Tom Ellard “80’s Cheesecake” LP out now!

We are happy to announce our first release for Fall 2014 – Tom Ellard (the creative force behind Australia’s Severed Heads) “80’s Cheesecake” LP.

Tracklisting
Anthem 82
303B The East Is Red
Big eats
The Ritualistic
Babies
These are the Words
Word
Touch
Cross
Hold
Our Work for Love at Home
In Her Hair

Tom Ellard is the creative force behind Australian post-punk band Severed Heads. In 1982 he self-released two cassettes of solo material, “80s Cheesecake” and “Snappy Carrion”. These cassettes document the transitional period between the early experimental Severed Heads’ albums “Clean” and “Blubberknife” before the start of something new with “Since The Accident”. With the advent of the then new Roland TB-303 bass synthesizer, a machine synonymous with the acid house sound, Tom began to write more beat driven material. The rhythms are made by a TR-808 drum machine, Kawai S100F and SH-1 synthesizers, plus various televisions, radios, cassette decks and pedals. Two songs from these cassettes would later appear on the B-side of the “Dead Eyes Opened” single.

Fast forward 30 years, Tom was horrified to find that a copy of the “80s Cheesecake” cassette was listed for an absurd amount of money on eBay. He immediately made all of the material available on CD and eventually digitally as well. There was much discussion over how to best sequence this LP. Most of the tracks from the original two c60 cassettes have been included, as well as some previously unreleased material, finally completed after having been left abandoned back in 1982. This has only become possible with recent digital tools, but every element you hear is from thirty years ago, trimmed, re-aligned, and assembled in the fashion that was originally intended.

All songs are remastered for vinyl by George Horn at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley. The jacket artwork incorporates the original “80s Cheesecake” cassette. Each copy includes a fold-out poster with a large photo of Tom Ellard on one side and liner notes and press clippings on the other. A long lost ancestor to the sounds of Boards of Canada, Aphex Twin and other Warp Records artists, “80’s Cheesecake” is ripe for rediscovery.

Pre-Order our next 2 releases now. They will ship October 15th.

Our second compilation LP of the underground music of San Francisco, Bay Area Retrograde (BART) Vol.2 has been pushed to October 15th and we will release a CD of Volumes 1 and 2, which features 22 of the city’s deepest cuts, many of which have never appeared on CD before.

Tracklisting
SIDE A
Factrix – Night To Forget
Chrome – Meet You In the Subway
Red Asphalt – Red Asphalt
Tuxedomoon – Day to Day
Ki Di Me – Islamatic

SIDE B
Indoor Life – Gilmore Of The Fillmore
Baby Buddha – Little Things
Timmy Spence – Brand New Dance
Human Being Men – Human Dub
Wonder’s Of Science – Let’s Start A Rumor
Zru Vogue – Nakweda Dream

Bay Area Retrograde (BART) Volume 2 is Dark Entries’ second compilation of underground music from San Francisco (and the greater Bay Area) made between 1978-1983. Towards the end of the 70s, San Francisco’s experimental music scene clashed with the aftermath of punk and gave birth to a vibrant underground. By the early to mid 80s the DIY music scene of the Bay Area was a hotbed for experimental and quirky new wave, post punk, and synthpop, quite similar to New York’s No Wave scene and Berlin’s Neue Deutsche Welle. This compilation connects the (transit) lines between these varied musical offerings and tells the secret story of eleven forgotten Bay Area bands.

BART Volume 2 features slow, dystopian horror from pioneering industrial group Factrix; crushing, motorik noise from acid punks Chrome; amphetamine-driven synth punk from Red Asphalt; an early demo, never released on vinyl, from legendary post punk band Tuxedoomon; chilling atmospheric drone from Ki Di Me; leftfield new wave from Indoor Life featuring Patrick Cowley on synths; Los Microwaves more sinister side project Baby Buddha; gay drag icon Timmy Spence delivering an unknown camp classic, a pure instrumental electro-pop workout from Human Being Men; TR-808 fueled synth pop from Menlo Park duo Wonders of Science, and a poetic yet somber and haunting song from the mysterious Zru Vogue.

