At the request of Brett McCormick, here are my recommendations for Test
Department CD's. Some of this material is IDM orientated, some of it is
not.
1. "Atonal & Hamburg", Dossier DCD 9038
This is a 1985 live recording from 2 different
Test Dept appearances in Germany. This is
very industrial with minimal electronics. It
is a ferociously heavy sound.
2. "The Unacceptable Face of Freedom",
Ministry Of Power CDMOP 2 (1986)
Good, hard, politically tinged, and very
electronic. Cool use of sampled orchestra
passages and bagpipes(!) which later
became almost standard in their late 80's
material.
3. "Materia Prima", DEPT CD1
Live collection (although you hear no crowd
noise) from '86 and '88-'89. Some of the
material is from "The Unacceptable Face of
Freedom."
4. "Gododdin", Ministry of Power MOP4CD
This is a score they did in conjuncton with the
Welsh theater group, Brith Gof, for a 1988
stage production. A lot of the vocals are done
in Welsh. Challenging music.
5. "Pax Britannica", Ministry of Power MOP6CD
This is great CD. They use a real orchestra
and choir to give this a classical feel. One
of my personal favorites, it was first released
in 1990 but recently re-released on Invisible
Records.
6. "Pax Americana," "New World Order," "Bang
on It!", Ministry of Power MOP5CD, 7CD,
8CD respectively. 1990-1993
These are 3 CD singles that are all very
danceable.
7. "The Legacy (1990-1993)", Jungle Records
Freud CD 47
This is a singles compilation including stuff
that I've never seen anywhere else. Recently
re-released on Cleopatra Records.
8. "Totality", Invisible Records INV 056 CD
Released in 1995, this is what they sounded
like live when I saw them in 1996. A killer
mix of found sound industrial percussion and
thumping techno. Very highly recommended.
9. "Totality 1", KK Records KK135
Includes remixes from "Totality" plus tracks
not on "Totality."
As far as I know, only "Totality", "Pax Britannica", and "The Legacy"
are available domestically. All other titles in this post are imports
and may be hard to find.
If you're still interested in more Test Dept info, check out:
http://www.esophagus.com/test-dept/
BANG ON IT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
Dennis O'Hare
noise@webtv.net