Thirteen new extended versions, cut from the original tapes, make up the next Telex release. “MAXI” arrives on Mute on 4 December 2026 as a double album on transparent red and blue vinyl and as a CD, with a digital release to follow in 2027. The launch track is a maxi version of “Moskow Diskow”, the 1979 single from the Belgian synthpop trio’s debut album, now out as official audio on Mute’s YouTube channel. The album is available to pre-order.

Telex were Marc Moulin (1942-2008), Dan Lacksman and Michel Moers, and the two surviving members went back to the original tapes to build the Maxi versions, which come with new mixes and new mastering. The album collects “Moskow Diskow”, “Soul Waves”, “L’Amour Toujours”, “Rock Around The Clock”, “Temporary Chicken”, “Dance To The Music”, “Eurovision”, “En Route Vers De Nouvelles Aventures”, “Rendez-Vous Dans L’Espace”, “Peanuts”, “Twist À Saint-Tropez”, “Spike Jones” and “We Are All Getting Old”, each carrying the “(Maxi)” suffix. The tracklist spells the opener “Moskow Diskow”, as on the original single, while the audio upload titles it “Moscow Diskow”.

Telex revisit ‘Euro-vision’ and ‘Rock Around The Clock’

Two of the extended tracks come with a television history. “Euro-vision” was Belgium’s entry at the Eurovision Song Contest in 1980, where it finished 17th of 19 with 14 points. Moers described the entry as “very Situationist International, the worm in the apple.” The band set out to finish either first or last, and did neither. Their cover of Bill Haley’s “Rock Around The Clock”, slowed down and sung through a vocoder, brought the trio an invitation to perform on Top of the Pops in 1979; Mute calls it “a ticking, vocoderised, supremely deadpan robot parody of the original”. The later material on “MAXI” includes the cut-up “rap” of “Peanuts”, from 1988’s “Looney Tunes”, and “Rendez-Vous Dans L’Espace”.

About Telex

Telex formed in Brussels in 1978, when Marc Moulin, Dan Lacksman and Michel Moers set out to make electronic pop without guitars. Their first single was a cover of Les Chats Sauvages’ “Twist à Saint-Tropez”, and the debut album “Looking for Saint-Tropez” (1979) carried “Moskow Diskow” and “Rock Around The Clock”. “Neurovision” followed in 1980, the year of the Eurovision entry, and “Sex” in 1981, with lyrics co-written with Sparks. “Wonderful World” appeared in 1984 and “Looney Tunes” in 1988, after which the trio remixed its catalogue as “Les Rythmes Automatiques” in 1989 and then went quiet as a recording unit. The sixth and last studio album, “How Do You Dance?”, came out in 2006. Moulin died on 26 September 2008, and Telex announced their retirement that year.

The partnership with Mute began in 2021 with “This Is Telex”, a 14-track compilation released on 30 April 2021 with the tracks newly mixed and remastered by Lacksman and Moers. It added two previously unreleased covers, “Dear Prudence” by The Beatles and “The Beat Goes On” by Sonny & Cher, both found while the compilation was being assembled. Mute then reissued the six studio albums, remastered from the original tapes, as a limited vinyl and CD “Telex” box set, announced in October 2022 with the teaser “EP1” and released on 14 April 2023. Three days later Lacksman and Moers sat down with Mute founder Daniel Miller for a public talk in Brussels (A night with Telex and Mute Records founder Daniel Miller in Brussels). Moers went on to release his second solo album, “As Is”, in 2024, led by the single “Microwaves” with Claudia Brücken of Propaganda. “MAXI” is the first Telex release of newly made versions since that box set, and the third stage of the Mute campaign after the compilation and the reissues.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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Out now via Freaksville Records is “Microwaves”, the brand new single and video from Telex co-founder Michel Moers featuring Claudia Brücken (Propaganda) on vocals. The single is taken from the second solo album by Moers, “As Is”, out on April 19th on CD, LP and digital.

This new material comes more than three decades after the first solo album, “Fishing Le Kiss”, by the Belgian electro-pop musician Michel Moers and almost 20 years since his groundbreaking group Telex delivered their final message.

The album will contain songs that have been developed over several years. Moers also collaborated with compatriot Daan Stuyven for the track “Back To Then”.

Here’s the video for the single.

