Metamatic Forums News and Announcements John Foxx news Metadelic

Here's a copy of the news announced on Facebook this Saturday.

The long awaited Metadelic album is finally coming together. It's a 3 disc set - 2 CDs and 1 DVD. Hopefully they'll be a few surprises.

We'll have the full tracklisting and release date soon. We're hoping that the sun will be shining by the time it comes out!

The track-listing for Metadelic, the long-awaited follow-up to 2010's Metatronic, has been confirmed as follows...

Disc One...
01. Swimmer II
02. Miles Away
03. Europe After The Rain
04. Dancing Like A Gun
05. Endlessly
06. Twilight's Last Gleaming
07. Annexe
08. Sitting At The Edge Of The World (Alternative Version)
09. Ghosts On Water
10. An Ocean We Can Breathe
11. Through My Sleeping
12. Shifting City
13. Underwater
14. Never Been Here Before
15. Invisible Ray
16. Vapour Trails

Disc Two...
BBC Session Versions:
01. Hiroshima Mon Amour (December 1983)
02. Twilight's Last Gleaming (December 1983)
03. In Mysterious Ways (June 1985)
04. Stars On Fire (June 1985)
05. Lose All Sense Of Time (June 1985)
06. Hanging In The Air (September 1985)
07. In Mysterious Ways (September 1985)
12 Inch Versions:
08. Endlessly
09. Like A Miracle
10. A Kind Of Wave
11. Stars On Fire
12. Enter The Angel
13. What Kind Of Girl
14. Endlessly (Sparkle Mix)

Disc Three [DVD]...
01. Miles Away
02. Europe After The Rain (Top Of The Pops)
03. Dancing Like A Gun
04. Endlessly
05. Stars On Fire
06. Lose All Sense Of Time

It's currently available to be pre-ordered on Amazon. The final release date will be announced shortly.

Rob

Cheers Rob

Cheers too!

4th purchase so far this year to add to Underpass cd promo, Rhapsody and Exponentialism

For the life of me I can't think what album the track "Underwater" is from, anyone able to put me out of my misery!

Sideways

Brian

Thanks Brian I have been tearing my hair out trying to think what it was from!!

Do the BBC sessions include the interviews?

No, the interviews aren't included - just the in-session tracks.

Rob

Loox good!

I'll post a fuller response later but for now I'm just curious as to why "Shine On" from the BBC June 1985 radio session is missing from the tracklisting?

When will it be available (at least for pre-order) in the U.S.?

The release date for Metadelic (in the UK at least) has been confirmed as Monday the 3rd of June, 2013.
Here's its Amazon pre-order link again.

Unfortunately, I haven't been advised of the U.S. release date yet - but I will try to find it out for you.

Rob

I have written the sleevenotes.

#justsayin'

Looking forward to reading those Martin, and indeed to getting the the whole package which looks very good.

As I mentioned previously I'm disappointed that "Shine On" from the BBC Radio 1 sessions is missing, likewise "Shadow Of Your Smile", though as that was a cover version I'm presuming copyright issues have led to its omission.

More broadly I have to admit to a certain disappointment with the tracklisting; whilst obviously the whole point of the release is to bring together John's more psychedelic music, it's a pity there isn't any previously unreleased material - the mythical "In The Glow" sessions, the "Identification Of A Woman" soundtrack or perhaps even the 1993 "Blitz" sessions.

(if you've never hard of Blitz, details are on this link)

http://www.ultravox.org.uk/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/68619/Blitz


As it stands it's difficult to see who "Metadelic" is aimed at; too obscure for the casual fan, nothing new for the diehards like ourselves.

Don't get me wrong, it's always nice to see a new John Foxx CD and of course it'll be nice to finally have the Radio sessions and 12" mixes on CD, it just feels like a missed opportunity to shut up people like me who've been banging on about unreleased material for years!

I've tried to give as much information about the (mythical) In The Glow album (and what tracks it may have contained) a number of times before - most recently on another thread. All that I can now do is to research it further and see what else (if anything) I can uncover.

Regarding the soundtrack to Identification of Woman. John's contribution to that film was only a few pieces of music - it's far from being an entire soundtrack. A number of other artists also contributed - including Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark, Japan, Peter Baumann, Tangerine Dream, XTC and Steve Hillage.



Metadelic includes an entire disc's worth of material (fourteen tracks) which has never been on CD before - including a previously unreleased version of Endlessly - the Sparkle Mix. The accompanying DVD features all of the promotional videos from between 1981 through to 1985 - including the Top Of The Pops performance of Europe After The Rain which has never been previously released officially in any format.



Regarding the five tracks (Meeting Venus, Sailing On Sunshine, Dancing Like A Gun, Eurotrash and Through My Sleeping) which John recorded (with Robin Simon, Paul Simon and Sue Rachel) back in 1993 under the name Blitz. Just because these tracks exist doesn't mean that they should be made available.

The same applies to the two BBC Session tracks mentioned previously - Shine On and The Shadow Of Your Smile.

