Architecture of Language 1979-1982 - Pere Ubu

"Like many bands during the 70s, Pere Ubu arrived out of a novel palette of influences, non-musical as much as musical. As a group they sound just as interested in scatty, disordered sounding improvisation in jazz as much as were the bizarre ideas behind the creation of certain modernist literature. Points of reference include Miles Davis; playwright Alfred Jarry (their name is a direct reference to central character of the same name); "typical high-school stuff", as their singer David Thomas puts it, like Terry Riley's In C. ... This is most clear on this quartet of albums, released on the 4 LP boxset Architecture of Language 1979-1982, which can be easily blocked off as one segment of Pere Ubu's lifespan. ..."
The Quietus
Pere Ubu released ‘Architecture Of Language 1979-1982′ box set (Video)
UbuProjex
Graded on a Curve: Pere Ubu, Architecture of Language 1979-1982
Louder Than War (Video)
juno: Architecture Of Language 1979-1982 (Video)

2008 April: Pere Ubu, 2010 July: Pere Ubu - 1, 2012 November: David Thomas And The Pedestrians - Variations On A Theme, 2013 February: Dub Housing, 2014 September: Carnival of Souls (2014), 2015 June: Street Waves / My Dark Ages (1976), 2016 January: Live at the Longhorn: April 1, 1978, 2016 February: Cloudland (1989).

Pere Ubu

Wikipedia - "Pere Ubu are a rock music group formed in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1975. ... The group is named after Pere Ubu ('father Ubu') , the protagonist of Ubu Roi ('Ubu, the King'), a play by Frenchman Alfred Jarry."
Wikipedia, Pere Ubu Biography, Trouser Press, Pere Ubu's Avant Garage Online, YouTube

Pere Ubu - New Picnic Time (1979)

"It has been some years now that I have been saying that the Pere Ubu album entitled New Picnic Time, from 1979, is the scariest album ever made, and perhaps the time has come now to back up this claim, to speak of the dark truths of New Picnic Time. Yes, I understand, there are a great many other scary albums out there. For example, there is The Flowers of Romance by Public Image Limited. That is a very scary album, based on a certain subjective notion of scary, which is that scary involves consciousness in the process of decay or confinement or miniaturization. Test Department were occasionally scary. Throbbing Gristle, definitely scary on occasion, and with some similarities of intent and mission with Pere Ubu. The first album by Einsturzende Neubauten, called Kollaps, plenty unsettling. ..."
New Music - Kingdom Come: Pere Ubu’s New Picnic Time
W - New Picnic Time
YouTube: New Picnic Time 10 videos

2008 April: Pere Ubu, 2010 July: Pere Ubu - 1, 2012 November: David Thomas And The Pedestrians - Variations On A Theme, 2013 February: Dub Housing, 2014 September: Carnival of Souls (2014), 2015 June: Street Waves / My Dark Ages (1976), 2016 January: Live at the Longhorn: April 1, 1978, 2016 February: Cloudland (1989), 2016 April: Architecture of Language 1979-1982, 2016 November: The Modern Dance (1978), 2016 December: Don't Expect Art (1980).

Cloudland - Pere Ubu (1989)

"In a press handout that accompanied the original release of Pere Ubu's Cloudland, David Thomas quipped 'We'd never been asked to write a pop record before. I guess it never occurred to anyone.' Given the sonic Dadaism of much of Pere Ubu's work, what's most startling is not that it took so long for someone to suggest they make a pop record but that they were able to comply so successfully. Stephen Hague, who had previously worked with the Pet Shop Boys, Orchestral Manoeuvres in the Dark and New Order, produced these sessions, and Cloudland boasts a glossy surface that was unprecedented for Pere Ubu's work; the drums sounded crisp and tight, the songs included traditional melodies and melodic keyboard lines, Allen Ravenstine's noisy punctuations were pushed to the back of the mix, and the harmonies sounded as if they were performed by actual professionals. ..."
allmusic
W - Cloudland
UbuProjex
DROWNED IN SOUND
YouTube: Breath (Live)
YouTube: Breath & Race The Sun & Cry & Why Go Alone, Waiting For Mary & Ice Cream Truck & Bus Called Happiness & Monday Night, Love Love Love & Lost Nation Road & Fire & Nevada!, The Wire & Flat & The Waltz & Pushin'

2008 April: Pere Ubu, 2010 July: Pere Ubu - 1, 2012 November: David Thomas And The Pedestrians - Variations On A Theme, 2013 February: Dub Housing, 2014 September: Carnival of Souls (2014), 2015 June: Street Waves / My Dark Ages (1976), 2016 January: Live at the Longhorn: April 1, 1978.