Moers has spent the last three decades working as an architect and photographer while continuing to make music. Involved in the remastering of the Telex back catalogue that was reissued on Mute Records in 2023, this also served to reinvigorate his skills and contributed to the creation of “As Is”.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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BXL Central and Pias are collaborating to host a special musical event that brings together Dan Lacksman and Michel Moers of the renowned Belgian synth-pop trio Telex, and Daniel Miller, the founder of Mute Records.

The event aims to provide an insight into Telex’s lasting impact on electronic pop music and their groundbreaking contributions. Olivier Monssens, a respected journalist and filmmaker, will be interviewing the artists during the discussion. The event is free to attend, however, reservations are required.

Event Details:

• Title: A Night with Telex & Daniel Miller
• Date: April 17
• Venue: BXL CENTRAL [CHEZ PIAS], Rue Saint-Laurent 36-38, 1000 Brussels

Schedule:

• 6:00 PM – Doors open
• 6:30 PM – Talk and interviews
• 8:00 PM – Event concludes

The event is free to attend; however, reservations are required.

Telex, consisting of Marc Moulin (1942-2008), Dan Lacksman, and Michel Moers, formed in 1978 in Brussels. As electronic pop pioneers, they played a key role in popularizing the genre. Their discography includes six albums, which Mute Records is reissuing in various formats on April 14, 2023.

Daniel Miller founded Mute Records in 1978 with his 7″ single ‘Warm Leatherette,’ released under the name The Normal. Mute has since evolved from a one-man label to a global group, with Miller remaining focused on the creative output. The label’s catalog features prominent artists such as Fad Gadget, Depeche Mode, Yazoo, Nick Cave & The Bad Seeds, Erasure, Goldfrapp, and Yann Tiersen.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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(Photo by Frank Uyttenhove) Out now is “EP1” by Telex which acts as a teaser for a box set collecting their 6 studio albums. Out on Mute on 3 March 2023 the box set holds remastered reissues of their six studio albums, “Looking for Saint-Tropez” (1979), “Neurovision” (1980), “Sex” (1981), “Wonderful World” (1984), “Looney Tunes” (1988) and “How Do You Dance?” (2006).

The material was remastered and newly mixed from the original tapes by Dan Lacksman and Michel Moers. The release will be available as a limited edition vinyl and CD box set and digitally.

The boxset, simply titled “Telex”, is announced by an EP, called “EP1”, which holds the following careerspanning tracks:

1. ‘Rock Around The Clock’ (from Looking for Saint-Tropez)
2. ‘Réalité’ (from Neurovision)
3. ‘Sigmund Freud’s Party’ (from Sex)
4. ‘Wonderful World’ (from Wonderful World)
5. ‘Peanuts’ (from Looney Tunes)
6. ‘How Do You Dance?’ (from How Do You Dance?

The vinyl and CD Telex box set includes a 12-page booklet and audio download code.

The Belgian synthpop trio consisting of the late Marc Moulin (1942- 2008), Dan Lacksman and Michel Moers formed in Brussels in 1978, at a time when electronic pop was regarded as novelty, with suspicion, as a harbinger for future dystopia and alienation. Telex were concerned about the consequences of new technology for human communication, their name taken, ironically, from a now obsolete piece of communications technology, adding a retro-futurist air to their legend.

It was on their cover versions that they deliberately played up the disparity between the ice-cool electronic approach and the sweaty, fleshy, frenetic passion of pop. Their cover versions – from the Yé-yé of Les Chats Sauvages’ “Twist à Saint Tropez” to the psychedelic soul of “Dance to the Music” (Sly and the Family Stone) from the rock n roll of Bill Haley’s “Rock Around the Clock” and “La Bamba” to the disco of Sparks’ “The Number One Song in Heaven” and beyond – see Telex embrace a wide history of musical genre.

The band famously entered the Eurovision Song Contest, representing Belgium with “Euro-vision”. Moers says he regarded their entry as “very Situationist International, the worm in the apple.” and they resolved either to come first or last. They didn’t achieve that goal, but became part of the Eurovision saga. Moers saw Johnny Logan (who went on to win the contest twice for Ireland) and told him, “you’re going to win”, Logan replied “Yeah. But if I win it’s good for me. If you win, it’s good for music.”

Telex announced their retirement in 2008, following Moulin’s death, and in 2021 began a new partnership with Mute beginning with the release of “This Is Telex”, featuring two unreleased tracks.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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As the Belgian, Brussels based, Crammed Discs label turns 42 this year, they are taking this opportunity to focus the spotlight on certain areas of their catalog that have been somewhat obscured in recent years. Some music trends which are back popular now were originally explored by the label in the 80s and 90s, but were never released digitally before.

