New Wave

[Music] The Teardrop Explodes – Reward

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Julian Cope popped into mind earlier today, and it got me thinking about how good his old band The Teardrop Explodes actually were.  Reward was their biggest hit, released in 1981.  It’s mind-blowing to think that this is nearly 40 years old now.

Lyrics
Bless my cotton socks, I’m in the news
The king sits on his face buttons all askew
All wrapped up the same (same)
All wrapped up the same (same)
They can’t have it
You can’t have it
I can’t have it too
Until I learn to accept my reward
Princes stand in queues they stand accused
Death in solitude like Howard Hughes
All wrapped up the same (same)
All wrapped up the same (same)
Silence has it
Arrogance has it
I can have it ooh
Until I learn to accept my reward
Suddenly it struck me very clear
Suddenly it struck me very clean
All wrapped up the same
All wrapped up the same
You can’t have it
I can’t have it too
Until I learn to accept my reward
Until I learn to accept my reward
Until I learn to accept my reward
Until I learn to accept my reward
Until I learn to accept my
I learn to accept my
I learn to accept my reward!

[Music] Steve Jansen & Claudio Chianura – Kinoapparatom

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It’s hard to believe this release was recorded 20 years ago, as it has a healthy freshness to the material.  Former drummer of the new wave band Japan Steve Jansen collaborates with keyboardist Claudio Chianura and is ably supported by guitarist Roberto Zorzi and synth player Piero Chianura.  The work is a collaboration where the quartet improvise to the Dziga Vertov film Man With A Movie Camera [German: Kinoapparatom], a classic of Soviet filmmaking.

In places, it sounds similar to Industrial noise; in others, like a more playful version of Rock-In-Opposition.  It’s a solid release, though I wonder if there is live footage of this performance available.

[Music] Кино (Kino) – Ночь (Night)

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Kino were the closest thing the Soviet Union had to a new wave band, and they were pretty damn good at it.  Co-led by singer and part-time actor Viktor Tsoi, his death in 1990 from a car accident ended the band’s career.

By the time this album had come out in 1985, the band were nearing their peak, selling two million units (though receiving hardly anything for their efforts). Amazingly, they also managed to sell around ten-thousand records in Southern California, both for the quality of the music and the novelty of being one of the first rock records ever released in the West by a Soviet band.

[Video] Nolan “N. F.” Porter – Keep On Keepin’ On

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Nolan (then known as N. F.) Porter was an American Northern Soul singer whose hit, which we’re hearing now, would be the catalyst for Joy Division getting signed to a major label. While the band scrapped their attempt at covering the song, the guitar lick would serve as the foundation of their track, Interzone, as heard below:

For more on the story between N.F. Porter and Joy Division, check out this post by OpinEars.