Pere Ubu & Peter Laughner - Two First Singles (1975-76)

"Pere Ubu emerged from the urban wastelands of mid-'70s Cleveland to impact the American underground for generations to follow; led by hulking frontman David Thomas, whose absurdist warble and rapturously demented lyrics remained the band's creative focus throughout their long, convoluted career, Ubu's protean art punk sound harnessed self-destructing melodies, scattershot rhythms, and industrial-strength dissonance to capture the angst and chaos of their times with both apocalyptic fervor and surprising humanity. Named in honor of Alfred Jarry's surrealist play Ubu Roi, Pere Ubu was formed in the autumn of…"
iTunes
YouTube: Two First Singles 1975-76
First Single A - 30 Seconds Over Tokyo 6:21 B - Heart Of Darkness 4:44 Second Single A - Final Solution 4:38 B - Cloud 149 2:32

2008 April: Pere Ubu, 2010 July: Pere Ubu - 1, 2012 November: David Thomas And The Pedestrians - Variations On A Theme, 2013 February: Dub Housing, 2014 September: Carnival of Souls (2014), 2015 June: Street Waves / My Dark Ages (1976), 2016 January: Live at the Longhorn: April 1, 1978, 2016 February: Cloudland (1989), 2016 April: Architecture of Language 1979-1982, 2016 November: The Modern Dance (1978), 2016 December: Don't Expect Art (1980), 2017 January: New Picnic Time (1979), 2017 June: Allen Ravenstine

Carnival of Souls - Pere Ubu (2014)

"Pere Ubu's 18th album, Carnival Of Souls, inspired by and derived from the band's live soundtracking of Herk Harvey's classic 1962 B-movie of the same name, is out on Fire Records next Monday, September 8. As is currently stated in bold on the front page of the band's website: 'the album is not about the movie' but rather 'a complex sensual response to living in a world overrun by monkeys and strippers who tickle your ears, cajole you to join in with their cavorting and then become vindictive when you decline'. It is also a wonderfully dark, pulsating road trip through a nightmare landscape mapped out in analogue and digital electronics, treated guitars, clarinet, voodoo drums and of course, David Thomas' unmistakeable otherworldly vocals."
The Quietus
Home of Ubu Projex
Pere Ubu – New Album Carnival of Souls (Video)
DROWNED IN SOUND (Video)
YouTube: Irene

2008 April: Pere Ubu, 2010 July: Pere Ubu - 1, 2012 November: David Thomas And The Pedestrians - Variations On A Theme, 2013 February: Dub Housing.

Dub Housing - Pere Ubu

Wikipedia - "Dub Housing is the second album by American experimental rock group Pere Ubu. Released in 1978, the album is now regarded as one of their best, described by Trouser Press as 'simply one of the most important post-punk recordings.' The title is an allusion to the echoes at rows of identical concrete public housing units in Baltimore, presumably reminiscent of the echo and reverberation that characterize dub reggae. The photograph on the cover shows the apartment building on Prospect Avenue near downtown Cleveland in which members of the band lived when this album was recorded."
Wikipedia
aquarium drunkard
Short Bits 3: Pere Ubu, Dub Housing
Robert Christgau
YouTube: Dub Housing (Full Album) 35:40
YouTube: Dub Housing - 2012

2008 April: Pere Ubu
2010 July: Pere Ubu - 1
2012 November: David Thomas And The Pedestrians - Variations On A Theme

Pere Ubu - Live at the Longhorn: April 1, 1978

"I saw Ubu 4-5 times, but the show that made the biggest impression on me was on the tour the undertook for their 1st album, The Modern Dance. I saw them about 5 weeks before this show and they were crazy and splendid. Finally, you (and I) can hear what I heard then. Not a perfect recording by any means, but pretty good and certainly good enough. Conditionally recommended! Pere Ubu's Live at the Longhorn is as much an indispensable live rock album as Modern Dance is an indispensable studio album. The show consists mainly of material from Modern Dance, only rocked out and swinging, more raw-nerved yet seasoned than their studio counterparts. What becomes apparent, especially on repeated listening is how well-made this music is, how the drama and comedy flows within the modules of each song, how the songs fit together to give an audience an experience that - while sharpened to paranoia and sensitive to harsh realities - is as ineffable as it is concrete."
Wayside Music
amazon
YouTube: Humor Me (Live, 1978), "Heart of Darkness" live (12.6.78), Street Waves (Theatre 140, Brussels 1978-05-05)

2008 April: Pere Ubu, 2010 July: Pere Ubu - 1, 2012 November: David Thomas And The Pedestrians - Variations On A Theme, 2013 February: Dub Housing, 2014 September: Carnival of Souls (2014), 2015 June: Street Waves / My Dark Ages (1976).

