 Here we don’t talk about a music genre but about an attitude, a position. From the beginning in the 50′s withe “Nouvelle vague”, the aim is to find new forms beyond avant-garde and pop culture to express contemporary emotions, to show the diseases of the (post) modern world and to challenge norms and obsolete social orders (like bourgeoisie, religion, work, art..).
French new wave is also a passion for wandering, a general tendency for detachment and it always shared, of course, the DIY spirit. We can find this kind of nonconformism and this common taste for wasted grounds in some movies of Claude Chabrol, Jacques Rivette or Luis Bunuel as well as in the music of Polyphonic Size, Guerre Froide and Merci la Nuit.
With this first release on vinyl, this young musician from Saint-Etienne offers 6 minimal synth-pop songs filled with great sensibility, commitment and a lot of bitter sweet humor. The music is very personal and digs up very different synth music eras, from the 80′s raw analog sounds (with the famous Russian Polyvoks, the Roland 606/707 drum machines…) to the digital coldness of samples and techno kicks, to the more lo-fi minimal sounds (we can greet the presence of our beloved Casio VL-tone!). All those elements connected together are forming the sound of the nocturnal conspiracy of Merci la Nuit.
So let’s go for this night ballad in the city streets. It’s a bit foggy tonight…
Listen and order on Spielzeug Musak.
From Mannequin Records:
 Mannequin has the dual and parallel aim to unearth hidden or unpublished gems, running along a road that starts from the period of reference for this kind of music (late 70s – mid 80s) and comes to nowdays, with a vision deeply influence by Factory Records / 4AD labels.
Catching the same spirit of such great labels, we asked to the Italian synth wave princess Mushy to create a compilation starting from a tabula rasa. The mission was hard. Following her tastes and heart, she had to select a dozen of new bands from all over the world with unreleased and unique for this project tracks, picking up the title and realizing the graphic design and artwork. The full process of “The End Of Civilization” took almost 1 year but the result was touching us deep into our soul.
Mushy began her career crafting noise bursts and aggressive oblique instrumentals before, in her newest form, blooming into a beautiful, epic and heart-heavy icy synth sound, having both “Faded Heart” (2011) and “Breathless” (2012) as album of the week at Rough Trade. “The End Of Civilization” perfectly represents her double sided synth-wave / kraut-psychedelic soul. Every track she selected for us is an absolute highlight, moving from the analog minimal / cold wave sounds of Police Des Moeurs, ASSS, The Circa Tapes, TEEEL and Rosemary to the tempestuous post punk and psychedelia of Deathday, The Murder Act, Phosphor and The Strange Forces, ending with spectral cold folk of Tablets and The Long Wives.
Police Des Moeurs – The End Of Civilization – Tout Ce Qui Te Fait Mal Te Fait Du Bien
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 It’s quite unusual for an Italian band to get attention before its first full-length even comes to life. Ancien Régime from Rome might just be the exception to this rule. In fact, the band sole release before 2012 had been the quickly sold out limited edition split EP (Mannequin), released together with Brooklyn-based cold wave heroes Led Er Est.
Since then, Ancien Régime have been playing all over Italy along with outstanding bands such as Two Door Cinema Club, Is Tropical, The Soft Moon, Clan of Xymox, A Place to Bury Strangers and many others.
Their first album “The Position” evokes new wave and synth-pop memories, delivering epic vintage sounds and wrapping them all with catchy riffs and melodies. Still, despite this fascination with the past, the band’s work stands out as a distinctive, highly personal take on the genre.
The album is opened by the single “Negative”, with its dark gloomy vocals and war-like drumming. “Negative” is, in fact, the quintessential Ancien Régime composition: wave, biting snare, interweaving synths and guitars, reverbs, delays.
“The Position” was recorded and mixed by Alessandro Gavazzi of “Hell Smell” – Rome, and co-produced by Alessandro Adriani from Mannequin Records and Ancien Régime.
Ancien Regime – The Position – 01 Brief Encounter
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 The second album of Florence Foster Fan Club aka FFFC entitled “Asymmetric” is released on Wave Records with ten original tracks and two remixes by Sumerian Fleet and Downward Path.
Similar to the first album, FFFC on ‘Asymmetric’ remain consistent with the social issues and themes.
The sound of “Asymmetric” is a diverse pattern of electronic music styles, ranging from hard beats and fierce bass lines to a more melodic synth-pop. Old skool with a modern and personal touch.
Repression, censorship, paranoia, media control, frustration, conspiracy theories and secret societies..sounds like a description of Phil K. Dick novels or perhaps it has something to do with Ray Bradbury? No, this is our present time and we are more or less aware of all this. For that reason it’s easier for us to deal with such challenges and be proactive.
Florence Foster Fan Club – Asymmetric
 A selection of parasite pop, unborn hits and obscure synth wave punk, carefully selected for your pleasure by Disco Kaos.
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