Monday's Long Song

Back to work after two weeks off and back to 1992 for today's regular weekly long song with an epic version and fine example of the art of the remix- Thrash and Greg Hunter taking Killing Joke's gothic/ post- punk 1980 single Requiem and turning it into something entirely new, an eleven minute trip down the river, a dub techno version of Apocalypse Now! and the mission to find Colonel Kurtz.

A Floating Leaf Always Reaches The Sea crosses borders and ignores boundaries, a constantly evolving, living entity with squelchy synths, bubbling bass, crunchy drums, dub echo and space and Geordie Walker's guitar beamed in like a transmission from a dying star. 

Requiem (A Floating Leaf Always Reaches The Sea Dub Mix)

Geordie Walker

The news of Geordie Walker's death in Prague following a stroke was announced at the weekend, drawing the curtain on one of the most innovative and distinctive guitarists of the post- punk period (and beyond). Alongside Jaz Coleman Kevin/ Geordie was the only constant member of the group, forming Killing joke with the singer in 1979 after replying to an advert, his guitar playing was enormous, his Gibson hollow bodied guitar tuned down a whole tone lower than standard tuning. His set up and style, melody lines as opposed to solos, crunching metallic rhythm parts, ringing feedback, a seemingly effortless approach that created the sound of several guitars playing at once. 

Some music from the Killing Joke back catalogue in tribute to Geordie Walker.

Turn To Red was from Killing Joke's debut release, a 7" EP from October 1979. They were always into the idea of remixing their music, and the multitude of dub versions and remixes are all worth investigating. This dub of Turn To Red is fast, heavy dub, rimshots, echo, noise and thump.

Turn To Red Dub

Eighties came out in the middle of the 80s, a single and also on the album Night Time. Kurt Cobain famously purloined the guitar riff for Nirvana's Come As You Are. The Serious Dance Mix is as hard as anything from 1984, a stomp with Geordie's guitars up front. In fact, it's a song with everything up front. 

Eighties (Serious Dance Mix)

In 1992 Thrash of The Orb took Requiem and gave it the full 1992 Orb remix treatment, with sound effects, space and echo, bass, coiled guitar parts, stuttering synth parts, rain and wind and whatever else he fancied, the song stretched out for eleven minutes, trance dub, a long strange trip down the river. 

Requiem (A Floating Leaf Always Reaches The Sea Dub Mix)

In 1993 Andrew Weatherall played his first Essential Mix. Those tuning in back in November 1993 or listening later on tape, copies passed around and re- copied time after time, would have heard Killing Joke's Millenium opening the show, not the first time Weatherall confounded expectations and played something unexpected and made it work, Killing Joke sounding perfectly at home among the early 90s techno of Sabres Of Paradise, Plastikman, LFO and Black Dog. 

RIP Geordie Walker. 

I'm Living In The Eighties

Not too far from yesterday's Ministry and Adrian Sherwood post, today's songs come from Killing Joke and their 1984 single Eighties (from their fifth album Night Time). Eighties is a pulverising, semi- manic but tightly controlled assault, Jaz Coleman typically intense on vocals, and a post- punk bass, drums and guitar groove that would fill dance floors with a mess of hair, leather, beer and eyeliner. The 12" came with the Serious Dance Mix on the A-side. How hard are those drums?

Eighties (Serious Dance Mix)

The Killing Joke In Dub three CD pack is loaded with superb versions and remixes of Killing Joke's songs. The Voodoo Dub Mix of Eighties is still pretty fast and furious, emphasis on the voodoo more than the dub maybe. 

Eighties (Voodoo Dub Mix)

Isolation Mix Six

I got this dramatic shot of the sky over the Mersey on Thursday night. One habit I hope I manage to maintain once this is all over, whenever that is, is taking regular walks. You miss so much sitting inside and even the most familiar and mundane places can look different when caught at a particular time. This week's Isolation Mix is a dubwise and post punk excursion from The Clash, some dubbed out Joy Division covers, Bauhaus, The Slits, Killing Joke remixed by Thrash, a bunch of Andrew Weatherall dub versions and some On U Sound from Dub Syndicate.



The Clash: The Crooked Beat

Steve Mason: Boys Outside (Andrew Weatherall Dub 2)

Jah Division: Dub Will Tear Us Apart

Jah Division: Dub Disorder

Bauhaus: Bela Lugosi’s Dead

The Slits: I Heard It Through The Grapevine

Dub Syndicate: Ravi Shankar Part.1

Sabres Of Paradise: Ysaebud

New Order: Regret (Sabres Slow ‘n’ Lo)

Lark: Can I Colour In Your Hair (Andrew Weatherall Version)

Killing Joke: Requiem (A Floating Leaf Always Reaches The Sea Dub Mix)

The Sky Is Turning Grey

Killing Joke's calling card from 1979 was Turn To Red, their debut e.p. and its title track, a piece of monumental dub/post punk. Youth's heavy bass playing over the top of the locked groove is the bedrock. Over this Geordie Walker plays scratchy, delay- laden guitar. Sounds bounce around and fire off the walls of the recording. Jaz's vocal is covered in echo and the lyrics tell of dread, the coming apocalypse and everyday horrors-

'Chaos for breakfast
There's something in the air
Everybody can feel it
Red sky in the morning
4-minute warning
Turn to red'

Turn To Red

A Trip In A Flying Saucer

Just after Christmas I posted a half hour mix by Martin 'Youth' Glover, Joy Division versus Basement 5 combined in a mix for the longest night,  intense and full of dread. This one, A Trip In A Flying Saucer (Maya Jane Coles v Killing Joke In Dub) is a 30 minute mix more suited to Sunday mornings. A hypnotic, rolling groove, plenty of dub production and the vocals of Maya Jane Coles woven in and out. Given the laid back nature of this and some of the sounds within it, it is no surprise to find out that Alex Paterson was involved in the record selection in the studio.

A Floating Leaf Always Reaches The Sea

This came my way the other day, a massive, ominous, thundering piece of heavy duty ambient dub from 1992, Thrash and Greg Hunter reworking Killing Joke's Requiem. The single (12" and cd) came with some Spiral Tribe remixes of Killing Joke's Change, which are very much in the 1992 repetitive beats techno vein (and nothing wrong with that you may very well say). But this is the keeper- Requiem (A Floating Leaf Always Reaches The Sea Dub). The bassline alone is worth the entrance fee.



I always feel like I should know Killing Joke better than I do. I should find the time to do something about that.