1 Lay-by Lullaby 6:50
2 Omeletto 2:00
3 Feeding Time 3:40
4 Bodysnatcher 4:56
5 Crystal Set 3:30
6 Down A Denny Lane 3:41
7 Kite 3:05
8 Racing The Arctic Shadow 6:53
9 Summer With The Snow Bees 4:22
10 Pity The Small 4:13
11 View From A Hill 2:20
12 Rumble Of The Ruins 2:23
13 Slow Water 3:46
14 Morphover & Curl 3:09
15 Swing 2:36
16 Colour Buffer 7:48
Credits:
Format: CD, 300 copies.
Release Date: 2021/22
Label: Klanggalerie
Catalogue Number: gg378
Sleeve Design: Philip Sanderson
Review: Sound Projector 03/01/2023 by Steve Pescott
Following on a little from the Storm Bugs’ A Safe Substitute (also on Klanggalerie – gg337) comes a solo offering from one half of this highly lauded outfit, originating from the Brit avant/d.i.y. scene of the late seventies. Philip Sanderson (for it is he) casts a suitably large shadow over this now somewhat neglected sub-genre. Enough for the Bugs, and indeed his ‘Snatch’ cassette label (see Cultural Amnesia, Sea of Wires etc.), to be found in sundry Wild Planet articles and of course, The International Discography of the New Wave: nestling between Stops (Genuine Records / U.K.) and Stormakt Gul (Musiklagen / Sweden). And, as a p.o.i., let’s not forget the duo playing the anonymity card back in 1980, when they adopted the feminine guises of Susan Vezey and Claire Thomas (much like ‘Deux Filles’ years later), for a cut on Cherry Red’s “Perspectives and Distortion” compilation album.
Even though … Particles is culled from a number of different sources (from 2000 to 2021), such as downloads, e.p.s, l.p.s, cassettes and cdrs, this is a thoughtfully structured set where pacing / dynamics take on a prominent role. The prep for certain unearthed / archival releases can suggest precious tape fragments thrown like confetti and then sequenced where they lay – thankfully this is not one of those occasions. A homage to the originators of the motorik groove opens the set. The twinkly, optimistic melody line of “Lay-by Lullaby” (like Rother/Dinger’s best moments) skilfully avoids the full saccharine route, adopted by many nth generation copyists, while the brief “Omeletto”, in stark contrast, can be filed away in a style all of its own. ‘Gastric Industrial’ anyone? A lot of the sound sources resembling the liquid gurglings of a severely overactive stomach, threatening to cut loose at any moment. Duck and cover! The giddy pseudo-orchestral systemics of “Bodysnatcher” change tack yet again and mischievously upgrade the Trans-Europe Express with the latest in jet-turbine technology. Six tracks in, the oddly-titled “Down a Denny Lane” is the first ‘real’ song per se in which a strand of wistful folktronica finds a nonchalant, hands-in-pockets vocal stance complemented by lyrical zither-like instrumentation.
With an extensive roster that harbours lesser-known works by Fred Frith, Thomas Leer, Renaldo and the Loaf and Asmus Tietchens to name but four, Klanggalerie’s motto of “… delivering exceptional music since 1995…” is surely no hollow boast and the sheer inventiveness at the core of Passionate Particles can’t help but add to the imprint’s general lustre.
https://www.thesoundprojector.com/2023/01/03/molecular-bonding/