Don't Expect Art - Pere Ubu (1980)

"A semi-approved bootleg limited to 500 copies. Original covers were promo jackets of Patti Smith's Horses album pasted over with printed pieces of paper front and back. Probably recorded in 1978 and mostly at Pirate's Cove. 'I Will Wait' was recorded at the Homestead Theater. No other details are remembered. Released on Tri-City Records in 1979. The label on Side 1 reads 'X-Mas Concert At Interstate Mall.' The label on Side 2 reads 'Live At Club Wow.' ... Cover of AOT This same bootleg was re-booted, unofficially, as Don't Expect Art (Impossible Recordworks IMP1-07) in 1980. 'Don't Expect Art' was an Ubu Communex injunction of the day so the source of the re-boot was probably also a fan. Song titles on both releases were disguised, undoubtedly an effort to avoid detection by the bootleg police."
U-Men Live At Interstate Mall - Pere Ubu
YouTube: (TheU-Men) - Don’t Expect Art (X-MasConcert) '80 full album

2008 April: Pere Ubu, 2010 July: Pere Ubu - 1, 2012 November: David Thomas And The Pedestrians - Variations On A Theme, 2013 February: Dub Housing, 2014 September: Carnival of Souls (2014), 2015 June: Street Waves / My Dark Ages (1976), 2016 January: Live at the Longhorn: April 1, 1978, 2016 February: Cloudland (1989), 2016 April: Architecture of Language 1979-1982, 2016 November: The Modern Dance (1978).

The Modern Dance - Pere Ubu (1978)

"There isn't a Pere Ubu recording you can imagine living without. The Modern Dance remains the essential Ubu purchase (as does the follow-up, Dub Housing). For sure, Mercury had no idea what they had on their hands when they released this as part of their punk rock offshoot label Blank, but it remains a classic slice of art-punk. It announces itself quite boldly: the first sound you hear is a painfully high-pitched whine of feedback, but then Tom Herman's postmodern Chuck Berry riffing kicks off the brilliant 'Non-Alignment Pact,' and you soon realize that this is punk rock unlike any you've ever heard. ... The Modern Dance is the signature sound of the avant-garage: art rock, punk rock, and garage rock mixing together joyously and fearlessly."
allmusic
TinyMixTapes
W - The Modern Dance
YouTube: The Modern Dance (1978) [Full Album]

2008 April: Pere Ubu, 2010 July: Pere Ubu - 1, 2012 November: David Thomas And The Pedestrians - Variations On A Theme, 2013 February: Dub Housing, 2014 September: Carnival of Souls (2014), 2015 June: Street Waves / My Dark Ages (1976), 2016 January: Live at the Longhorn: April 1, 1978, 2016 February: Cloudland (1989), 2016 April: Architecture of Language 1979-1982.

Allen Ravenstine

Wikipedia - "Allen Ravenstine (born May 9, 1950) is an American keyboard player, most recognized for his work in the experimental rock group Pere Ubu. In 1991, he quit music to become a commercial airline pilot. Allen Ravenstine was born on May 9, 1950. ... He met visual artist Bob Bensick, who was experimenting with sending distortion into oscillators and out a stereo system. Eventually, they discovered a way to attach lights and have them work in conjunction with the sounds being produced and decided to stage art shows. The act was short lived as Ravenstine moved out of the area and lost contact with Bensick. Soon after, Ravenstine purchased his first synthesizer, an ElectroComp EML 200, and began associating with the garage band Rocket from the Tombs and recording their performances. ..."
Wikipedia
‘Terminal Drive’: Pere Ubu’s Allen Ravenstine’s legendary long lost electronic composition found (Video)
Furious: Allen Ravenstine 1, 2, 3, 4
Blue Jet Music
City Desk / Farm Report - Robert Wheeler & Allen Ravenstine
Allen Ravenstine "Terminal Drive" CD
Allen Ravenstine + Robert Wheeler On EML Modular Synthesizers (Video)
iTunes, Spotify, amazon
YouTube: City Desk - Farm Report