We are speaking of 250 tracks that were once only released on vinyl (or on CDs that have been discontinued for a long time) via SSR Records (Sampler & Sans Reproche) which released music covering a range of styles, from early new beat to downtempo, techno, house and hip hop.

These digital reissues will be released in different phases in the coming years, each consisting of a compilation plus a number of related EPs. They’re introducing the series with a sneak peek, the “Appetiser: Rare Early SSR Electronica” EP which is out today, May 27 and holds material from the era 1989-91.

This release will be immediately followed by the “Phase 1: Rare SSR Electronica”, which focuses on the early days of the ‘electronic’ SSR label from the period 1988-94 with a 24 track compilation and five standalone EPs or albums, all of which come out on June 17.

Here is the complete list of scheduled release waves:

• Appetiser: Rare Early SSR Electronica EP 1989-91 (Crammed Archives 0) out on May 27 – 22
• Phase 1: Rare SSR Electronica 1988-94 (Crammed Archives 1) out on June 17 – 22
• Phase 2 : Rare Global Pop 1980s (Crammed Archives 2) out in Autumn 2022
• Phase 3 : Rare Electronica 1994-01 (Crammed Archives 3) out in Spring 2023
• Phase 4 : Rare Electronica B-sides 1988-97 (Crammed Archives 4) out in Autumn 2023

What’s on the first EP out now?

Here is a description of the tracks on this first EP.

“Hallucination Generation” by The Gruesome Twosome : The GT were an outfit formed by Samy Birnbach/Morpheus with Norwegian techno whiz kid Per Martinsen, and later joined by Bertrand Burgalat. This track – as well as the Mr Big Mouse track mentioned below – enjoyed considerable club success in the US, where they made it into mainstream and underground charts, from Billboard to Rockpool etc..

“A Byte of AMC” by Bleep : Bleep aka Geir Jenssen was a member of Bel Canto. After several EPs and a debut solo album on SSR (as Bleep), he went on to become a leading ambient electronic composer under his Biosphere moniker. This track pays tribute to Manchester hip hop duo Kiss AMC and their cheeky track “A Bit of U2” and also includes an – authorized – sample from the Sussan Deyhim / Richard Horowitz album “Desert Equations” (recently reissued by Crammed). The debut singles by Geir Jenssen and Per Martinsen on SSR are considered as the first Norwegian techno tracks ever. You will notice some Bel Canto sounds too on it.

“Drop That Ghetto Blaster” by Mr Big Mouse feat. Karen Finley : Mr BM were none other than Crammed’s Vincent Kenis and Marc Hollander, and this song was conceived as an ‘answer track’ to the hit single “Theme from S’Express” (and to several other tracks) which had made extensive use of vocals by provocative NY performance artist Karen Finley (lifted from her “Tales of Taboo” EP, released by Crammed in 1986).

“Danger” by Alegria : This was the debut release by Bjørn Torske who, alongside the aforementioned Per Martinsen, is one of the godfathers of Norwegian techno. “Danger” came out as part of the T.O.S. EPs, which laid the foundations for what later became a vibrant electronic music scene, with the likes of Todd Terje, Lindstrøm, Prins Thomas, Röyksopp et al.

“Security” by Farida International : A track created by Mr Big Mouse aka Kenis and Hollander from elements of a song by Middle Eastern rock band Foreign Affair (a Minimal Compact splinter group) and from a bunch of other things.

About The Early Days Of SSR

The story of SSR in a nutshell: As soon as the first wave of Detroit techno hit Europe, and playful, sample-based electronic dance music started popping up in the UK, the people at Crammed Discs were immediately excited about these new combinations of sounds, and started their SSR division in on 1988.

In those early days of SSR, a Belgian-Norwegian axis emerged, when a handful of young Norwegian musicians and producers came to Brussels (in connection with Bel Canto, the electro-pop group then signed to Crammed), and sat down with central figures of Crammed Discs such as Minimal Compact vocalist Samy Birnbach (later known as DJ Morpheus), label owner Marc Hollander, and Vincent Kenis (Marc’s former partner in Aksak Maboul).

A series of hybrid electro EPs were released, mixing early techno styles with influences from around the world.