All tracks have been carefully remastered by George Horn at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley. Each LP is housed in a large 6-panel, 2-sided fold out poster designed by Eloise Leigh, featuring original photos and fliers from each band’s personal archive plus a 36”x24” print of a photograph by Ruby Ray from1978. BART is the acronym for Bay Area Rapid Transit, the main rail transportation system for the San Francisco Bay Area. This LP is by no means a definitive compilation but merely opens the tunnel to the underground of the Bay!

Tracklisting
1. Nominal State ­ Middle Class
2. Batang Frisco ­ Power
3. Necropolis of Love ­ Talk
4. Wasp Women ­ Kill Me
5. Distant Thunder ­ Tin Soldiers
6. Voice Farm ­ Voyeur
7. Danny Boy and the Serious Party Gods ­ Castro Boy
8. Quiet Room ­ Yangtzee River
9. Los Microwaves ­ Silent Screamers
10. Standard of Living ­ N.F.A.
11. The Units ­ Mission
12. Factrix ­ Night To Forget
13. Chrome ­ Meet You In the Subway
14. Red Asphalt ­ Red Asphalt
15. Tuxedomoon ­ Day to Day
16. Ki Di Me ­ Islamatic
17. Indoor Life ­ Gilmore of the Fillmore
18. Timmy Spence ­ Brand New Dance
19. Baby Buddha ­ Little Things
20. Human Being Men ­ Human Dub
21. Wonders Of Science ­ Let’s Start A Rumor
22. Zru Vogue ­ Nakweda Dream

Dark Entries have combined Bay Area Retrograde (BART) Volume 1 and 2 on a single CD! BART is Dark Entries’ compilation of underground music from San Francisco (and the greater Bay Area) made between 1978-1988. Towards the end of the 70s, San Francisco’s experimental music scene clashed with the aftermath of punk and gave birth to a vibrant underground. By the early to mid 80s the DIY music scene of the Bay Area was a hotbed for experimental and quirky new wave, post punk, and synthpop, quite similar to New York’s No Wave scene and Berlin’s Neue Deutsche Welle. This compilation connects the (transit) lines between these varied musical offerings and tells the secret story of eleven forgotten Bay Area bands.

BART Volume 1 features a Korg-heavy assault from Danville’s utterly obscure Nominal State; two little-known left-field electronic dance gems from Batang Frisco and Quiet Room; Berkeley’s answer to darkwave, Necropolis of Love; a synth-driven drama fest from drag performance troupe Wasp Women; quirky lo-fi gothic pop from one man band Distant Thunder; a gay Hi-NRG anthem delivered by Danny Boy and the Serious Party Gods; two lesser know gems from SF synth legends Voice Farm and Los Microwaves; and the futuristic pulsing synth-punk of Standard of Living and the Units.

BART Volume 2 features slow, dystopian horror from pioneering industrial group Factrix; crushing, motorik noise from acid punks Chrome; amphetamine-driven synth punk from Red Asphalt; an early demo, never released on vinyl, from legendary post punk band Tuxedoomon; chilling atmospheric drone from Ki Di Me; leftfield new wave from Indoor Life featuring Patrick Cowley on synths; Los Microwaves more sinister side project Baby Buddha; gay drag icon Timmy Spence delivering an unknown camp classic, a pure instrumental electro-pop workout from Human Being Men; TR-808 fueled synth pop from Menlo Park duo Wonders of Science, and a poetic yet somber and haunting song from the mysterious Zru Vogue.

All tracks have been carefully remastered by George Horn at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley. Each CD contains a deluxe 12-page booklet designed by Eloise Leigh, featuring original photos and fliers from each band’s personal archive. BART is the acronym for Bay Area Rapid Transit, the main rail transportation system for the San Francisco Bay Area. This CD is by no means a definitive compilation but merely opens the tunnel to the underground of the Bay!

We have 2 very special Italo disco 12″s scheduled for Halloween if our pressing plant can keep up with the demands!