Full Moon Mix: Robots Are Coming

As science fiction slowly turns into reality, we’re more and more surrounded by intelligent machines. A few decades ago robots were still mainly a pop-cultural fantasy, which was prominently introduced into music by Kraftwerk. The release of The Man Machine entailed dozens of songs dealing with artificial intelligence.

This mix demonstrates how robots we’re taking over pop music in the early 80s. The topics addressed by the vocoder voices featured in these songs seem strangely contemporary. We hear androids say ‘Gimme your job!’, encounter a nurse robot caring for a baby, get introduced to a computer who likes bananas and witness party machines taking over the discotheque.

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1. The Android Sisters – Robots Are Coming
Songs Of Electronic Despair, Vanguard, 1984

2. Mythos – Nurse Robot
Quasar, Sky Records, 1980

3. Der Plan – Ich Bin Ein Komputer
Normalette Surprise, Ata Tak, 1981

4. Patrick Cowley – Mutant Man
Mind Warp, Metronome, 1980

5. Kraftwerk – The Robots vs. Die Roboter (Bilingual Edit)
Die Mensch-Maschine / The Man Machine, EMI Electrola / Capitol, 1978

6. Bruce Haack – Party Machine
The Electric Voice, Stones Throw, 2010 (recorded 1983)

7. Trans Volta – Disco Computer
Disco Computer, Vogue, 1979

8. Laurie Anderson – O Superman (For Massenet)
Big Science, Warner, 1981

9. Klaus Schulze – Death Of An Analogue
Dig it, Brain, 1980

Full Moon Mix: MPB

While the athletes have been chasing records in Rio we’ve been listening to records from Brazil. This mix is an attempt to trace the evolution of the Música Popular Brasileira (MPB). We start off with some breezy Bossa Nova, ride up the Amazon to encounter the mysticism of Brazilian folk music, and finally plunge into the golden age of Tropicália.

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1. João Donato – Vento Do Canavial
The New Sound Of Brazil, RCA Victor, 1965

2. Astrud Gilberto – Agua De Beber
The Astrud Gilberto Album, Verve Records, 1965

3. Rosinha Da Valencia – Thema Pro Luis
Folklore E Bossa Nova Do Brasil, SABA, 1967

4. José Barrense-Dias – Itapicuruassu
Isto E Brasil, M Records, 1977

5. Quinteto Violado – Acauã
Quinteto Violado, Philips, 1972

6. Sérgio Mendes & Brasil ’77 – Promessa De Pescador
Primal Roots, A&M Records, 1972

7. Erasmo Carlos  – Cachaça Mecânica
1990 – Projeto Salva Terra!, Philips, 1974

8. Antonio Carlos E Jocafi – Kabaluere
Mudei De Idéia, RCA Victor, 1971

9. Mutantes – Ando Meio Desligado
A Divina Comédia Ou Ando Meio Desligado, Philips, 1970

Full Moon Mix: Children Of The New World

This mix is dedicated to all the children who were born under the last full moon. May they live long and prosper.

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1. Daevid Allen & Euterpe – Children Of The New World
Good Morning, Virgin 1976

2. Tunng – Mother’s Daughter
Mother’s Daughter And Other Songs, Static Caravan 2005

3. Bill Callahan – Baby’s Breath
Apocalypse, Drag City 2011

4. Curtis Mayfield – Little Child Running Wild
Super Fly, Curtom 1972

5. Ramases – Life Child
Space Hymns, Vertigo 1971

6. The Comfortable Chair – Child’s Garden
The Comfortable Chair, Ode Records 1968

7. Nancy Sinatra – Friday’s Child
Nancy In London, RCA 1966

8. The Zombies – Summertime
The Zombies, Parrot 1965

9. Nina Simone – Brown Baby
At The Village Gate, Colpix Records 1962

Full Moon Mix: On The Edge Of Sound

With this full moon mix we are heading for the edge of sound. Neither distinct notes nor definite rhythms are to be heard. Instead, we indulge ourselves in static noise. By blending records from 1984 to present this continuous soundscape investigates the possibilities of ambient abstraction. Most people wouldn’t call this music, but in the end – alas! – there’s a little melody.

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1. Nocturnal Emissions – Acres Of Gold
Spiritflesh, Earthly Delights, 1988

2. Tim Hecker – The Piano Drop
Ravedeath 1972, Kranky, 2011

3. Leyland Kirby Presents V/Vm – Monroes Stockport
The Death Of Rave (A Partial Flashback), History Always Favours The Winners, 2014

4. Rafael Anton Irisarri – Reprisal
A Fragile Geography, Room 40, 2015

5. Simon Scott – Spring Stars
Navigare, Miasmah, 2009

6. Maeror Tri – Part V
Hypnotikum I, Soleilmoon Recordings, 1998

7. Dimitris Petsetakis – Black Rain
Missing Links, Utopia, 1991

8 . Trans-Millenia Consort – Spacial Spectre
Spectre, Trans-Millenia Consort Recordings, 1984

9. Ketev – Levels Of Chaos
Traces Of Weakness, Where To Now?, 2016

Full Moon Mix: Behind The Iron Curtain

The vinyl for this Full Moon Mix is provided exclusively by state-owned record companies of the former Eastern Bloc. Although music production was monopolized behind the Iron Curtain, there was room for experiments. This compilation brings together musical innovators from the Soviet Union, Czechoslovakia, Hungary and the German Democratic Republic.

