Axel Romain LP

Geheimnis Records proudly presents the long anticipated second cassette tape by Minimal/Experimental synth pioneers Not Only Bones from 1986. 3 years after their 1984 debut cassette was re-released on vinyl, their second, highly sought-after cassette tape entitled “Axel Romain” will be released on vinyl for the first time, 29 years after its first official release.

Iannis Raikos and Philippe Mignon, the 2 members of Not Only Bones, sound mature and confident on “Axel Romain”. The experimentation and the ambience are still present but the majority of the songs now have a more structured development, with a certain starting point, a main theme and a definable end. The instrumentation is quite familiar, the EMS synth Emulator, the guitar, the bass and the analogue synthesizers still exist as on their debut tape, but the mood and direction have changed. The 16 songs on this album do not have the dark and gloomy atmosphere of their first album (at least in its majority), but explore the brighter side of life, emotions and feelings. Don’t be mislead and consider it as what most people think of as happiness and optimism. Let’s think of this as an album of veiled optimism. The manner in which Iannis and Philippe use their instruments and lyrics do not mean joyful or even danceable music ! This is an album that you definitely have to scratch beneath the surface and listen to a few times before you become aware of this notion. It probably depicts a change, a turning point or the end of an era. This change certainly occurred in Iannis Raikos’ life back in 1985 with the birth of his son, Axel-Romain, and after whom the album was entitled…