synth spotty tune “Autorock” and the Cars like “You Know My Name”….So a special note to the vinyl collectors out there – this album comes in at least two different cover art design varieties. There is a red and blue colored computer screen scheme to pick from and there seems to be a few copies available to make choices….Also, there is an untitled hidden quirk of a track at the finish…This 8 song LP is privately pressed on Z records...

“You Know My Name”

“Autorock”

KEVIN ZED – Double Dutch EP (1985)

What we have on tap here is a new wave synth band out of British North America. Led by vocalist and guitarist Kevin Zed, this group of five cranks through a solid set of synth driven, drum programmed angsty electronica. There is the occasional guitar slinging, but it’s complemented by great synth work by two of the band members….Private pressing on Beat Records and Recorded at Mushroom Studios--both in Vancouver, Canada…This one seems to be readily available in the marketplace for vinyl collectors…

DOWNLOAD ME

LAWS OF MOTION – Check It In The Mirror EP (1984)

A new wave band that was formed in the early 80’s around the San Diego area. This sextet was very active in Southern California’s new music scene and was tapped many times to be the opening act for out of town alternative and indie bands. They opened for Hoodoo Gurus, Broken Edge and Doll Congress to name a few…They also received local radio airplay in San Diego and were on local cable TV via KCOX…

Laws of Motion was a band that became known in the scene as a proficient group of musical experimenters who always looked for a new fresh sound and pushed the envelope of creativity. As one reviewer put it “the band takes the flow of energy, of life, of ideas to create music for dancing – Cerebal Dancing.” Of course this is an out of print private pressing and seems to have a very limited availability if you’re looking to score a vinyl copy…but for now-check out the five EP tunes below….



DOWNLOAD ME