SSR (and its sub-labels Language and Selector) would release more than sixty albums and dozens of EPs, spanning various styles (from house and techno to downtempo, ambient, broken beats, drum’n’bass and hip-hop), featuring artists such as Carl Craig, Snooze, Juryman aka Ian Simmonds, DJ Spinna, 4hero and Tek 9, Bleep aka Biosphere, Telex, DJ Morpheus and many others.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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Based in Brussels, Belgium, the Belgian cult label Crammed was founded in 1980 by Marc Hollander of Aksak Maboul and has since released around 375 albums and 275 singles. Some of the bands that have seen releases via Crammed are Minimal Compact, Hector Zazou, Tuxedomoon, Bel Canto, Bleep by Geir Jenssen who is also active with the ambient project Biosphere, The Gruesome Twosome, Telex.

Crammed Discs is now reactivating its legendary composers series in 2021. You can expect the release of new albums, and remastered vinyl reissues of several classics including “Made To Measure Vol.1” featuring Minimal Compact, Benjamin Lew, Aksak Maboul and Tuxedomoon. Originally released in 1984, the first volume of the series included works commissioned as soundtracks for dance and theatre performances, films, and a fashion show.

Here’s a rundown of the tracks. Tracks 1 to 4 were made to measure for a ballet by Pierre Droulers. Track 5 was an aural backdrop made to measure for a fashion exhibition called “Huit Jeunes Stylistes Limbourgeois”. Track 6 was made to measure for The Honeymoon Killers’ “Pan! Dans Les Vacances” private movie with all of the sounds being generated with a turntable. Tracks 7 to 12 were made to measure for a play by Michel Gheude based on the life of Maïakovsky. And finally, tracks 13 to 15 were made to measure for “Het Veld Van Eer”, a film by Bob Visser.

It will be exciting to see what the label’s owners Marc Hollander, Hanna Gorjaczkowska and Vincent Kenis will come up with in the next few months.

Below is a preview of “Made To Measure Vol.1”

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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(Photo by Frank Uyttenhove) Telex have shared their previously unreleased take on Sonny & Cher’s 60s hit, “The Beat Goes On”. The track, here renamed “The Beat Goes On/Off” was recently discovered when Telex were compiling the first release in an ongoing partnership with Mute, “This is Telex”, a brand new 14-track compilation – out on 30 April 2021.

Listen to the track below.

“This is Telex” features singles from across the Belgian synthpop trio’s career, from their debut single, “Twist à Saint Tropez” in 1978 through to their final album release, “How Do You Dance?” in 2006. Tracks on the compilation are newly mixed and remastered from the original tapes by band members Dan Lacksman and Michel Moers. These new mixes often involved subtracting from, rather than adding to, the original multi-track recordings. “We simplify,” explains Lacksman. “We take away, to create something more efficient, more Telex.”

The band famously entered the Eurovision Song Contest, representing Belgium with “Euro-vision”. Moers says he regarded their entry as “very Situationist International, the worm in the apple.” and they resolved either to come first or last. They didn’t achieve that goal, but became part of the Eurovision saga. Moers saw Johnny Logan (who went on to win the contest twice for Ireland) and told him, “you’re going to win”, Logan replied: “Yeah. But if I win it’s good for me. If you win, it’s good for music.”

Telex announced their retirement in 2008, following Moulin’s death, This new partnership with Mute will see a comprehensive reissue series of the back catalogue, starting with the new compilation.

Some more visual and aural pleasure

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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Telex have released their synthpop take on The Beatles’ 1968 track “Dear Prudence”. “Dear Prudence” was recently discovered by Telex while were compiling their first release with Mute, “This is Telex”, a brand new 14-track compilation, out on 30 April 2021.

Watch the video, a montage of classic footage, below.

“This is Telex” features singles from across the Belgian synthpop trio’s career, from their debut single, “Twist à Saint Tropez” in 1978 through to their final album release, “How Do You Dance?” in 2006. Tracks on the compilation are newly mixed and remastered from the original tapes by band members Dan Lacksman and Michel Moers.

Telex announced their retirement in 2008, following Marc Moulin’s death. This new partnership with Mute will see a comprehensive reissue series of the back catalogue, starting with the new compilation. “This is Telex” will be released on limited edition coloured vinyl (shrimp pink and fern green), cassette and CD, with sleeve notes by David Stubbs, as well as digitally and in a limited edition t-shirt bundle.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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(Photo by Hans van Dijk / Anefo) Telex and Mute have announced a new partnership that will see a comprehensive reissue series of the back catalogue, starting with “This is Telex”.

“This is Telex” is a brand new 14-track compilation which comes out on 30 April 2021. It features singles from across the Belgian synthpop trio’s career, from their debut single, “Twist à Saint Tropez” (1978) through to their final album release, “How Do You Dance?” (2006).

