review: Various Artists - Vanity Records / Finest Selection, 1978 to 1981

I am not a fan of bootleg's... I almost never buy them and I never will sell them in my webshop... but here is a record that is an exception. I will still not sell it in my webshop but it deserves to be mentioned. Also this bootleg is for a part justified as all music concerned is very hard to get... if not impossible. Next to that most artists will be very hard to trace down.

What we are dealing with here is a compilation around the well known but obscure Vanity Records label. This Japanese label was active between 1978 and 1981 and released ten albums, some singles, one compilation album and some cassettes and flexi discs. The music released on Vanity Records was experimental, avant-garde, proto elektro/techno among some other noises... often with a typical Japanese twist.

On this LP are twelve tracks by twelve artists. The liner notes are in bad English, but the tracklisting states the origin of all the music. But more imnportant it is a real trip into some excellent minimal and experimental music.

What to think of the track by Dada for example?! A deep scary bass drum is the basis on top of which some Pink Floyd like guitar improvisations are played... mind blowing! Equally good but very much post-punk is the Mad Tea Party piece. A track Joy Division or The Cure could have done when on a trip. A twisted reggae tune is served by RNA Organism and a strange and dark soundscape is delivered by Arbeit.

Then I did not mention yet a Japanse cover of a Joy Division track by Morio Agata, or a piece of Kraftwerk like minimal proto elektro by Normal Brain or the outstanding weird but scary minimal music tune by Tolerance or or or...

If you need more references... well I could name two of my favorite 1980's band to give an idea of what to expect... think Alesia Cosmos and think Ptose... if you dig those bands you will love this compilation.

While the originals are almost impossible find, or if you find a good copy you will need to pay a few hundred euros for it, I advice to pick up a copy of this LP now... or be sorry later...