Systems of Romance

Incredible Italian minimal synth from 1984, released on the always excellent Contempo Records (Death In Venice, Venus In Furs, Diaframma, Voices, as well as various 4AD distro in Italy).

Tracks 1 and 3 are the standouts for me here, the first being a club friendly slice of synth perfection, and “The Kind” being the epic masterpiece on this 12”, complete with an arpeggiated 808 solo, the first I’ve heard in this style for sure.  The other two tracks toss in some acoustic guitar with the electronics, and while they’re not as strong overall, they do a fine job of rounding out this excellent 12”.  While it’s not a musical touchstone, the singer reminds me a bit of Peter Murphy at times- less so the deep croon and more snide and biting. Seems like the band was very into the synth scene at the time, and listed all the gear used to make the record on the back sleeve.  Some very iconic gear there!

A Love Sound- I Need 12”
1. I Need
2. Sickness
3. The Kind
4. Pale Jade Eyes

*download it here*

If you dug this one, stay tuned for a few Italian donations over the next few weeks!

This entry was posted on February 12, 2013 at 4:59 pm and is filed under 1980s, 1984, a love sound, Contempo Records, italian, minimal, minimal synth, synth . You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.