All of the tracks on the compilation are newly mixed and remastered from the original tapes by band members Dan Lacksman and Michel Moers. The newly mixed and remastered tracks have been augmented with two recently discovered and unreleased tracks, their take on The Beatles’ “Dear Prudence” and Sonny & Cher’s “The Beat Goes On”. Also added is their writing collaboration with Sparks and cover of the Sparks hit “The Number One Song In Heaven”.

“This is Telex” tracklisting:

1. The Beat Goes On:Off (Unreleased)
2. Moskow Diskow (New mix)
3. Twist à Saint-Tropez (New mix)
4. Euro-vision (New mix)
5. Dance To The Music (New mix)
6. Drama Drama (New mix)
7. Exercise Is Good For You (New mix)
8. L’Amour Toujours (New mix)
9. Radio-Radio (New mix)
10. Rendez-Vous dans L’Espace (New mix)
11. Beautiful Li(f)e (New mix)
12. The Number One Song In Heaven (New mix)
13. La Bamba (New mix)
14. Dear Prudence (Unreleased)

Watch a new version of the video for “Moskow Diskow” below.

About Telex

Telex are Marc Moulin (1942- 2008), Dan Lacksman and Michel Moers. The band formed in 1978 in Brussels, just one of a handful of synthpop pioneers at a time when electronic pop was regarded as novelty, with suspicion, as a harbinger for future dystopia and alienation. Telex were concerned about the consequences of new technology for human communication, their name taken, ironically, from a now obsolete piece of communications technology, adding a retro-futurist air to their legend.

It was on their cover versions that they deliberately played up the disparity between the ice-cool electronic approach and the sweaty, fleshy, frenetic passion of pop. Their cover versions – from the Yé-yé of Les Chats Sauvages’ “Twist à Saint Tropez” to the psychedelic soul of “Dance to the Music” (Sly and the Family Stone) from the rock n roll of Bill Haley’s “Rock Around the Clock” and “La Bamba” to the disco of Sparks’ “The Number One Song in Heaven” and beyond – see Telex embrace a wide history of musical genre.

The band famously entered the Eurovision Song Contest, representing Belgium with “Euro-vision”. Moers says he regarded their entry as “very Situationist International, the worm in the apple.” and they resolved either to come first or last. They didn’t achieve that goal, but became part of the Eurovision saga. Moers saw Johnny Logan (who went on to win the contest twice for Ireland) and told him, “you’re going to win”, Logan replied “Yeah. But if I win it’s good for me. If you win, it’s good for music.”

Telex announced their retirement in 2008, following Moulin’s death.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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After the “Blackbodies” single release and the recent release of the first full length album “The Colour Temperature”, Metroland’s Passenger S now releases a second single entitled “Incandescent” under the technopop 808 DOT POP flag and this in 3 different versions including a 7 inch vinyl.

“Incandescent (Platinum)” EP is backed with two non-album tracks, one being “”Metal Halide (Mercury)” delivering a darker atmosphere floating on 808 DOT POP trademark sequences and the more flamboyant “Seeing Heat”. All songs are entirely submerged in the concept of the album “The Colour Temperature”.

“Incandescent (Chromium)” is a 2-track single edition holding a unique radio edit of “Incandescent (Chromium)” and is backed with “Metal Halide”.

A very unique fanclub only 7inch vinyl (“Incandescent (Tantalum)”) is also available for ordering via the band’s own webshop. This single comes with an exclusive version on the A side entitled “Tantalum” and on the B Side you will find the flamboyant track “Seeing Heat”. This second vinyl single comes with an exclusive POP postcard just like is the case with the previous vinyl single (both available here).

When you are a lover of vintage electronic music and you like the synthetic sounds of bands like Kraftwerk, Telex or Komputer, then this new side-project from Metroland’s Passenger S is your new must on the electronic menu.

Available on YouTube are also 2 new videos:

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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Dirty Vocoder is a new electronic solo project by Cologne based Thomas Elbern, founder and frontman of the German new wave band Escape With Romeo. Besides Thomas Elbern we also find multimedia artist Shufflerror behind the project. Out now is the first single, “Cocaine Dawn”, and video for the project.

The “Cocaine Dawn” EP will hold 4 tracks: “Cocaine Dawn”, “Dream On”, “Cyber Lover” and “Halloween”. Out via Zeitklang / Reptile Music, the ep will mainly be released via Thomas Elbern’s own label Zeitklang, Reptile Music will just take care of the bandcamp release.

