Vintage Synth Graphics

"These old synth ad's and papers were found in a box headed for the dump ....." via this rather fine flickr set. 

Suxo Plexo Muxo Mix

Few vinyl archaeologists dig deeper than Andy Votel and when he suggested A Sound Awareness host this mix I was pretty much 'dancing on the ceiling with joy'. Originally aired on Jonny Trunk's OST Show on Resonance FM in March 2013, 'Suxo Plexo Muxo' features a zoned out mix of Eastern European cinematic oddities, weird eye Giallo schlock, Parisian art house freak folk and a plethora underexposed and uncharted celluloid wonders from around the world which will send even the most avid sound collector scouring the crates for years to come.

As always, hats off to Finders Keepers and Trunk Records for the kind permissions. Artwork remixed by myself and Mr. Votel using a few of the rather fine images on display here.

Dig, delve and enjoy!

Suxo Plexo Muxo Mix

Tracklist 
from Pan Kleks - Andrzej Korzynski - (Polton Poland)
from Anna - Gainsbourg Columbier (INA France)
from Belladonna Of Sadness - Masahiko (Finders Keepers)
from Chi - Goblin (Cinevox IT)
from Phantasm - Myrow Seagrave (Verese Sarabande)
from Sitting Target - Stanley Myers (FK)
from Valerie And Her Week Of Wonders - Lubos Fiser (FK)
from La Salamander - Patrick Moraz (Evasion Ch)
from Morgiana - Lubos Fiser (FK)
from Nightmares Come At Night (The B-Music Of Soledad Miranda) - Bruno Nicolai (FK)
from Divertissements - Louk De Book (Cache Cache)
from When Love Becomes Lust - Morricone (Cerberus)
from Daisies - Jiri Sust / Jiri Slitr (FK)
from Saxana - Angelo Michajlov (FK)
from Kama Sutra - The Inner Space (Crippled Dick)
from Lilith - Bruno Spoerri (Cache Cache)
from Pan Kleks - Andrzej Korzynski (Polton Poland)
from Naturally Free - Avenue (Apla Aus) 
from Blood On Satans Claw - Marc Wilkinson (Trunk)
from The Innocents - Isla Cameron (FK)
from Qui êtes vous, Polly Maggoo? - Michel Legrand (AZ)
from The Cremator - Zdenek Liska (FK)
from Fascination - Phillippe D'Aram (FK)
from Stone - Billy Green (FK)
from Sweet Movie - Manos Hadjidakis (Sonopresse)
from Mad Monster Party - Maury Laws (Rankin Bass)
from Honest Blue Eyes - Berndt Egerbladh (CBS)
from Saxana - Angelo Michajlov (FK)
from When Love Becomes Lust - Morricone (Cerberus)
from Danger Diabolik - Morricone (Disobediente)
from S.O.S - Andrzej Korzynski (Disposable Music)
from Zwolf Im Langstrasse- Bruno Spoerri (Cacophonic)
from Man Of Marble - Andrzej Korzynski (Cache Cache)
from Snakes - Suzanne Ciani (FK)
from Holy Mountain - Frangipane Jodorowsky (Abcko)
from Outland - Jerry Goldsmith (MCA)
from Tulipan - Andrzej Korzynski (Cache Cache)
from Kiu - J Pagan (PDI)
from Varadhu Vandha - S. Janaki and Iliayaraaja (FK)
from De Sade 70 Trailer (The B-Music Of Soledad Miranda) - Bruno Nicolai (FK)
from All The Colours Of The Dark - Bruno Nicolai (FK)
from Three Nuts For Cinderella - Karel Svoboda (Supraphon Cz)
from Zwolf Im Langstrasse- Bruno Spoerri (Cacophonic)
from Hausu - Godiego (Columbia Japan)
from Jeunes Filles Impudiques - Pierre Raph (FK)
from Pastoral - JA Seazer (RCA Japan)
from Agilok & Blubbo - The Inner Space (Wax Wah)
from Takin Off - Bobo Bates (Decca)
from Nightmares Come At Night (The B-Music Of Soledad Miranda) - Bruno Nicolai (FK)
from Girls In The Sun - Stavros Xarhakos (EMI Greece)
from Senza Motivo Apparente - Morrricone (General IT)
from Cul De Sac (Matnia) -  Hank Jones & Oliver Nelson (Impulse)
from Valerie And Her Week Of Wonders - Lubos Fiser (FK)
from Mala Morska Vila - Zdenek Liska (FK)
from Anna - Gainsbourg Columbier (INA France)

Ryszard Kiwerski

Has a monograph ever been published on the work of Polish graphic designer Ryszard Kiwerski? These photomontages are simply stunning. If you knows of one please get in touch!

Music For Children

Recorded in 1958 and originally issued across two long playing lp’s, these recordings of Schulwerk or ‘elemental music’ performed by the Children of the Italia Conte School, the Children’s Percussion Ensemble and Chorus Of The Children’s Opera Group are simply some of the most beautiful musical compositions I’ve ever heard. ‘Music For Children’ was borne out of Carl Orff’s progressive ideas regarding the educational development of children through ‘active’ learning. Originating in the early 1930’s when Orff and his assistant Gunild Keetman were in charge of musical instruction at Günter Schule in Munich, Orff encouraged pupils to develop a practical understanding of rhythm, melody, harmony, texture, form and the beauty of sound through music, dance and gymnastics. Many of the compositions included within this collection stand testament to his singular educational vision and the way in which his creative use of intuitive learning could transform a classroom into a place of wonder and enchantment. The music is evocative, magically transfigured by the simplest of means with poems, rhymes, games, songs and dances spoken or sung with the barest of musical accompaniment. Wooden xylophones and metal glockenspiels create simple modal ostinatos which hover and shimmer in bewitchingly seductive patterns. Complex rhythmic patterns are stamped or clapped out using non-pitched percussion instruments such as hands, drums, sticks, or bells. The results are startlingly beautiful. Compositions were developed through playful and intuitive experimentation, children were actively encouraged to explore musical possibilities through play and improvisation rather than through any restrictive or formal educational process. This music breathes an innocence out of step with our modern world. Another sublime Trunk release.

All I Have Learned And Forgotten Again

For the past fortnight or so I've been leafing through the pages of this beautifully presented monograph on the renowned Swedish artist Jockum Nordström. Comprising of almost a hundred works, the book is a strange unfolding hinterland of oddly poetic images. Objects, animals and people are painted, drawn and collaged into uncanny, open-ended narratives. There is a peculiar yet appealing discomposure to much of Nordström's work. His images manage to marry a finely tuned sense of draughtsmanship with an oddly naïve charm creating a disconcerting visual landscape populated by owls, stark Modernist architecture, tall ships, and Victorian Dandies. With each successive image, Nordström presents a liminal world of strange frailties where folk art charm sits uneasily next to the peccadilloes of an industrial age, a world where despite the forest of suburban signifiers, the feeling is very much pre electric, otherworldly  and magical. A superb publication.

All I Have Learned And Forgotten Again is published by Hatje Cantz

For more info on Jockum Nordström, see previous posts here, here and here.

Claire Falkenstein

David Lemm