1979 2LP
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Thomas Leer is an innovative electronic musician from Port Glasgow, Scotland. He began singing for a local band at age 13, and was writing his own music by 18. By 1977, he had moved to London, where he fronted Pressure, a Clash-esque punk group with fellow experimental Scottish musician Robert Rental. After hearing Kraftwerk, Leer became interested in synthesizers – not long after, he was exploring the experimental techniques of Eno, Zappa, Beefheart, Faust, and Can.
In 1978, Thomas released his first single, “Private Plane”/“International”, on his own Oblique Records that we reissued in 2015. “1979” is a 14-song collection spread across two pieces of vinyl clocking in at 70 minutes. Leer says, “1979 was a great year for making music. The punk explosion two years earlier, cleansed the palate and opened up minds to new sonic possibilities. It was in this spirit I took to exploring electronics and set up my first little home studio. Bearing in mind this was before such luxuries as Portastudios or affordable multi-tracks, I decided sound quality was less important than experimentation and innovation, so I pressed on with the meager equipment I had. My tabletop studio in Crouch End, North London, consisted of two cassette machines, a copycat tape echo, some FX pedals, Ring Modulator, Guitar, Bass & Wasp Synthesizer.”
Songs range from half serene atmospheres, to minimal rhythmic workouts, to tape loops layered behind distorted guitars, to cold layered singing, all with a psychedelic lo-fi attitude.
- Thomas Leer - Semi Detached Suicide
- Thomas Leer - Torment Weekly
- Thomas Leer - Urbaine
- Thomas Leer - Surprising Variations
- Thomas Leer - Crossmaglen
- Thomas Leer - Ad Astra
- Thomas Leer - Fixed Focus
- Thomas Leer - Structures
- Thomas Leer - Sleepless Nights
- Thomas Leer - Monorail
- Thomas Leer - Back Of The Mind
- Thomas Leer - High Rise
- Thomas Leer - Crouch End
- Thomas Leer - Never Met An Actress
- Artist: Thomas Leer
- Genre: Experimental, Wave / Synth-Pop
- Label: Dark Entries