HR147 - Various Artists - IRRRRRE!!! - The Best of IRRE Tapes 001-015 - C90 — 1989
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A:
WeR 7 - 82-84 Mix Angels of the odd - Hiding from fears Poison Dwarfs - The dance Spheric Corner - Rambo Kronstadt - In Deinem Kopf Kronstadt - Zehnmal im Leben Kronstadt - Weiter Trigger + Acid Dreams - Greatful soldier Atlantikschwimmer - Keine Antwort auf bren-nende Fragan Jar - Heartless Jabberwockies - The joke's on you Paradox - Unname (Extract) B: Josef boys - Doors open and in Die Rache - Erstschlag Attrition - Monkey in a bin Ventral metaphor - Exciting pianos Lord Litter - The lion is about to die because Whiteys wife wants warmth Voices in the distance - Hurlyburly L'air maureen - Silantsailing night GUZ - Egyptian Regie 85 Opera multi steel - Chambre froide Due - Mambo rambo Toshiyuki Hiraoka - Yoshikawa M. Finnkrieg - Stop at the beginning (Extract) |
REVIEW by Jerry Kranitz
The 1980s-90s were blessed with a bonanza of cassette labels, some of which enjoyed the longevity that Harsh Reality did. Ranking the best would be a fruitless task, but if we hazarded any nominees, one would surely be Matthias Lang’s West German based IRRE Tapes. Lang founded the label after publishing eight issues of his IRRE fanzine. Intentionally avoiding a stylistic theme, and being international in scope, Lang released artists that he enjoyed, resulting in a dazzling variety of music.
Reflecting on how building his network of contacts increasingly tuned him into the homemade music underground, the late Lord Litter says: “Then it REALLY only took ONE address from the Independent Kontakter and I was ‘connected’. It was Matthias Lang with his IRRE Tapes from Germany. I sent him two of my solo tapes - he immediately wrote back, offered to release some of the tracks on his already existing compilation series and sent back a few more contact addresses from all around the world.
This ‘Best of’ C90 showcases artists from the first fifteen IRRE Tapes releases. To emphasize the variety, I’ll give a whirlwind tour of the 24 featured artists. What impresses throughout is the level of musicianship and production from so many of these artists, as well as a lot of what could have been MTV-ready if not for being too creatively, and undefinably, off the beaten path.
WeR 7 play a freakily cool and strange brand of 80s dancefloor pop. Angels Of The Odd are somewhat similar but with beautiful female vocals. Poison Dwarfs are pleasantly melodic, robotically rhythmic, and hauntingly atmospheric. Spheric Corner alternate between quirkily grooving and punk-prog soundtrack, with theatrical narrative vocals. Kronstadt play an offbeat style of high energy rock with angular guitars and impressive compositional chops. Trigger & Acid Dreams are rhythmically but seamless off-kilter and have a Celtic vibe. Atlantikschwimmer play funky rock with German vocals. Jar start off energetic and intense, before gliding into jazzy post-punk lounge-swoon. Jabberwockies play jangly psychedelic folk-pop. Paradox stitch together a surreal collage of voice samples and a zany variety of music. Josef Boys similarly concoct a collage of seductive voices, music and effects. Die Rache offer up yet another collage entry, this one with a wild blend of classical violin and symphony, urban industrial field recordings, yelling, and more. Attrition create a head-spinning blend of cut-up artistry and dancefloor grooves. Ventral Metaphor take less than a minute for some quick atmospheric tape manipulation. Lord Litter was known for both outstanding ‘Out-Pop’ songs and experimental works. This track highlights his more avant-garde interests, being an effects and soundscapes exploration. Voices In The Distance play a hip-shaking style of searing rock and Caribbean flavored James Bond soundtrack. L’Air Maureen create an interesting blend of high-octane dancefloor rave and cosmic Goth. GUZ play a lysergically lo-fi dreamy folk-pop song. Opera Multi Steel’s track is a short but sweet funky grooving instrumental. Due are a fun band with their oddball songcraft. Toshiyuki Hiraoka incorporate multiple song style samples into his creatively assembled dance collage. And M. Finnkrieg wraps up the set with another quirkily and rhythmically robotic groove tune.
The 1980s-90s were blessed with a bonanza of cassette labels, some of which enjoyed the longevity that Harsh Reality did. Ranking the best would be a fruitless task, but if we hazarded any nominees, one would surely be Matthias Lang’s West German based IRRE Tapes. Lang founded the label after publishing eight issues of his IRRE fanzine. Intentionally avoiding a stylistic theme, and being international in scope, Lang released artists that he enjoyed, resulting in a dazzling variety of music.
Reflecting on how building his network of contacts increasingly tuned him into the homemade music underground, the late Lord Litter says: “Then it REALLY only took ONE address from the Independent Kontakter and I was ‘connected’. It was Matthias Lang with his IRRE Tapes from Germany. I sent him two of my solo tapes - he immediately wrote back, offered to release some of the tracks on his already existing compilation series and sent back a few more contact addresses from all around the world.
This ‘Best of’ C90 showcases artists from the first fifteen IRRE Tapes releases. To emphasize the variety, I’ll give a whirlwind tour of the 24 featured artists. What impresses throughout is the level of musicianship and production from so many of these artists, as well as a lot of what could have been MTV-ready if not for being too creatively, and undefinably, off the beaten path.
WeR 7 play a freakily cool and strange brand of 80s dancefloor pop. Angels Of The Odd are somewhat similar but with beautiful female vocals. Poison Dwarfs are pleasantly melodic, robotically rhythmic, and hauntingly atmospheric. Spheric Corner alternate between quirkily grooving and punk-prog soundtrack, with theatrical narrative vocals. Kronstadt play an offbeat style of high energy rock with angular guitars and impressive compositional chops. Trigger & Acid Dreams are rhythmically but seamless off-kilter and have a Celtic vibe. Atlantikschwimmer play funky rock with German vocals. Jar start off energetic and intense, before gliding into jazzy post-punk lounge-swoon. Jabberwockies play jangly psychedelic folk-pop. Paradox stitch together a surreal collage of voice samples and a zany variety of music. Josef Boys similarly concoct a collage of seductive voices, music and effects. Die Rache offer up yet another collage entry, this one with a wild blend of classical violin and symphony, urban industrial field recordings, yelling, and more. Attrition create a head-spinning blend of cut-up artistry and dancefloor grooves. Ventral Metaphor take less than a minute for some quick atmospheric tape manipulation. Lord Litter was known for both outstanding ‘Out-Pop’ songs and experimental works. This track highlights his more avant-garde interests, being an effects and soundscapes exploration. Voices In The Distance play a hip-shaking style of searing rock and Caribbean flavored James Bond soundtrack. L’Air Maureen create an interesting blend of high-octane dancefloor rave and cosmic Goth. GUZ play a lysergically lo-fi dreamy folk-pop song. Opera Multi Steel’s track is a short but sweet funky grooving instrumental. Due are a fun band with their oddball songcraft. Toshiyuki Hiraoka incorporate multiple song style samples into his creatively assembled dance collage. And M. Finnkrieg wraps up the set with another quirkily and rhythmically robotic groove tune.