Here’s the video.

Where the era of Escape With Romeo ended with the last studio album “After The Future”, the Dirty Vocoder picks up the threads again offering melancholic electronica mixed with robotic voices and ethereal vocal samples. The debut EP “Future Shock” will now be followed by the second EP “Cocaine Dawn”, which deals with the consequences of drug abuse. It will be released together with a video to the title track, featuring model Blondrausch in her first music clip.

The Belgian scene…

Here’s what Thomas Elbern has to tell us about the project and the new single: “Dirty Vocoder is a project I’ve always wanted to realize. Especially working with vocoded and electronic treated vocals gave me a buzz. And it should not sound like Daft Punk, Kraftwerk or Telex. When it comes to the Belgian scene I was mainly influenced by projects like Elektrokiss or Minister Of Noise. The goal was to create an artificial character to electronic music. I’ve tried this with Escape With Romeo (“Heart Of Darkness” or “Firefly”), but that concept didn’t go as far as I wanted to go. So, after the debut EP “Future Shock” the new “Cocaine Dawn” EP is one step forward in the idea of Dirty Vocoder – a concept that spans electro to trip hop, but with a special (voice) character that is represented by the man with the mask.”

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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To mark the 30th anniversary of the Camouflage album “Methods Of Silence” via Bureau B, the band opened up the archives to assemble a special bonus edition including a wealth of rare and unreleased recordings including demos, US 12″ mixes, rough mixes and extended versions. The release will be issued as a limited to 500 triple LP sets and 1,500 double CDs.

Founded in the southern German city of Bietigheim-Bissingen by Heiko Maile, Oliver Kreyssig and Marcus Meyn in the year 1984, the band Camouflage scored an unexpected international hit with their debut album “Voices & Images” in 1988. One of the tracks in particular, “The Great Commandment”, went on to become a classic of the synth pop genre.

Their sophomore album “Methods Of Silence”, released just a year later, was an even bigger success. The band produced the record in Brussels, working on the songs with Dan Lacksman (Telex).

Here’s what the band released for the 30th anniversary release of their debut album “Voices Images”:

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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It does not often happen that we feature the Eurovision Song Contest on here, it actually only happens when we mention Telex, Pas De Deux or a-ha, but today we really are very supportive of what the Belgian candidate is offering at the Eurovision Song Contest 2017 in Ukraine. With “City Lights” the 17-year old Blanche delivers a superb dark electropop track (and splendid video) which leaves every other contender from the past 3 decades hundreds of miles behind.

The song was composed by Pierre Dumoulin (frontman of the fine electronic act Roscoe), assisted by Manu Delcourt (keyboardist in Roscoe) and Blanche aka Ellie Delvaux.

Ellie Delvaux got known to a wider public last year when she competed on season five of The Voice Belgique, where she was a member of Team Cats on Trees. But with “City Lights” she shows that she has more up her sleeve than just being a TV-show contender, although it shows she still lacks stage experience as you will have noticed. Nevertheless, the best song we have heard in years from this überkitsch festival.

If she doesn’t win she at least has won our and many other hearts. Belgium: 10 points!

Here’s the lovely video for “City Lights” directed by Simon Vanrie and Brice VDH.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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The 51st track on our free download compilation “Face The Beat: Session 4” (featuring 92 tracks) is by the Belgian electronic music project Növö, characterised by a sonic closeness to early-Front 242, Kraftwerk, Telex and other pioneering electro bands.

The man behind the Növö project is the electronic music pioneer Laurent Boudic who you might know from his other projects x2Proton, CrashVox and Genetik System which were launched in the late 80s. Boudic started his career in a synthetic Punk band before evolving to a more structured electronic sound. And between 1986 1990, he was an active part of the so-called “Electronic Body Music” movement working on several collaborations under different nicknames.

So far Növö has released 5 albums: “The Shortwaves” in 2016 (Alfa Matrix), “Zeitgeist” in 2014 (Alfa Matrix), “Architecture & Severity” & “Konztruktivizm 09 – The remixes”, both in 2009 (Alfa Matrix/GenComProdukts international/BlackMontanas) and “Konztruktivizm” in 2003 (PSI49NET). He also collaborated with other electronic artists such as Metroland, Black egg & many more. You can find more info on the band right here on Facebook.

Listen to “The Shortwaves” below and download it right here.