EML 101

2008 April: Pere Ubu, 2010 July: Pere Ubu - 1, 2012 November: David Thomas And The Pedestrians - Variations On A Theme, 2013 February: Dub Housing, 2014 September: Carnival of Souls (2014), 2015 June: Street Waves / My Dark Ages (1976), 2016 January: Live at the Longhorn: April 1, 1978, 2016 February: Cloudland (1989), 2016 April: Architecture of Language 1979-1982, 2016 November: The Modern Dance (1978), 2016 December: Don't Expect Art (1980), 2017 January: New Picnic Time (1979)

40 Years On: Pere Ubu’s The Modern Dance Revisited

"In a December 1975 interview with Jane Scott of The Plain Dealer, a heavyset, wild-haired Cleveland singer known as Crocus Behemoth declared, 'We're putting out the hits of the next psychedelic era. If a melody fits in, fine. If not, we don't feel we have to use one. We're a bit ahead of our time, but that's the fun of it.' Mr. Behemoth was referring to his new band, Pere Ubu. Although they were yet to play their first show, they were already a familiar proposition in the nascent Midwest punk scene. Three months earlier, Cleveland proto-punk heroes Rocket From the Tombs self-imploded, leaving behind a trail of half-finished songs and tales of self-destruction and farce-filled gigs. Of its classic line-up - which Lester Bangs once called 'the original legendary underground rock band' - Gene O'Connor and Johnny Madansky formed Frankenstein, before settling on the name The Dead Boys. ..."
The Quietus
Punk 77
Fire Records (Video)

2008 April: Pere Ubu, 2010 July: Pere Ubu - 1, 2012 November: David Thomas And The Pedestrians - Variations On A Theme, 2013 February: Dub Housing, 2014 September: Carnival of Souls (2014), 2015 June: Street Waves / My Dark Ages (1976), 2016 January: Live at the Longhorn: April 1, 1978, 2016 February: Cloudland (1989), 2016 April: Architecture of Language 1979-1982, 2016 November: The Modern Dance (1978), 2016 December: Don't Expect Art (1980), 2017 January: New Picnic Time (1979), 2017 June: Allen Ravenstine, 2017 August: Two First Singles (1975-76)

Pere Ubu

Wikipedia - "Pere Ubu is an experimental rock music group formed in Cleveland, Ohio, in 1975. Despite many long-term band members, singer David Thomas is the only constant."
Wikipedia, The Ubu Projex Web Site, Breath, Waiting for Mary, Birdies (Urgh! A Music War), Final Solution, Love Love Love, 30 Seconds Over Tokyo, Heart Of Darkness, The Modern Dance, Non-alignment Pact, Dub Housing, On The Surface, Dave Thomas of Pere Ubu - Part 1, Pt 2

Pere Ubu - Street Waves / My Dark Ages (1976)

Street Waves: "I ride a street wave right by her side / And I can hear the city city comin' 'round The things I say hit the air and seem to fall apart / And I can see the faces faces fallin' down / And then I'm gone, gone, gone by her heart // I get a picture of what it'll be like/ I turn the channel round to Channel 43 / I see electricity jump and spark / I see electricity uh real and stark / And then I'm gone, gone, gone by her heart // I ride a street wave right by her side /And I can hear the city city comin' 'round / The things I say hit the air and seem to fall apart / And I can see the faces faces fallin' down / And then I'm gone, gone, gone by her heart / And then I'm gone, gone, gone by her heart"
Song Lyrics
YouTube: Street Waves (Theatre 140, Brussels 1978-05-05), My Dark Ages (I Don't Get Around)

2008 April: Pere Ubu, 2010 July: Pere Ubu - 1, 2012 November: David Thomas And The Pedestrians - Variations On A Theme, 2013 February: Dub Housing, 2014 September: Carnival of Souls (2014).

