{"product_id":"close-to-the-noise-floor-formative-uk-electronica-1975-1984","title":"Close to the Noise Floor - Formative UK Electronica 1975 - 1984","description":"\u003cp\u003eTwo years in the making, \u003cem\u003eClose To The Noise Floor\u003c\/em\u003e is a 4CD, 61-track set exploring the origins of electronica in the UK.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFeaturing tracks from key figures on the cassette label underground alongside early releases by future stars of the movement, this is part primitive rave, part synthesiser porn, and part history lesson.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eEnthralled by the mysterious electronics of Pink Floyd, Hawkwind, Gong, and German Kosmische artists such as Tangerine Dream, Harmonia, and Cluster, and inspired by the DIY ethos of punk, a quiet revolution took place across the UK in the late 1970s and early 1980s.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe rise of the microchip and the advent of affordable synthesisers enabled countless artists for whom guitars, drums, and bass had become old hat.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eIn grubby bedsits, unremarkable living rooms, and art school halls across the British Isles, UK electronica was born.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe underground, fuelled by cassette exchanges, co-operative vinyl compilations, and a thriving mail order network, quickly began to stretch the boundaries of sonic experimentation.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003e\u003cem\u003eClose To The Noise Floor\u003c\/em\u003e explores every corner of this fascinating and often overlooked chapter in our musical history.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eFor proto synth-pop look no further than \"\u003cem\u003e100% Manmade Fibre\u003c\/em\u003e\" and \"\u003cem\u003eSpoon Fazer\u003c\/em\u003e,\" whilst \"\u003cem\u003eBritish Standard Unit\u003c\/em\u003e\" and \"\u003cem\u003eFive Times Of Dust\u003c\/em\u003e\" lay out techno templates which wouldn't take full form until many years later.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eElsewhere, the synthesiser-laden ambient music of \"\u003cem\u003eZorch\u003c\/em\u003e\" and the found sound collages of \"\u003cem\u003eA Tent\u003c\/em\u003e\" sit comfortably alongside early forays by familiar names - \u003cstrong\u003eBlancmange\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003eThe Human League\u003c\/strong\u003e, \u003cstrong\u003eOMD\u003c\/strong\u003e, and \u003cstrong\u003eThrobbing Gristle\u003c\/strong\u003e - in over four hours of futurist, entirely modern music.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eAnd who better to tell this story than the artists themselves.... \u003cem\u003eClose To The Noise Floor\u003c\/em\u003e features forty-eight pages of artist-written sleeve notes, unseen photographs, and extracts from Dave Henderson's legendary 1983 Wild Planet overview of the entire scene.\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Cherry Red","offers":[{"title":"CD | x4","offer_id":50467961110859,"sku":"398017","price":29.99,"currency_code":"GBP","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0867\/1120\/6219\/files\/17bdbc5c-a2f7-421e-9fd8-10f344d631e2_thumbnail_4096.jpg?v=1727343641","url":"https:\/\/shop.roughtrade.com\/de\/products\/close-to-the-noise-floor-formative-uk-electronica-1975-1984","provider":"Rough Trade","version":"1.0","type":"link"}