Check our “Face The Beat: Session 4” page on Bandcamp to discover the other 91 bands. All donations will go to charity.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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The fine label Artoffact Records has announced the authorised reissues of the three 1980s albums that introduced the Canadian electropop act Psyche to the world on CD and on vinyl. To get an overview of all available releases (including a huge fan pack), check this link. EU orders for the vinyls can be placed right here.

Psyche was formed by brothers Darrin and Stephen Huss in Edmonton, Alberta, named after the B-Side of Killing Joke’s Wardance single as well as being chosen for the meaning of the word. The band’s debut performance was on December 13, 1982 with the late Dwayne Goettel (Skinny Puppy) on additional keyboards. Although Psyche is now based in Germany, during the 80s the band was located in Canada from where singer Darrin Huss and his brother/musician Stephen Huss (who unfortunately died last Summer) would conquer the electropop world in no time.

Available now are the CD versions and vinyl versions.

We decided to talk with Darrin Huss about each of these 3 amazing albums which finally see a well deserved reissue and which have been part of the upbringing of almost the complete Side-Line staff.

“Insomnia Theatre” – Deluxe (available here / EU vinyl orders can be placed here)

During 1983-85 Stephen and Darrin Huss would record what would become their debut album “Insomnia Theatre”. They self-released the LP in 1985. The album’s style mixed dark electronics, new wave, industrial, and horror in ways that were quite shocking to its first Canadian audience, and which today are seen by synth music aficionados as a master work. The album held such classic cuts as “The Brain Collapses”, “Maggots”, “Eating Violins” and “Children Carry Knives”. The album also made its way to Europe where it was licensed by the pioneering French New Rose label.

The Artoffact Records reissue is completely remastered and includes several bonus tracks which have never before been released. The base of the recording is the original Canadian LP Mix, with the addition of several tracks from the New Rose 1985 edition, plus bonus tracks from the “Contorting the Image” EP (1986) and the very rare “Unleashed” cassette (1988). Singer Darrin Huss personally selected all the bonus material, including the never-before-heard “Ice” and “Mind Over Matter”.

Darrin: “Psyche’s debut has now been released several times, the biggest edition being the “Insomnia Theatre” Box on VOD Records in 2011. This time however, I have attempted to make a definitive release containing only the recordings from 1983-1985, and the album cover is now in fact the actual photo of my brother and I that I found in his collection in Canada after his passing away last year.

I spent a lot of time deciding what to put on here, so it reflects the Canadian release with one additional related track on Side A and B. “Lies” was only recording once directly to cassette, and performed briefly at the beginning of our live concerts between 1982-83. It shows the influence of DAF, mixed with more punk attitude lyrics inspired by Dead Kennedys
as also heard in “Children Carry Knives”. Side B adds “Wrench” as it was recorded even before the debut album, and later included on the New Rose release of “Insomnia Theatre”.

New discoveries are collected on Side D, as well as the previously unreleased instrumental “Ice” that I always liked, but we never pursued it further afterwards. “Night Watcher” on Side D is my personal highlight discovered on our early demo cassettes, and would make a great debut for today’s Cold Wave / Minimal scene. The album is rounded out with never before published press photos that my brother took at the time, and a lyric sheet adding the newly discovered songs.”

This reissue can now be ordered right here.

“Unveiling The Secret” – 30th anniversary (available here / EU vinyl orders can be placed here)

Released 30 years ago on the New Rose label, Psyche’s “Unveiling the Secret” was lauded by fans and praised by generations of musicians including Sven Vath, Joris Voorn, and Eskil Simonsson (Covenant). The leading tracks included “The Saint Became A Lush” (which appeared on Trevor Jackson’s famous “Metal Dance” series), “Prisoner to Desire” (remixed by the famous Joseph Watt of Razormaid fame), “Prisoner to Desire”, “Lord Unleashed”, and several more.

The Artoffact Records reissue is completely remastered and includes several bonus tracks which have never before been released. Darrin Huss again personally selected all the bonus material, including a rare Razormaid mix and the never-before-heard track “Lock The Door”.

Darrin: “A re-release of this album took place on CD in 1999, but it has never really been put together remastered and with all the single mixes together until now.