Ultimately, whether or not material gets released depends on a number of things (copyright, availability, quality, performance, etc.) but in the end it always comes down to John, and while we may not always agree with his decision, we should at least respect it.

Rob

It's also an important question of context.

Metadelic is essentially an exploration into and presentation of the 'psychedelic' elements in his more high profile work - a side often overlooked and unknown to most of his mainstream fans, and key to our understanding of his work as a whole.
It was conceived as this at least fifteen years ago, before John moved into his resurgence alongside Louis Gordon.

It's a counterpoint to Metatronic (and Metamatic) - a balancing echo.
It is not an opportunity to gather all the unreleased things into one place, and has never been intended as such.

Maybe one day all the other bits and bobs will come out. But in their own right, not gathered together in a 'Rest of...' compilation

I'm really looking forward to this one, and seeing the artwork and reading the notes.

The tracklist seems very well thought out - the only 'sore thumb' for me is Dancing Like A Gun which I've never been too keen on and I don't really see the 'delic'ness to it .. maybe I will in context.

Interesting thing about 'Blitz' there, which sort of fills in those 'empty spaces' in John's career.

Congrats guv! Maybe when I see you next we'll have a pint or two to celebrate!

An item of interest regarding the TOTP performance of Europe After The Rain can be seen here.

It's the official BBC disc of the TOTP episode showing that JF actually opened the show.

Oddly the actual broadcast date isn't shown although I'm guessing 03.09.81 as it gives a release date of '8th September' ie. a few days after.
Maybe this info is given on the Metadelic DVD?

Also strange is that the number one single at the time, Soft Cell's Tainted Love, is nowhere to be seen.

Martin...any ideas?

The item you referred to is more usually known as a BBC Transcription Disc, and these weren't intended for the general public. Instead, they were produced in very small numbers (usually around a hundred copies each) by the BBC as a way of licencing their programmes to overseas broadcasters.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/BBC_Transcription_Services

The discs were never intended to be a literal reproduction of the 'corresponding' television show. Instead, it's more likely that a disc would've principally included material which set it apart from its predecessors. So that could explain why (in this instance) Tainted Love was omitted - especially if that track had been included on a previous Transcription Disc.

I'll check to see if the accompanying documentation is an accurate representation of the track-listing.

Rob

What could have been even better than John Foxx performing on TOTPs? John Foxx performing on TOTPs backed by Legs and Co 'dancing like a gun'.

Looking forward to this one. Great stuff Martin, looking forward to reading your words.

I am either having a memory hole or I was never aware there was a June radio session! Great, looking forward to hearing a new version of "Stars on Fire". Pleased also to see the 12 inch mixes - is the Sparkle mix a new one or was it made back in the day?

Nice cover too, good to see that photo gracing a front cover.

The Sparkle Mix of Endlessly was recorded 'back in the day' and has been unreleased until now.

Rob

The artwork for this release is stunning!

The photo on the cover gives nothing away. The booklet inside is really something else.

Cheers Rob (sorry, I'm not getting e-mail notifications of forum replies, don't know why..)
I'd imagined theses discs were something like that.

I also vaguely (but very vaguely) remember OMD being on the same show with 'Souvenir'...

Rob, many thanks for the response. I didn’t realize just how many factors you need to take into account when planning a release such as this! And I must stress also that my posts are borne out of a combination of curiosity and mild frustration rather than “having a dig”, as I know you and others on here have put a great deal of effort into this and many other releases from John’s ever-burgeoning back catalogue.

Nonetheless, the growth of the internet, streaming audio and file sharing means that “previously unreleased on CD” material isn’t quite as alluring as it once might have been. CD1 could probably be replicated as a Spotify playlist in a matter of minutes by the average web user, the 1980s videos are freely available on Youtube and the Radio 1 sessions were doing the rounds of users of this very forum back in 2007 on this ‘ere thread.

http://www.metamatic.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/22418/1

I will of course be buying Metadelic, but I can’t help feeling that throwing in a handful of not just unreleased but previously unavailable anywhere else tracks might have tipped the balance and made this an essential purchase not just for me but for everyone else with an interest in John’s more psychedelic output.

Ah, memories!

http://www.metamatic.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/topics/30853/Why_wasn_t_Europe_After_The_Ra

I think you make some really good and considered points there, Herbert.

The interweb has changed the 'availability' of all kinds of things and nothing is as 'rare and unreleased' as it was back in the day.
The whole dynamic of things is changing, recording contracts etc and all manner of Things AIn't What They Used To Be.

The same applies to the forum itself. In the current of social networking and the like, this place has struggled to keep up and meet the challenge of being up to date with news, chat etc. People (on the whole) go to Twitter and Facebook for news and exchange, and extracts of new material seep out through Soundcloud, youtube etc.

It is very difficult to keep up with all that. The points you made strike that particular nail resonantly and I'm sure all that is / will be taken into account when planning the context of future releases etc.

There is still a (very strong case) for tangible product though, and many many people (especially the hardcore of fans) want high-quality 'versions' of material in a CD collection. That's just what we like. Take the 12" singles form the 80s, for example. People have been baying for those on CD for years, and Metadelic is the perfect opportunity to fulfill that particular demand. And yet, I'm sure most people as you say, will already have recordings of them via bootlegs etc which are not hard to get among members of the forum.

