RIP Peter 'Sleazy' Christopherson; for always lingering music

Since the very beginning of Throbbing Gristle i am a big  fan. Their music is so inspirational for making music  myself but also for my art. Their music, and later on the other projects like Chris & Cosey, Psychic TV and Coil, is a part of my life. It's always there somehow. Today i just read on the blog of Chris Carter that Peter Christopherson, also known as Sleazy or Unkle Sleaz, yesterday passed away in his sleep. I was and am so sad to read this. I have seen him perform several times with Throbbing Gristle and once with Coil. And performing with Coil was so very intense and very, very impressive. I've seen lots of concerts and most concerts fade during the years. But some concerts will remain and linger forever. The concert of Coil is such a remaining and lingering experience.  It was dark on stage, only one bulb on a long cord and Peter playing with the bulb, giving it a swing. The musicians all in white. I cannot describe this performance very well, it'll look silly i think describing what was going on. You had to be there. But i still see Peter standing in the middle on the stage, he looked so tiny and yet so great and while the lightbulb was swinging around and the music was getting louder and heavier and louder, Peter ran again and again against a glass (?) wall. And as i thought oh my God this is so intense i can't stand it any longer, the music stopped as a bomb of silence. As i said a very impressive performance.

Peter 'Sleazy' Christopherson was a great musician and he sure will be missed but his music remains forever. To bring confusion, intense emotions, hope and joy.

First an interview with Throbbing Gristle from last year.

A live video from Throbbing Gristle, i don't know where this is recorded but i saw that performance as well.

And one of my favourites from Coil: Where are you?

And his latest projects: Soisong and The threshold houseboys choir.






Peter 'Sleazy' Christopherson • 1955 - 2010

Mist * strange and twisted popmusic

We have to go back to the beginning of the early nineties.  Then guitarist Kers and hometaper Monica began to play and write songs together. First the two used a drumcomputer but they didn't like that. So they were looking for a drummer. They did find a drummer and also some other musicians. That was the beginning of the rockband The Hairdo's. Mist disappeared to the background. Until 1993. The Hairdo's had a concert and Femke was a visitor. She talked with Kers and Monica and there was a click. Femke plays drums.  So Kers and Monica decided to set up Mist again.  Mist don't do lot of concerts. There must be time and also it has to be a special opportunity to play. Like special events, parties and playing as support act.  To share the stage with  the American lofi-band Half Japanese is such a special event for the three musicians. This unregular system doesn't have any consequences for writing songs. If there's an upcoming concert you can find the three in the rehearsel room, working hard. And most of the time it also leads to new songs.

Mist isn't stuck on one style. There are lots of possibilities in their music. Mist (meaning fog) is hazy, they say. But miraculously this intangible concept works. Keep in mind  is a delicious , rattling popsong á la The Slits, with two-voiced harmonies. The hypnotic All is loneliness with a digeridoo player has some Velvet Underground influences. This song is based upon a drumgroove from Femke. Monica: "We also wrote a song for only a little musicbox en two voices. We played in a punk concerthall. In the beginning there were lots of noises, but in no time there was silence and the people listening."

A part of the interview by Hans Walraven: De Gelderlander 09-05 1998.

Mist  *  Kers; guitars, (alt)vocals, sighs, toy instruments.  Monica; leading (high)vocals, sighs, screams and whispers, toy instruments, bells. Femke: drums, vocals, sighs, toy instruments.

During our excistence the group of people who were fans was growing steadily. As i listen now to our music it begins to itch, i wanna play music with them again. Who knows?  The song All is loneliness was a tribute to the great musician/composer Moondog. The soundsculptor Karel van der Eyk played the didgeridoo. This song lasts 7 minutes, but there's only 4 minutes on it, without the voices. :-s I don't know why, i'll try to fix that.

This was a rough demotape of the songs. I don't have the finished tape. The sound quality also could be better, but this is all i have left from Mist. I recommend to use headphones so you better can hear all the sighs and noises. ;-)  The sound engineer was Eppie.

 I soon also will upload music from The hairdo's and some of the electronic music i did alone. I hope you enjoy it!

