Too often labels become ego centric and lone projects. Both imprints have realised a common love of synth wave and minimal pop, the pair working together to achieve similar aims and getting out some great obscurities in the process.
As the last days of 2011 close it’s a nice time to reflect on the year past. Anna Logue Records has had another bumper year. From across the plains of synth wave and analogue punk this German imprint has harvested obscurities. New partnerships have been forged, with the likes of Mannequin, and the bygone days have been given new life.
Anna Logue hooked up with Italy’s Mannequin for two superb albums in 2011. Intelligence Dept. are of the seriously obscure lilt. In 1984 the group self released a cassette. Just shy of 28 years passed and now they have gotten the full digital and vinyl treatment. A surprising saxophone unfurls the album, and is the mainstay of this synth group’s sound. The title piece opens in an amazing piece of new wave romance, female vocals coiled around sax and synth. Brilliant. The group have quite a polished sound, machine melodies having an organic quality due to the employment of bass and soulful lyrics. “Too Late For Love” follows a similar line, powerful synth chords working alongside vocals brimming with emotion. The saxophone anchors the sound in the 80’s, but manages to escape some of the more hackneyed connotations associated with the instrument. “Sister Europe” has something of a Vangelis love song to it, the mingling of traditional sounds and electronics into something warm yet cold. In a bit of self appreciation “Intelligence Dept.” is a bawdy piece of synth wave. The track sends arches of analogue soaring over vocals whilst those sax lines continue. Live versions finish off the album, digital that is, in a flurry of frenetic energy juxtaposed with reservation, as in the unreleased “Nine Faces.” Raw stage versions burst forth with “Black Window,” an 80’s tear jerker. Live takes of “Too Late For Love” and “Sleeping City” close this comprehensive and individual outfits return.
The collab of Germany and Italy continued to bring back to life Chromagain and Any Colour You Like. Chromagin mark a shift into the darker side. This post punk outfit melt strings and synths into a torrid darkwave stew. This is the case with the opening track, “Satisfied.” But do not shy from the shadows, there are uplifted moments across the album such as “Spot” or in the downtrodden elation of “Season of Steel.” Chromagain sound more Belgian than Italian, there is a elegiac quality to their guttural vocals and distracted instrumentals. The group balance the listener on a knife edge of pure happiness and absolute despair, coming through in works like “Wake Up.” In an worthwhile twist a couple of demos and an instrumental piece have been included. The demo of “Sometimes” is a slow, powerful track. “Killing Dome (demo)” maintains the feel and mood of the original but has a wonderful garage quality that adds a new element. The album closes on “Hertzdance,” a more indie piece to bring down the Chromagain curtain on.
In a nice cyclical choice Anna Logue re-issued their first release near the end of the year. Camera Obscura, not to be mistaken with the flimsy indie band, first arrived in the early 80’s and languished in dusty cabinets until 2005 when Anna Logue released Horizons of Suburbia. Now an extended version of the album is out. Camera Obscura toe a wonderful line between electronic and traditional sounds. Vocals yearn with cold heartache and social commentary whilst synths bring a smouldering quality to pieces like “Escape from the City” or the title piece. There is an early indie feel to the vocals, something embedded in their Englishness. The tracks wrench with a basic composition that only amplifies the emotion bottled within, pieces like “Destitution” pouring forth. “Circular Waves” comes from a similar angle, feeling blended with catchy chords to produce a pioneering piece of synth pop. “Race in Athens” featured on the group’s only single, of ’83, and is an unrequited lament. The track haunts, telling of a lost time where past hopes are now dashed and possibilities quashed by the brutal weight of reality. The memorable melodies of “Strange Faces” follows with more vintage synthsizer sounds rumbling through “Moving the Mercury.” The album is synth pop gold. The sound are classic, mirroring the impressive catalogue of machines used to produce the album. Some comparisons that come are Eleven Pond and maybe even some Kirilian Camera.
These releases say a lot about both Anna Logue and Mannequin. Too often labels become ego centric and lone projects. Both imprints have realised a common love of synth wave and minimal pop, the pair working together to achieve similar aims and getting out some great obscurities in the process. A fine year for two trailblazing imprints, may 2012 be just as productive.
All releases are available on Anna Logue and Mannequin.