An interesting conundrum.

All of which affects pricing too - this is an exceptionally good value release with some lovely artwork and images you won't have seen before.

Metadelic is here.

Ah, so you've got the one copy that's been distributed so far

I was hoping to see it in HMV (like the pile of Metatronics they had when that came out), but no, they didn't have ANY John Foxx CDs whatsoever. Just a piece of plastic with his name on, sadly lost somewhere in between John Fogerty and Sam Fox.

So even when you decide "maybe I'd like to have a good olde fashioned 'I'll buy this in the shop' experience, you can't.

That said, I'm on no particular rush for it. Amazon beckons.

Mine arrived yesterday

It's fantastic.Lovely package.



Brian

Yes, agreed .. it has alovely warm glow to it ...

Those stills/images look very interesting...

My copy turned up yesterday so I enjoyed a very pleasant evening playing the DVD, then CD2 and finally CD1.

As my earlier posts on this thread have indicated, whilst I'm disappointed that Endlessly (Sparkle Mix) apart, there's no "unheard" material (albeit plenty that's technically previously unreleased), it's still an excellent compilation, well packaged with an excellent and well-written booklet. The BBC session recordings also appear to have been cleaned up, with no irritating DJs waffling over the intros and outros.

It's particularly welcome for John's much-maligned In Mysterious Ways era to be in the spotlight; even though John himself has played down this part of his career, I maintain that the quality and emotional resonance of this material is as good as anything in his back catalogue.

I'll save the more indepth review for now, as I don't want to spoil any surprises for those who've not had a chance to listen to it as yet.

I agree! It's a lovely package all round and a great companion for Metatronic.

Quick question for Rob.

The version of the Miles of Miles Away video is not the full version according to Cromlech/Foxxvox on Twitter.

Is this a more recent re-edit?

YouTube http://m.youtube.com/#/watch?feature=youtu.be&v=uUxp5pE3HIc&desktop_uri=%2Fwatch%3Fv%3DuUxp5pE3HIc%26feature%3Dyoutu.be


Brian

Aye - I also popped on the DVD last night and was somewhat surprised to see this 'repurposed' Miles Away video ... lots of images of 1950 American cars and travelling and such like, and very haphazardly put together, I might add. Shame.

..and no 'Play all' button this time either (as per Metatronic).

Never mind. The TOTP Europe is brill (Foxx wonderfully missing his "vocal" intro cue) and Endlessly video mercifully unaltered.

Metadelic finally arrived yesterday - yay!

Thanks to all involved, especially Martin; fantastic notes guv - well done.

More on Metadelic later, just wanted to mention the Endlessly video as it's been some considerable time since I saw it and was shocked to see some familiar locations!

The bandstand bits were shot at Arnold Circus - just off Shoreditch High Street and a short walk from The Garden studios.

The other outside bits I know were filmed on Hampstead Heath, although I've no idea what building was used for the interior shots.

I discovered the bandstand whilst looking for somewhere to eat my sarnies at the last Cargo gig last year.
I was oblivious to the fact it had been used but I'm glad I've been there.

Brian

I received my copy of Metadelic on Tuesday. I'm really pleased with the contents. It's great to hear the 12" extended versions again. I haven't heard them since I got rid of most of my vinyl during the 90's(how I regret that now). The BBC sessions sound really good too. There's the odd gripe on here that there aren't any real rarities included. I guess what was available was included on the double disc reissues. Personally I've got no complaints.

Although I'm not particularly a fan of anything from In Mysterious Ways, it's nice to be able to get rid of the poor quality versions of the BBC sessions and 12" mp3s and have these cleaned up definitive versions. For me, Metadelic is more one 'for the collection', plus it sits nicely alongside Metatronic (though despite being shrink-wrapped, it looks like somebody has played rugby with my Metadelic case )

I really love all the thumbnail images on the booklet – fascinating. Therefore, how disappointed I was to open it and find nothing of the sort inside. I'll have to wait for the LP, so I can enjoy bigger images!

I'm yet to watch the DVD, but I'm guessing it's worth the price tag for this alone, being the first time they've been remastered and issued on DVD.

Friends of Arnold Circus are having their annual picnic / barbecue / festival thing next Sunday, 30th June.

If you're passing, like...

http://foac.org.uk

Is it a "bring your own spiral staircase" party?

Or you could play the DVD and press pause when appropriate!

On a different note, is it me or has "Through My Sleeping" been remixed? Or is it the same version as on the 2CD version of Shifting City?

Haha!

I need to double check, but I thought it was the slightly revamped version that appeared on the SC remaster.

Metadelic arrives in Luton:

http://www.lutontoday.co.uk/what-s-on/arts-culture/kevin-bryan-s-record-reviews-1-5597913

Random - but cool.

This is a copy of the same review that appeared in the Helensburgh Advertiser and the Dumbarton Recorder on 25th September.

I wonder where else it got to...

Thanks