David Thomas And The Pedestrians - Variations On A Theme

"Two songs from David Thomas' masterpiece: 'A Day At The Botanical Gardens' and 'The Rain'. The Pedestrians was Richard Thompson, Jack Monck, Paul Hamann, Jim Jones, Anton Fier, Chris Cutler and Lindsay Cooper."
YouTube

2008 April: Pere Ubu
2010 July: Pere Ubu - 1

Soldier-Talk - The Red Crayola (1979)

Wikipedia - "Soldier-Talk is the third studio album by American experimental rock band The Red Crayola. It was released in 1979 by record label Radadr. By this time, Thompson had moved the project to London and expanded the band for this album to include Lora Logic of X-Ray Spex and Essential Logic and all the members of Pere Ubu. ... Since the release of God Bless the Red Krayola and All Who Sail With It, Steve Cunningham had left the project to pursue his own musical ambitions and had been replaced by Jesse Chamberlain. In 1978, this incarnation of the band was touring regularly and had been signed to Radar Records. Despite the presence of Pere Ubu, the music is a close continuation of the sound previously established by The Red Crayola. Soldier-Talk was conceived as a concept album dealing with the issues of militarism and Soviet communism. Chamberlain wanted to veer the music towards a more pop-oriented direction while Thompson opted to keep the sound experimental. ..."
Wikipedia
Perfect Sound Forever
allmusic
Pitchfork
YouTube: The Red Crayola - Soldier-Talk (Full Album)

Modulisme 100: Allen Ravenstine

"Allen Ravenstine was a key figure in the developing art and music scene in Cleveland in the early 70s. Working alone with an early analogue synthesizer, sans keyboard, and a four track tape recorder, he made a series of compositions. In 1975, one of those compositions titled Terminal Drive got him invited to join a group that was forming called Pere Ubu. That group’s membership changed over the years and eventually included Mayo Thompson who had founded the group Red Crayola in Texas in the 1960’s. During one of Ubu’s breakups, Ravenstine worked for a time in a reformation of Red Crayola both recording and touring. In 1991 he recorded his last album with Ubu and then left music to become an airline pilot. ..."

Modulisme (Audio) 

Modulisme Session 100 (Audio)

2017 June: Allen Ravenstine

Anarchy Around The World: Punk Goes Global

“Forty years after it officially crash-landed in our midst, it’s easy to believe punk ‘sold out’ its lofty original ideals, not least because its leading acts all eventually signed to major labels and played ball with The Man. Yet regardless of its shortcomings, punk still had a seismic global impact during the mid-to-late 70s and its legacy can still be felt in everything from its inherent DIY ethos to its (broadly) anti-sexist stance. However, while countless revisions of this flawed – yet exhilarating – period have since been published, they nearly always fix punk as a purely transatlantic phenomenon. … This is entirely understandable, as both nations have reason to claim punk as their own. In North America, the 70s had barely dawned before New York was spawning remarkable proto-punk acts such as Suicide and New York Dolls, while across 1974-76, trailblazing US refuseniks such as Pere Ubu, Patti Smith, Ramones and Blondie were already hurling out remarkable, oeuvre-defining discs. …”
uDiscover (Audio)

Sex Pistols

Chris Cutler

Wikipedia - "Chris Cutler (born January 4, 1947) is an English percussionist, composer, lyricist and music theorist. Best known for his work with English avant-rock group Henry Cow, Cutler was also a member and drummer of a number of other bands, including Art Bears, News from Babel, Pere Ubu and (briefly) Gong/Mothergong."
Wikipedia, Chris Cutler, Perfect Sound Forever, ReR, YouTune, (1), (2)

DNA - A Taste Of DNA (EP - 1981)

“New York's DNA have had a massive effect on alternative / indie rock around the world, despite the trio never releasing a full-length studio album during their four year tenure (1978-82). Various groups citing them as an influence have included Sonic Youth, Boredoms, Big Black and Blonde Redhead (the latter taking their name from DNA's most-famous song). While the band's explosive live performances captivated audiences, extant recordings captured DNA's dynamic sound and savage economy in songwriting. Originally released in 1981, A Taste Of DNA remains a primary source for No Wave archaeologists. Singer/guitarist Arto Lindsay and drummer Ikue Mori are joined by bassist and Pere Ubu founding-member Tim Wright. Across the EP's six anti-epic tracks, the band charges forward with jagged guitars and dislocated grooves, while Lindsay's guttural screams create a thoroughly personal semantics. ..."
Boomkat
W - A Taste Of DNA
Discogs
YouTube: A Taste of DNA (Full Album)

2009 October: Arto Lindsay, 2012 July: Lounge Lizards, 2015 October: The Golden Palominos - The Golden Palominos (1983), 2015 November: Love Of Life Orchestra ‎– Extended Niceties EP (1980), 2017 October: The Lounge Lizards - Lounge Lizards (1981), 2018 February: Arto Lindsay ... Simply Are