This time around we feature the collections of Mike and Rob, the experimental electronic duo known as Horsetail.
Mike
The first record I ever bought with my own money was…
I’m glad this is ‘record’ as that means I can ignore some shocking CD and tape choices. The first piece of vinyl I bought was Selected Ambient Works Volume 2 by Aphex Twin. And what a record it still is.
The record that made me want to make music was…
Ah, well I’ve been in various bands covering a wide variety of music but the album that turned me to electronic music in a big way and starting this particular journey was In Order To Dance 5 on R&S records. Hearing artists like Carl Craig, Luke Slater and Basic Channel for the first time was life changing for me. Huge. The opening track “Microcosm” – Mike Dred still floors me.
The record I’ve played more than any other is…
I have no real idea… it’s probably …And Justice for All by Metallica or Receiving Calls by Thanet, that’s my go to when I’m lacking imagination. A hugely underrated album, quite incredible.
The record that always makes me feel good is…
In On The Kill Taker by Fugazi. This should probably be in the previous question as well. Makes me want to get up and get going.
The record I turn to when I’m feeling down is…
Currently it would be Power Trip’s Nightmare Logic. Metal always cheers me up. Although Oversteps by Autechre is just wonderful and has the same effect.
The record with my favorite cover art is…
I’m a graphic designer, so I’m a right twat when it comes to this stuff. Anything by Autechre as the Designers Republic we’re kind of heroes to me growing up. But if you were going to pin me down, Amber by Autechre, just look at the colour choice on the first Horsetail EP.
The strangest LP I own is…
No idea, Rob’s the strange one. Probably something by Pigface or rubbish noise stuff that I can’t actually listen to.
The rarest LP I own is…
I’m rubbish at this, aren’t I? No idea! I have lots of obscure electro that hardly anybody else bought from the early 90’s so it’s probably something from that. Everyone should listen to the SEM releases on Electron Industries from that period. Actually anything on that label all amazing stuff, I keep hassling J Saul Kane (The Octagon Man) online to re-release it all on digital but he doesn’t seem to be bothered.
The last LP I bought was…
Lots of digital all the time, but the latest piece of vinyl is Two Shadows Collide by Secret Pyramids. This is some guy from Vancouver who appears to be a genius. This and his previous album, Distant Works II, are stunning pieces of work.
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Rob
The first record I ever bought with my own money was…
Discovery by ELO. I was 12 and didn’t know any better!
The record that made me want to make music was…
The Human League’s Being Boiled. Listened to this once and that was it. Completely smashed me up. Suddenly the world was a vastly bigger place with infinite possibilities and not the sub-suburban 5th rate version of reality I’d been sold up to then.
The record I’ve played more than any other is…
Suicide by Suicide. I can’t say anything about this without burbling embarrassingly.
The record that always make me feel good is…
The Velvet Underground by The Velvet Underground. Switch on, drift off.
The record I turn to when I’m feeling down is…
Cluster’s Zuckerzeit. Yep. Happy place.
The record with my favorite cover art is…
Kraftwerk’s Trans Europe Express. Could be any Kraftwerk cover really. Streets ahead in creating a coherent concept for their work.
The strangest LP I own is…
CTI Live’s European Rendezvous. Chris Carter and Cosey Fanni Tutti from throbbing Gristle. Really, really unsettling stuff.
The rarest LP I own is…
Severed Heads’ City Slab Horror. Severed Heads were a 80’s band from Australia doing weird rhythmic electronic music. Beggars Banquet record shop in Kingston used to have all sorts of oddities like this collecting dust. I had no idea what this was when I bought it but just thought the cover and title were cool.
The last LP I bought was…
Cellular Automota by Dopplereffekt. The other half of Horsetail put me on to this. Beautifully layered synth landscapes.
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Horsetail will be releasing a new three song EP called Under Heaven on November 3, 2017. You can purchase a pre-sale copy here. The duo have also done a remix for More Than Machine Remixes, the upcoming release from Runningonair, which will be out on November 17, 2017. Horsetail’s latest EP, Hollow Sea, was released on November 18, 2016. You can download a copy right here.
http://www.facebook.com/horsetailsound
https://horsetail.bandcamp.com/
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