private label, 1968; reissued by Streamline; out of print
9 tracks, 50:35
Industrial music existed long before it acquired that name. This album (and many others on this blog) is proof of that. I know extremely little about this group; different sources say they were centered in France, the US, or Canada (EDIT: thanks to the comment on this entry and fact-checking, I now have pegged them as being from Ontario. Thanks, freqazoidiac!). All I know is that the members were Blake Parker , Dik Zander , John Mills-Cockell , and Michael Hayden.In a way, this is good, because the music stands just fine on its own. This is Intersystems' third album, being preceded by NUMBER ONE and PEACHY. Performed on any manner of pre-synthesizer electronics, the main elements are buzzing oscillators and strange spoken vocals. The narration falls somewhere in the vicinity of Robert Ashley's work, and concerns two lovers named Gordy and Renee. The vocals get processed at odd times, fading in and out of the mix or going from channel to channel. They also are extremely abstract, and while there is a definite concept, its exact nature is quite vague. The backing music is mostly clicks, whirs, hums, swoops, and all other sorts of primitive electronic sounds. It makes for a very interesting album, and I for one am amazed Intersystems were not included in the infamous Nurse With Wound list. Certain NWW pieces like "A New Dress" and "A Missing Sense" owe as much to Intersystems as they do Ashley. The CD reissue is hard to find but very much worth the search. Check back for reviews of the other two Intersystems albums soon!
4 comments:
It is in fact, a group from Ontario Canada. John Mills is the genius to be studied if one is interested in Electronic sound textures, before the use of autotune.
Beautiful record!
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