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1. Alexander Rjabov Ja Ansambel Synthesys – Ootus
Dialoogid (Melodyia, 1983)

2. Jürgen Ecke – Irritation
Sound-Synthese: Electronics (Amiga, 1986)

3. Pond – Seidenstrasse
Auf der Seidenstrasse (Amiga, 1986)

4. János Másik & Tibor Szemző – Piac
Metro O.S.T. (Budapest Film, 1989)

5. Jiří Stivín & Pierre Favre – Starý Pramen
Výlety (Supraphon, 1981)

6. Mikhail Chekalin – Origin Of Species
Post‧Pop Non‧Pop (Melodyia, 1989, rec. 1984)

7. László Hortobágyi – Harmologix / Vocablá / Ite Pravonix Est… / Nono-Bol 89′
Op. Transreplica Meccano (Hungaropop, 1989)

8. Bayon – Overtüre aus “Die Schlacht” / “Der Traktor”
Bayon (Amiga, 1980)

9. Reinhard Lakomy – Das unendliche Rätsel
Das geheime Leben – Electronics (Amiga, 1981)

Lost in Vactrol Park

Watch out when taking a walk in Vactrol Park. You get lost easily and you won’t find anyone around to tell you the directions. In the park’s dark alleys everything looks the same, but nothing seems familiar. It’s a labyrinth of identical paths lined with endless rows of ominous plants and huge black trees.

In the center of Vactrol Park stands a futuristic temple. It was built by a cult whose members commited mass suicide in 1999. A few years later a techno tribe held gatherings in the abandoned building. In those days the way to the temple was signaled by neon lights, but those guiding lights are no longer there.

If you nevertheless manage to reach the center of the maze and enter the temple of Vactrol Park, you’ll find yourself on an empty dancefloor that once was a prayer hall. The gigantic speakers on each side of the altar still give evidence of the loudness that once filled this room. Now all you hear is silence.

But suddenly, there is a sound of swelling pulses. The spell of repetition falls upon you. A ghostly rave begins.

Vactrol Park’s first two EPs I (2015) and II (2016) are out on ESP Institue

Full Moon Mix: A Capella

For this full moon mix we leave the instruments in their cases. You’re invited to explore a capella singing in various facettes.

We hear The Beach Boys harmoinising at the top of their game, Leadbelly humming a lonesome field holler, and a prisoner’s choir singing a rap like work song. Of course, some gospel tunes are included, among them a frantic recording from the Bahamas, which for a few awkward seconds anticipates Daft Punk’s Happy.

The earthy voices of the first half are contrasted by the ethereal vocal sounds of the second half, where we encounter Bulgarian and Russian choirs, pastoral music from the renaissance, overtone singing, and exponents of the vocal avantgarde.

Download

1. The Beach Boys – Our Prayer
20/20 (Capitol, 1969)

2. Cyndee Peters – Wade In The Water
Black Is The Color (Opus 3, 1977)

3. Bruce Green, Tweedie Gibson & Clifton Green – I Am So Glad
The Real Bahamas (Nonesuch, 1966)

4. Negro Prisoners – Grizzly Bear
The Folk Box (Elektra, 1964)

5. Leadbelly – Field Holler
Midnight Special (Folkways Records, 1976)

6. The Pilgrim Travelers – Go Down Moses
Look Up! (Andex, 1957)

7. Fontaine Areski – Vous Et Nous
Vous Et Nous (Saravah, 1977)

8. June Tabor & Maddy Prior – Four Loom Weaver
Silly Sisters (Chrysalis, 1976)

9. State Folk Ensemble Trakiya – Aishinko Pilya Shereno
State Folk Ensemble Trakiya (Балкантон, 1983)

10. North Russian Folk Choir – Раскудрява яблоня
У Моря Белого (Мелодия 1987)

11. The Hilliard Ensemble – Incipit Lamentatio
The Lamentations Of Jeremia (ECM, 1987)

12. The Harmonic Choir – Multiplying Voices
Hearing Solar Winds (Orca, 1983)

13. Tamia – Stray Wind
Senza Tempo (T Records, 1981)

14. Holly Herndon – Unequal
Platform (4AD, 2015)

15. Claire Hamill – Sleep
Voices (Coda, 1986)

16. Flying Pickets – Blowing Away
Blue Money (Hey-U-Records, 1990)