ihor tsymbrovsky

What Plus instruments? The title implies the secondary nature of the tools used to produce the sounds, maybe even of the sounds themselves. The means of making sound are not important, but the sounds themselves are, but even beyond them there is a force, a grumbling. Maybe best represented by the first sound heard on Plus Instruments “Februauri- April 81”, a sound that is more felt than heard. The grumbling persists throughout the album, not in the same sonic way but things gyrate and repeat until they are mineral and not purely auditory. Using toys, drum machines, and other homemade electronics designed by front person Truus de Groot, the band manages to obscure every song into a hard to maintain mix of No Wave drive, New Wave sheen, and dance music groove. Consisting of Truus, Lee Ranaldo and David Linton, the trio smashes the sound of early 80s New York with the equally as progressive European experimentation of the time. Completely without total contemporaries, Plus instruments make music free of bounds from time, labels, and place. Originally released by Kremlin records, run by Sonic Youth’s future manager Carlos Van Hitfje, Domani Sounds proudly presents Febrauri-April 81' featuring brand new liner notes by Hitfje himself. Tracklisting: Big Man Things Freundschaft Rush Hour Cannot Vom Ertrunkenen Mädchen Between The Wars Manhattan

Sicherheits- und Herstellerinformationen / safety and manufacturer info (GPSR)
WAS - Word and Sound Medien GmbH
Liebigstrasse 2-20
DE - 22113 Hamburg
Germany
Contact: gpsr@wordandsound.net

Joining the dots after last years reissue of Plus Instruments early 80s post-punk music on the Bodies EP on Emotional Rescue, Especial now looks at their return to recent music production, taking the song Love Is Enough from the recent Trancesonics album and giving it the all encompassing label remix treatment. Returning to releasing music after over 30 years hiatus, the now solo, multi-instrumentalist and vocalist Truus de Groot, showed she had lost none of the unique off-kilter dance inflicted avant-pop observations. With the release of Trancesonics things come full circle, bringing Truus' right back to her roots. On hearing Love Is Enough's thumping 4/4 kick, sliding hats, white noise and mind-worming vocals seemed in tune with what Especial is about - warped, tripped -out, dub inspired dance floor music that retains an ear for melody and at times, pop leaning, it was a calling not to be ignored. Richard Sen then, leads the way with a trademark killer Chicago inspired bump'n'strings cut that takes Truus' vocals to the horror chamber. Next, Khidja show why they are names to watch with their retake, mixing double bass and vibes interplay, trippy fx and haunting refrain, all wrapped in a killer groove that signal a duo totally on their game. On the flip, it was a perfect fit to get Luke Solomon in to do one of his special 'mad-hatter' skat style remixes. Jumpin' and bumpin' across the floor this is Music For Freaks. Finally, homeboy Jamie Paton does it again with twisted, bubbling dub, riding snares, arps on arps, a multi-layered, live on the mixing desk work-out for mind and feet. Is Love enough? Maybe. Or it could be Dub is enough? Time will tell. Dot to dot.

Sicherheits- und Herstellerinformationen / safety and manufacturer info (GPSR)
WAS - Word and Sound Medien GmbH
Liebigstrasse 2-20
DE - 22113 Hamburg
Germany
Contact: gpsr@wordandsound.net

Following on from Plus Instruments’ Love Is Enough Remixes EP comes an accompanying Dubs EP, featuring deeper reversions by Jamie Paton, Luke Solomon, Khidja and joining them with a breaks meets dubwise, Alphonse. Truus de Groot’s return to her Plus Instruments project after a 30 years break saw the label pick up her off-kilter House roller, Love Is Enough for one of our (e)special remixing packages. Here then, we turn out attention to everyone’s favourite, the Dubs. Starting with label mainframe, Jamie Paton, his Cloudy Dub-Out pulls his mix through modular prisms for heads down basement rumble. Echo chamber vocals, twisted syncopations and a bass to breakdown walls, this is Paton’s true calling - dub to get lost in and rightful to kick off the EP. Next guest remixer de jour, Luke Solomon stays close to his original bumpin’ remix, warping the vocal with skat’n’trippin wonk, all atop a funk bass line and riding shuffle percussion. Cha cha cha. On the flip, Khidja triumph again with a tougher version. Not a straight up dub of their remix, this pushes a nod to colder (wave) vibes, with industrial percussion riding high on their trademark production. Hard kick atop refrained synths, growing out of Eastern protoid routes to glimpse their future. Finally, mystery man Alphonse comes in from the dark to close with a killer breaks inspired dub. Utilising the original’s bass with an angular break, the intricate cut up percussion, Theremin and vocals all glide, keeping the head and feet (jazz) dancing for some (free) party sound system love. Dub is enough…

Sicherheits- und Herstellerinformationen / safety and manufacturer info (GPSR)
WAS - Word and Sound Medien GmbH
Liebigstrasse 2-20
DE - 22113 Hamburg
Germany
Contact: gpsr@wordandsound.net

After the series of Caribbean related releases, Emotional Rescue returns to the early 80's Downtown NYC post punk / new wave scene with Plus Instruments - collecting their best and rarest songs on one groove laden EP 4 tracks of pure Downtown punk-dub-funk, all with the nonchalant Euro-style delivery of Truus de Groot. It doesn't get better than this. Coming with extended unreleased versions, the originals were collected from sought after EPs, an obscure compilation LP and fiishes with a never before released song - this is history. Licensed and remastered for aural pleasure.

Sicherheits- und Herstellerinformationen / safety and manufacturer info (GPSR)
WAS - Word and Sound Medien GmbH
Liebigstrasse 2-20
DE - 22113 Hamburg
Germany
Contact: gpsr@wordandsound.net