A very, very, minimal electronic group, not too dissimilar to Clock DVA's more accessible moments,and very typical of the Sheffield scene of the time,as a nursery of the Industrial/electronic template.
Yes, they went on to become chart act ABC, one of the more intelligent chart acts of the early eighties.
But,don't expect any catchy singalong hits on this cassette though.Its pretty hard electronic Industrial disco,and very....er....minimal.
DOWNLOAD vice versa as easily as ABC HERE!
12 comments:
Stoked! This site is the best! Thank you, thank you Jonny Z!
There's a vinyl on demand box set available at Boomkat - http://boomkat.com/vinyl/1180009-vice-versa-electrogenesis-1978-80-deluxe-box-set
Fascinating insight into the early days of ABC - wish they could've stuck on this trajectory, could've been up there with Clock and the Cabs!
Yeah, it was sort of fashionable for left field groups to try and subvert the industry from the inside.....it didn't work. it ruined a lot of good groups,The Human League,Fire Engines,PTV, Vice Versa..etc
The only band who pulled it off for me were The Associates.Only PiL managed to chart with weirder singles than them.
thanks !
Aaaah... The Associates! Heartbreakingly great.
Isn't "Sulk" just one of the greatest albums ever to get in the top ten or what?
Yeah, pop as subversion, I think we have Paul Morley to blame for that one.
I lived near Sheffield as a young teenager and took part in the local 'yoof' radio show on BBC Radio Sheffield when I was 13/14 so on the back of that I pretty much got to see all the Sheffield bands at the time - some great like Hula, In The Nursery, Chakk and obviously the Cabs - and some not so great like The Comsat Angels and Pulp (though I do remember a fondness for the Mau-Maus & D&V!)
Sadly, the two bands I really wanted to see - 2.3 and Vice Versa, I never got the chance - ah the regrets of youth.
Though I had the two Vice Versa singles and played them to death, I never even knew the "8 Aspects Of" tape existed so this has been a real treat for me.
Had I not got rid of my decks and vinyl, I would be snapping up the VOD compilation immediately - luckily DIEORDIY has stepped into the breach!
Well, i spotted this the other evening.You now have your chance to watch 2.3 live, at Weston Park 1980:
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=EfLWn0Cl3gE
And, what's so bad about the Comsat Angels? I played their first two LP's to death in my miserable yoof.In fact i may post their Peel Sessions to indulge my sentimental side.
But, Pulp.....fucking shit they were.
PS, although i never spend hard earned(?) dole money on the records.I did recognise something half decent in ABC's attitude. And quite liked a few of their singles. And Fry's Gold Lamé suit.
PPS, having just listened to The Future comp cd,I reckon a remix removing Phil oakey would have improved matters incrementally. In fact most pop music would be improved with removed vocals.I very rarely take any notice of the confused sixth-form poetry that usually adorns classic pop,with the music mixed way in the background,like nearly all of the hits of the sixties.
I did send off a c-60 for a tape by a synth band called 'Another View'in about 1980.That was purely instrumental minimal synth.....i can't trace that anywhere, and I understand that VOD are doing an Another View box set!....that should be interesting.
Thanks for the 2.3 link JZ - most appreciated - ah there is a few bands from that year like Artery, I'm So Hollow also filmed - it is weird watching bands in the daytime isn't it, something just not quite right about it, though I'm sure I've wasted many hours over the years doing exactly that. Yeah Wsston Park was a great place to see Sheffield's finest and erm not so finest. We'll just have to digress on the Comsat Angels and celebrate the joy of Mr Fry's Gold Lamé suit
I was just about to post you some video links myself - one of the guys from In The Nursery has put on You Tube about five or six videos of Vice Versa performing at the Psalter Lane Art College, Sheffield. February 1980 - these are well worth checking out:
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCbHxaqdGUp2ho3EPNOFyinQ
Another View! Jesus, that rung a bell - think he was from Luton or somewhere near there - ah, just checked the 'A Career In Dancing - The Abstraction Years 1979-81' VOD release - wow, that looks incredible. Got to give it to the Herr Maier behind VOD, he not only knows his minimal wave shit, he knows exactly how to package it.
Speaking of VOD releases, you or the one reader to this comments section may be interested to know some kind soul has done a 96Khz 24bit type rip of the late Rüdiger Lorenz 'The Syntape-Years 1981-83' release on VOD - I already have rips of his first two tapes and got the Southland CD and in my opinion, this guy at his best was up there with CS (who actually produced one of the releases)
http://hitfile.net/download/folder/1725906
http://uploaded.net/f/utiwwi
Links above also take you to normal FLAC 16bit rip - I don't have the stereo equipment to tell the difference and I'm too poor to be much of an audiophile, but the choice is there I guess.
PS> Yeah, I was hoping when I heard The Future/Human League compilation was coming out that there would be more tracks from The Future, but sadly not - still, I really like it - far better than the bootleg of 'The Making Of Dare' - jesus, so glad I heard it before I bought it!
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