Various Artists – Intenta: Experimental & Electronic Music From Switzerland 1981-93 [Bongo Joe Records & Décalé Records]

Our album of the week is “Intenta: Experimental & Electronic Music From Switzerland 1981-93” by Bongo Joe Records and Décalé Records out on the 28th of February.

Décalé Records and Bongo Joe Records present an all new compilation placing the spotlight on the Swiss experimental and electronic scene of the ‘80s and the early ‘90s. The compilation Intenta assembles under-appreciated gems, sought-after titles and newly mixed versions. It places leftfield synth-pop next to otherworldly jazz, and joins the dots between lyrical post-punk excursions and proto-house experimentation.

The compilation covers a period of transition: When songs mutated into sounds. When synthesizers and samplers became the règle du jeu in DIY music-making. When a politicized youth movement slowly gave way to the hedonistic embrace of techno culture in Switzerland. Intenta mines the outer fringes of a scene yet to be. Many of these experimenters were pretty much on their own. Often the only way you would get in touch was at the local synth dealer.

A spirit of bold improvisation inhabited studios between Geneva and St. Gallen: these artists were articulating pop sensibilities (Air Project, Sky Bird, D-Sire, Peter Philippe Weiss), entering computer worlds (Claudine Chirac, Olivier Rogg, Carlos Perón), exploring exotic shores (Andreas Hofer, Bells of Kyoto, Fizzè), building future discothèques (Aborted at Line 6, Carol Rich, UnknownmiX) or finding glacial bliss (Dressed Up Animals, Elephant Château, I Suonatori).

The compilation was put together by Matthias Orsett and Maxi Fischer. Intenta unfolds as a sonic story that is laid-back yet energetic, sultry yet daring. The two crate diggers set out to meet with many of the artists arrayed here. Memories were shared, wine bottles opened. There were moments of sadness: Karl Lienert Löwenherz (Dressed Up Animals) and Claudius Scholer (Sky Bird) passed away during the making of this project. What remains of this journey into the backrooms of Swiss popular culture, is Intenta. If you listen closely, it will reveal a nation on the move. Beyond the Matterhorn, there is sweetness and light.

Tracklist:

1. Andreas Hofer – Untitled
2. Claudine Chirac – Etudes
3. Sky Bird – Pasolini’s Trembling
4. Fizzè – Kulu Hatah Mamnua
5. Bells of Kyoto – Swiss Air
6. Elephant Château – Dreamings
7. Dressed Up Animals – Mondtanz
8. Peter Philippe Weiss – Subway (Intenta Version)
9. D-Sire – Wintertime
10. Air Project – Rap Yourself
11. Jean-Pierre Huser – Chinatown
12. Olivier Rogg – GE/CH:Seq
13. Carol Rich – Computered Love
14. Carlos Perón – Her Heäd Is Bräkin Intu Foör (Primal Version)
15. UnknownmiX – Django
16. Aborted at Line 6 – Mammuth (Extended Version)
17. I Suonatori – Matrosen

Credits:

Compilation, concept and production by Maxi Fischer & Matthias Orsett
Artistic supervision by Cyril Yeterian
Analog mastering by Tim Stollenwerk
Vinyl cut by Adi Flück
Editorial by Bjørn Schaeffner
Drawings and layout by David Mamie
Typeface (Office Grotesk) by Chi-Long Trieu
Leaflet design by Yanis Carnal
The gatefold cover illustration is the music sheet of ‘Mondtanz” by Karl Lienert Löwenherz from Dressed Up Animals. Courtesy of the artist’s family.