Music Playlist at MixPod.com

The Sound * From the lions mouth

I still remember my first concert from The Sound, after this record came out. I'll never forget it because it started in a strange way. It was in the old youth-center concerthall in Arnhem. The legendary Stokvishal, gone for years now. I was with my love and a friend of ours. The friend had smoked for the first time some weed and he was a bit afraid because the concerthall was very crowded. At some time he was picking flowers from the concrete floor. ;-) And he thought he was walking on high boots filled with blood. :-S So i had to calm him down in which i succeeded luckily.
Then the concert begins and it was fantastic! Within a short time the crowd was singing, dancing, jumping. Everybody felt connected so it seemed, it was one big party full of joy! And when they started the number 'Winning', the roof went off!! (is that a good english expression?) As i said befor; i will never forget this concert.
The singer/guitarist Adrian Borland was a bit shy, but a very charming personality. The songs of The Sound are melancholic with despair but also hope. They refused to become more commercial (luckily!) but that's one of the reasons the band never had a break through. They never got the recognition they deserved.
Adrian Borland suffered from depression and in 1999 he committed suicide.
More information you can find here.

You can find all the numbers of this record HERE.

THE SOUND * From the lions mouth * Korova Recording 1981

• Winning
• Sense of purpose
• Contact the fact
• Skeletons
• Judgement

• Fatal flaw
• Possession
• The fire
• Silent air
• New dark age
• 
  

Eartha Kitt * That bad Eartha

I love the strange, sexy voice of Eartha Kitt very much. Her songs contain feminity, sexuality and naughty humour. In the fifties she had a hot and sexy Santa Claus song and in the 60ties she became famous as Catwoman in the Batman series. Director Orspon Welles called her 'The most exciting woman in the world'.
Her official website.

My 2 favourite songs:






Eartha Kitt * That bad Eartha RCA Records 1957

• I want to be evil
• C'est si bon
• Angelitos negros
• Avril au Portugal (the whisp'ring serenade)
• Let's do it
• My heart belogs to daddy

• Uska Dara - A Turkish tale
• African lullaby
• Mountain high, valley low
• Lilac wine (Dance me a song)
• Under the bridges of Paris (Sur les ponts de Paris)
• Smoke gets in your eyes

You can hear all the songs on my playlist here.

Robert Wyatt * Ruth is stranger than Richard

This is the third solo album from Robert Wyatt. One of the most beautiful voices of that time i think. His unique voice touches many strings of my heart. Over the years Robert Wyatt worked together with lots of now famous bands and co-musicians. Think Deavid Allen, The soft machine, Caravan and much more. I love the sleeve of this record. Such a wonderfull strange painting painted by his wife Alfreda Benge.

It isn't strange that the following song is one of my favourites from this record because he wrote it with Fred Frith, who i admire a lot. Robert Wyatt sings and Fred Frith on the piano. Very beautiful!

Musicians in this next song: Laurie Allan: drums ~ Brian eno: direct inject anti-jazz gun ~ Nisar Ahmad & George Kahn: tenor sax ~ Bill MacCormick: bass guitar ~ Gary Windo: tenor sax ~ Robert Wyatt: mouth, piano ~

This album doesn't contain my most favourite Robert Wyatt songs, so i don't play this LP very often.

ROBERT WYATT * RUTH IS STRANGER THAN RICHARD Virgin records 1975
SIDE RICHARD

1. Muddy mouse a)
2. Solar flares
3. Muddy mouse (b)
4. Five black notes and one white note
5. Muddy mouse (c)
6. Muddy mouth

SIDE RUTH

1. Soup song
2. Sonia
3. Team spirit
4. Song for Che

Monsoon * Ever so lonely 12"45

This was the summerhit in Holland in 1982. You could hear it everywhere in new wave clubs and recordshops for the young and wild ones. With the beautiful, clear voice of Sheila Chantra. This 12" has never lost it's charm for me. I still love it and still play it. Perfect music for the summer.






And the videoclip from top of the pops. this is how i remember her. :-)

T.D.A. * The unacceptable face of freedom

FRONT

BACKInnersleeve

The (inner)sleeve is truely a piece of art i think. Dark, disturbing, intense just like the music. The music has hypnotic rhytms and much intruiging layers of sound and noises. Political lyrics. Some information of the band you can find here. Their website.