inner nerd » Synth Punk

Robot Rock du Jour: Futurisk – Player Piano LP (2010)

beaker — Wed, 14 Jul 2010 02:20:36 +0000

Hot off the press!!!

Aptly-named revival label Minimal Wave has compiled Futurisk‘s entire catalog and pressed it on collector-quality 180g vinyl, including this alternate take of their signature track, Meteoright. Destined to be a collectible. At $22, you’d be crazy not to pick one (or two) up.

SCHEMATIC: Need more Futurisk videos??? Get your fix HERE!!!

Pssst...pass it on!

Robot Rock du Jour: The Units – High Pressure Days (1979)

beaker — Sat, 26 Jun 2010 05:00:34 +0000

High Pressure Days is a filthy, gnarly animal.

Let Uncle Rico’s time machine teleport you back to 1977 San Francisco. Eschewing guitars in favor of synths (good move, fellas), The Units become one of the very first synthpunk bands. They then start tearing it up, self-releasing the original version of this track in 1979 on what is now an absurdly rare 7″ record (sells for about £100). This video features the album version, released in 1980 on the Digital Stimulation LP.

SCHEMATIC: The ENTIRE Digital Stimulation album, band portrait and flyer (via synthpunk)…

What follows is the entire Digital Stimulation LP with each track listed in its proper order. This album is an opus and deserves a concentrated listen. The last track, Cowboy, is a mind-warping experience. I just yoinked an original 7″ copy of High Pressure Days from eBay and will make/post vinyl rips and videos as soon as it arrives. In related news, an anthology was released in 2009 called History of The Units – The Early Years: 1977 – 1983 and is available through discogs.

Digital Stimulation

Warm Moving Bodies

Go

Mission

Bugboy

Tight Fit

Passions or Patterns

Town by the River

Cowboy

Pssst...pass it on!

Robot Rock du Jour: Suicide – Ghost Rider (1977)

beaker — Sun, 09 Aug 2009 03:58:34 +0000

Synthpunk Elvis? People just didn’t make this kind of music in 1977. Yet here it is. While France and Québéc were making space disco, NY was outputting high concept industrial synthpunk blues. Legends Alan Vega and Martin Rev, tearing it up…

SCHEMATIC: Another live version and a brief documentary excerpt…

Pssst...pass it on!

Robot Rock du Jour: The Units – I-Night (1979)

beaker — Tue, 28 Jul 2009 18:30:16 +0000

Damn, this track is sick. I originally had this song in the SCHEMATICS section of the High Pressure Days posting, but this aggro synthpunk brain-melter it is far, far too choice to ride the pine. I-Night is the b-side on the Warm Moving Bodies 7″.

Pssst...pass it on!

Party Time: Saturday Robot Party @ The Idle Hour (Baltimore, MD)

beaker — Thu, 25 Jun 2009 04:52:53 +0000

VIGR is in the house. 4+ hour rare vinyl set. Need I say more? Hope to see you there! I’ll try to keep track of the setlist…

Pssst...pass it on!

Robot Rock du Jour: Aviador Dro (1980 + 1982)

beaker — Sat, 16 May 2009 19:24:22 +0000

I don’t know why I’m on this jamón synth kick lately, but after you peep these vids, I doubt you’ll blame me!

Madrid-based Aviador Dro recorded some of the most leftfield minimal wave synth punk ever made. The following videos are from their obscure period in the early 1980s. Check those pre-acid synth lines! To top it all off, their penchant for industrially-themed costumes gave the music a whack post-apocalyptic feel. Substantially all their music in the 1980s was published on their own label, DRO. Enjoy!

El Nascimiento de la Industria (1982) off the DRO compilation “Navidades Radiactivas”

SCHEMATIC: Four more videos to up your nerd experience points…

Laser (1980) off their first 7″ release “La Chica de Plexiglas”

Nuclear, Sí (1982) off the 12″ release “Nuclear, Sí”

La Televisión Es Nutritiva (1982) off the “Alas Sobre El Mundo” LP

Selector de Frecuencias (1982) off the “Alas Sobre El Mundo” LP

Selector de Frecuencias – Live (1984) broadcast on “El Programa La Edad de Oro Visita”

Pssst...pass it on!

Robot Rock du Jour: Futurisk – Player Piano EP (1982)

beaker — Sun, 26 Apr 2009 13:30:41 +0000

This obscure Miami-based band recorded some of the finest minimal synth-punk tracks ever made on two ridiculously rare 7″ pressings. Check this “live” cut of Meteoright, the audio for which is available on 180g vinyl at Minimal Wave for $22.

Meteoright Live

Schematic

SCHEMATIC: 24bit/96kHz vinyl rips, record scans, cover art and vintage flyer artwork…

Futurisk Flyer Illustration c. 1982

I recently scored an original 7″ pressing of Player Piano from 1982 on Clark Humphrey Records.

To fuel your AV room rock out, all the songs from Player Piano are presented below in their correct order. These videos are also now available on our youtube playlist. Listen to how different the studio and live versions of Meteoright are!

inner nerd » Synth Punk

Robot Rock du Jour: Futurisk – Player Piano LP (2010)

Robot Rock du Jour: The Units – High Pressure Days (1979)

Digital Stimulation

Warm Moving Bodies

Go

Mission

Mission

Bugboy

Tight Fit

Passions or Patterns

Town by the River

Cowboy

Robot Rock du Jour: Suicide – Ghost Rider (1977)

Robot Rock du Jour: The Units – I-Night (1979)

Party Time: Saturday Robot Party @ The Idle Hour (Baltimore, MD)

Robot Rock du Jour: Aviador Dro (1980 + 1982)

El Nascimiento de la Industria (1982) off the DRO compilation “Navidades Radiactivas”

Laser (1980) off their first 7″ release “La Chica de Plexiglas”

Nuclear, Sí (1982) off the 12″ release “Nuclear, Sí”

La Televisión Es Nutritiva (1982) off the “Alas Sobre El Mundo” LP

Selector de Frecuencias (1982) off the “Alas Sobre El Mundo” LP

Selector de Frecuencias – Live (1984) broadcast on “El Programa La Edad de Oro Visita”

Robot Rock du Jour: Futurisk – Player Piano EP (1982)

A1) Poison Ivy

A2

A2) Meteoright

A3

A3) Push Me, Pull You (Part 2)

B1

B1) Lonely Streets

B2

B2) Split Second Decision

SPA