Parade Ground has always been the duo of brothers Jean-Marc and Pierre Pauly from
Brussels, Belgium formed in 1981. Taking cues from
Post-Punk,
Coldwave,
Dadaand
Surrealism, Parade Ground channeled suffering, tension and rage through pulsing synthesizers, skeletal guitar, severe bass and Jean-Marc’s expressive vocals as the most melodic and emotional instrument.
The Golden Years is an 11-song, career-spanning collection of Parade Ground’s long out-of-print 7” and 12” singles as well as rare compilation tracks from the pioneers of emotional body music created during 1982-1988.
Parade Ground first appeared on the
Nationale Rockmeeting LP in 1982, striking straight to the heart with the passionate plea “I Shut My Eyes.” Later that year the brothers met
Daniel B.and
Patrick Codenys of
Front 242 beginning a collaborative partnership that continues to present day. In 1983 they released their debut 3-song 7” EP
Moan On The Sly on the
New Dance label, musically a hybrid of
Joy Division and
Fad Gadget. 1984 brought further explorations into the world of electronic body music with the 3-song
Man In A Trance EP and 2 tracks on the live concert compilation
Mask Promotion both records released on Front 242′s
Mask Music label. The following year the single
Took Advantage/Moral Support 12” was released incorporating then, state-of-the-art modular synthesizers programmed by Daniel B. and back-up vocals from
Flo Sullivan (
A Formal Sigh,
Shiny Two Shiny). Then in 1987 the brothers collaborated with
Colin Newman of British post-punk band
Wire, who produced and lent his vocals, guitars and keyboards to two songs (“
Moans“/”Action Replay”) while Daniel B. produced flipside “
Gold Rush” on the
Dual Perspective EP that stands alongside 80s anthems from
Tears for Fears,
Modern English,
Echo & The Bunnymen. Finally in 1988 their debut album
Cut Up was released on Play It Again Sam Records and featured the singles
Strange World and
Hollywood. In 1993 the brothers wrote and composed the vocals on two Front 242 albums
Up Evil and
Off. After 15 years of silence the boys released their second album
Rosary in 2007 and continue to write new material and tour with their extensive catalog of dark dance classics.
All tracks have been carefully remastered by
George Horn at
Fantasy Studios in Berkeley. Each LP includes a 6-page press kit with lyrics, discography, photos and liner notes by Daniel B. of Front 242. The history of Belgian electronic music would not be complete without a trip through “The Golden Years” of Parade Ground.