This latest release on CD and Vinyl also contains a rare black and white press photo taken by Alain Duplantier in Paris for New Rose. We decided to make all 3 albums black and white, and since this was the only album with a color photo at the time, I replaced it with this official press photo for consistency. It was a scandal at the time to have us on the cover, as indie bands usually have obscure graphics, and people were surprised that a “Horror Synth-Pop” act would suddenly advertise themselves rather than an image to represent the music. However, we did this consciously. As Skinny Puppy became popular with a similar sound and image, we moved on to a more Electro-Pop approach, and broke out of the Goth/EBM mold with “Unveiling The Secret” and “Prisoner To Desire”.

“The Saint Became A Lush” is of course a definitive Psyche sounding track that I feel represents what we do rather completely. I decided to add the Razormaid Mixes, and all the 12” single B-Sides to this release. Also new are two demos, one the previously unreleased “Lock The Door” another great instrumental by Stephen that was recorded in several versions, but for whatever reason we never finished it for an album. “Words Cannot Express” is an unreleased unfinished song that I practiced around the time of recording. The singing is fairly raw, but I think it makes a nice epilogue to the sleek Unveiling The Secret production.”

This reissue can now be ordered right here.

“Mystery Hotel” – Definitive Edition (available here / EU vinyl orders can be placed here)

In 1987/88 Stephen and Darrin Huss recorded what would become “Mystery Hotel”. The final album would be mixed, and produced at Synsound Studios in Belgium by Dan Lacksman (Telex) with additional mixing and engineering assistance by Stephan Krämer and Cookie. Following the success of “Insomnia Theatre” and “Unveiling the Secret”, Psyche turned to a classic wave sound on their third and most polished album. The album is in many ways the darkest Psyche album, just listen to tracks such as “Wake the Flood Unconscious”, “Nocturnal Passenger” and “The Outsider”.

The Artoffact Records reissue is completely remastered and includes several bonus tracks which have never before been released or never released before on CD.

Darrin: “The third in Psyche’s somehow unplanned “trilogy”. I call the albums the Holy Trinity of Dark Synth-Pop. All 3 have certain songs that stand the test of time, and awaken strong emotions in listeners just discovering our sound.

I have to say, this was the hardest to work on as “Dreamstreet” brought me to tears every time I tried to perfect this already beautiful sounding instrumental. We played this at my brother’s memorial, and it reminds me most of him, and our time together recording, and mixing at Dan Lacksman’s studio in Belgium. The album was original recorded at Garage studios in Paris where we had done “Unveiling The Secret” previously, but we somehow wanted to sound even more “glossy” at the time as most 80s bands were going from their rough beginnings to a more “radio friendly” sound.

We spent ages on “Uncivilized” and I rewrote the lyrics several times, but finally it became the debut single, and seemed to be getting us further towards the dream of bringing Psyche’s alternative Synth-Pop to a wider audience.

The reaction to this album at the time was fairly mixed. For me the 2 highlights are “The Outsider” and “Eternal”. Those have become the defining sound for what Psyche does when we go Pop, but keep our style. “Uncivilized” is equally popular, and at the time “Nocturnal Passenger” was the most requested song live. I think we advanced a little quicker than most of our fans were ready at the time, and whatever wasn’t Dark EBM was too soft for them.

“Eternal” managed to get radio play, and we made our most expensive video with a production team in Toronto for that one. Somehow the song is magical, and the appreciation grows with every new listener. For this re-release I have included again the Razormaid mixes, B-Sides, and the Live EP that originally came with the limited New Rose release. The demos of Stephen and I practicing some of the songs from this album will be added as a bonus download.

“Wake The Flood Unconscious” is also one of the most original things for a synth-pop band to do. Psychedelic rock on Synth. We were inspired by Soft Cell’s Hendrix Medley, and listening to The Doors, so we thought, why not make our own song in that style? With all three albums, it’s this breaking down barriers between various genres that makes Psyche stand out from the average. We had idols, and favorites, but we always wanted to do things our own way, and I am proud to have created a small piece of musical art in my lifetime, that still carries on to this day.

How appropriate then, that our Canadian partners, and label ArtofFact Records should have the definitive releases of these 3 groundbreaking albums.”

This reissue can now be ordered right here.

Bernard - Side-Line Staff

Chief editor of Side-Line – which basically means I spend my days wading through a relentless flood of press releases from labels, artists, DJs, and zealous correspondents. My job? Strip out the promo nonsense, verify what’s actually real, and decide which stories make the cut and which get tossed into the digital void. Outside the news filter bubble, I’m all in for quality sushi and helping raise funds for Ukraine’s ongoing fight against the modern-day axis of evil. Besides music I’m also an SEO and AI content flow specialist and have an interest in everything finance from stocks to crypto. There is music in everything!

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