KYLE MACLACHLAN / FACTRIX & MONTE CAZAZZA / FINGERPRINTZ

KYLE MacLACHLAN – “DIANE: THE TWIN PEAKS TAPES OF AGENT COOPER” (1990)

Conceived as a audiocassette promotional product tie-in with the then-current TV series, this is a montage of all the times during the first season of “Twin Peaks” that Agent Cooper, so expertly played by Kyle MacLachlan, talks to the mysterious “Diane”, his assisstant back at the FBI headquarters. TwinPeaks.org mentions:

“The tape includes such gems of Cooperian philosophy as “Leasing may be the fast track to affluence, but equity will keep you warm at night.””

I remember seeing this for sale back when it came out, stuck in the magazine racks at the Ralphs supermarket near my house when I was a kid (the show was originally on-the-air right as I was finishing elementary school). I had two similarly precocious friends at that school, who remain close to me to this day, who would watch every broadcast episode. I was mostly unfamiliar with the inter-character relationships and the arcs of the overall show when they took me to the cinema to see “Twin Peaks: Fire Walk With Me”, which subsequently changed my life. The film makes as little sense now as it did then, and I wouldn’t have it any other way.

Kyle MacLachlan – “Agent Cooper Tapes” (ZIP file)

FACTRIX & MONTE CAZAZZA – “CALIFORNIA BABYLON” (1981)

The “Artist’s Description” column on the Factrix page under the Music heading of Download.com sez:

“Sonic-terrorists Factrix (San Francisco, 1979-1982) were amongst the original instigators of ‘Industrial music’. Consisting of Bond Bergland, Cole Palme, and Joseph Jacobs (and occasionally joined by Monte Cazazza), Factrix raised an ungodly caterwaul. Employing modified electronic devices, an abused drum machine, feedback, processed ‘radio-gitarre’, ‘glaxo-bass’, and other unconventional instruments, the resulting tortured sound defied all formulas and bore little resemblance to anything else occurring at that time. Factrix performed their first two shows as Minimal Man (with Patrick Miller), later playing gigs with bands such as SPK, Cabaret Voltaire, DNA, Nervous Gender, Tuxedomoon, and Bachelors Even (Christian Marclay). Frequent collaborators included Monte Cazazza, Mark Pauline (Survival Research Lab/SRL), and Tana Emmolo-Smith. Ruby Ray (who provided live projections for Factrix), was also the photographer who helped define the look of such seminal underground publications as ‘Search and Destroy’ and the original tabloid version of ‘Re/Search’, who later put out the ‘Industrial Culture Handbook’.“.

Also, Wikipedia sez:

“California Babylon (LP) (Subterranean Records, 1982) – from a live performance with Monte Cazazza. This performance -which included Anabel Lee, Tana Emmolo, and a robotic pig named ‘Piggly Wiggly’ (made by Mark Pauline, of Survival Research Labs/SRL)- was videotaped and entitled ‘Night of the Succubus’.”

factrix & Monte Cazazza – “California Babylon” LP (ZIP file)

FINGERPRINTZ

Trouser Press sez:

“It’s difficult to categorize Fingerprintz, which may explain why the group never garnered a large following. The primitively recorded first album occupies a dark, throbbing zone of bobbing pop and wry-to-bizarre lyrics…[l]eader/guitarist Jimme O’Neill’s Scottish accent and offbeat songwriting combine to chilling effect…

…The considerably slicker ‘Distinguishing Marks’, in contrast, is pure pop in extremis — musically, anyway. The songs hum like a finely tuned motor, with producer Nick Garvey removing any rough sonic edges. Only the relentlessly perverse lyrics betray a refusal to play by the book; O’Neill’s disjointed visions are inspired by pulp fiction, police blotters and hospital charts. A catchy collection that all sounds like hit single material.

‘Beat Noir’ took yet another 180-degree turn, away from pop and towards a rock/funk fusion. Finally in synch with the times, Fingerprintz delivered a stunning, idiosyncratic package of heavy bass lines, winsome melodies and O’Neill’s thematic fetishes (paranoia, frustration). The album was kinky enough to catch on in rock clubs, but too peculiar to reach a broader audience. (The US version deletes two songs.) Drenched in atmosphere, it remains a compelling work.”

“Beat Noir” is quite glossy, and it’s because of that that none of the songs, while all interesting, really stand out at all from each other. “Distinguishing Marks” is where the meat of the band lies, with the one-two punch of “Radiation” and “Jabs” making it very worthwhile.

Fingerprintz – “Distinguishing Marks” LP, 1980 (ZIP file)
Fingerprintz – “Beat Noir” LP, 1981 (ZIP file)