28.04.2008.
Art Bears - Art Box (1978-80) (@256)
(Review from progweed.net, progarchives.com)
In the late 70s, the seemingly monolithic Henry Cow, founders of the Rock in Opposition movement, found themselves split down the middle: Tim Hodgkinson and Lindsay Cooper wanted to write longer pieces, while Fred Frith and Chris Cutler wanted to work on song-based material. The result was the dissolution of Henry Cow, with the longer pieces being released as Henry Cow's Western Culture and the shorter vocal tracks being released as the first Art Bears album, Hopes and Fears.
Art Bears are a branch of Henry Cow and include vocalist extraordinaire Dagmar Krause, Chris Cutler on percussion, and Fred Frith on guitar/violin/keyboards/etc. They were longtime members of the seminal English radical political avant-garde art rock band Henry Cow. Their music is very high level progressive/experimental rock, with shades of ambient and electronic thrown in. Like much RIO-influenced music, it's not so much progressive, as experimental, "rehearsal intensive" rock.
Since their debut was recorded during the same sessions as the last Cow album, Hopes and Fears features several members of Henry Cow as guests, and sounds somewhat more Cow-like than the other albums. The esoteric Winter Songs is something rather different: a concept album based on French cathedral carvings, with a dry, stark sound to match. The World As It Is Today, the Bears' final album, is a bitter, sarcastic critique of capitalism, complete with heavy-handed Marxist lyrics from Cutler and a blocky, strident sound.
If you are an adventurous listener, willing to explore the world of Art Bears should look no further. This 6 CD box set includes the remastered versions of all the 3 albums in whole, plus bonus material including previously unreleased tracks.
Track List :
CD1
01. On Suicide - 1:27
02. The Dividing Line - 4:08
03. Joan - 3:02
04. Maze - 5:04
05. In Two Minds - 8:44
06. Terrain - 3:48
07. The Tube - 3:04
08. The Dance - 5:07
09. Pirate Song - 1:25
10. Labyrinth - 2:13
11. Riddle - 2:46
12. Moeris Dancing - 5:05
13. Piers - 2:12
CD2
01. The Bath of Stars - 1:45
02. First Things First - 2:46
03. Gold1:41
04. The Summer Wheel - 2:40
05. The Slave - 3:33
06. The Hermit - 2:53
07. Rats and Monkeys - 3:09
08. The Skeleton - 3:05
09. The Winter Wheel - 3:03
10. Man and Boy - 3:18
11. Winter-War - 3:05
12. Force - 0:47
13. Three Figures - 1:43
14. Three Wheels - 3:35
CD3
01. The Songs of Investment Capital Overseas - 2:38
02. Thruth - 2:53
03. Freedom - 3:17
04. (Armed) Peace - 2:27
05. Civilisation - 4:38
06. Democracy - 2:18
07. The Song of the Martyrs - 4:01
08. Law - 0:48
09. The Song of the Monopolists - 1:45
10. The Song of the Dignity of Labour under Capital - 2:24
11. Albion Awake! - 4:08
CD4
01. John Rose - The Violin in Winter - 3:48
02. Ossatura - Tranne Lacrimae (Bar Tears) - 4:06
03. Otomo Yoshihide-Ground Zero - On Suicide - 5:42
04. Massimo Simonini - Artico & Baci - 3:31
05. When-Lars Pedersen - The Tube - 2:38
06. Warrick Sony-Kalahari Surfers-DJ Ballard - Rats & Monkeys Remix - 3:08
07. John Oswald - Time-Bye - 5:01
08. Chris Cutler - Three Bear Rooms - 4:41
09. Roberto Musci-Giovanni Venosta-Massimo Mariani - The World as it Hopes in Winter - 3:51
10. The Residents - The Bath of Stars-The Skeleton - 4:49
11. Tokusa-No-Kandakara (91 Pieces Of 'C') - Yasushi Utsunomiya - 2:57
12. Herb Heinz - The Skeleton - 2:52
13. Martin Archer - Long Winter - 4:58
14. Jon Leidecker-Wobbly - Winter-War-Force - 3:59
15. Fred Frith - Everything Again - 4:14
16. Jocelyn Robert - Coquelicot - 7:04
17. Art Bears - Collapse - 4:47
18. Art Bears - All Hail - 4:08
CD5
01. Roger Kleier - Armed Peace Remix - 2:33
02. Bob Drake - Song of the Monopolists - 1:14
03. Andrea Rocca - The Three Wheels Remix - 2:42
04. Vitor Rua - Gold - 1:20
05. Brian Woodbury - The Fourth Wheel - 4:00
06. Chris Cutler - The Three Figures - 1:03
07. Bob Drake - First Things First - The Mix That Should Not Be - 2:54
08. Stevan Tickmayer - Monopolists Democracy - 4:17
09. Annie Gosfield - All is Encompassed in the Night (part 1) - 1:35
10. Annie Gosfield - All is Encompassed in the Night (part 2) - 1:35
11. Annie Gosfield - All is Encompassed in the Night (part 3) - 1:29
12. Biota - The Summer Mix (part 1) - 4:08
13. Biota - The Summer Mix (part 2) - 2:47
14. Biota - The Summer Mix (part 3) - 4:10
15. Biota - The Summer Mix (part 4) - 3:01
16. Thomas Dimuzio - Democracy Remix - 4:18
17. Christian Marclay - Some Truth - 4:43
18. Art Bears - Carved in Stone (Rebirth) - 1:46
CD6
01. Bob Drake - And the Comedy Bears - 0:41
02. Duck and Cover - The Song of Investment Capital Overseas - 3:42
03. John Oswald - Summer-Freedom - 2:40
04. Art Bears - The Riddle (live) - 2:21
05. Art Bears - First Things First (live) - 1:55
06. Art Bears - March from The Dance (live) - 1:05
07. Art Bears - The Hermit (live) - 2:37
08. Biota - The Winter Mix - 4:29
09. Fred Frith - Wheels - 3:09
10. Yasushi Utsunomiya - Tokusa-no-kandakara (91 pieces of 'C), II - 3:32
11. Art Bears - Coda to Man and Boy (live) - 7:17
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