THROBBING GRISTLE The Taste of TG A Beginner's Guide to the Music of Throbbing Gristle Release Date - 3rd May 2004
When dubbing Throbbing Gristle as the Wreckers of Civilisation, the late Tory MP Sir Nicholas Fairbairn couldn't have provided the industrial music/art/guerrilla media troupe with a better manifesto. For Genesis P. Orridge, Cosey Fanni Tutti, Peter Christopherson and Chris Carter, Throbbing Gristle advocated total musical and personal freedom and the self-empowerment to achieve it. Between 1975 and 1981 they troubled eardrums, shattered preconceptions and changed lives, and the repercussions of their sonic, ideological and industrial experiments are still being felt today. These repercussions were most recently highlighted by some of today's electronic peers paying homage to TG's pioneering experiments. "Mutant TG" (novamute) is the first ever TG remix collection whereby contemporary producers such as Carl Craig, Two Lone Swordsmen and Simon Ratcliffe provide stunning reworks of classic TG. Now with "The Taste Of TG"you can sample their unadulterated majesty, a Beginner's guide to the enigmatic and elusive Throbbing Gristle. Unlike many of their punk peers Throbbing Gristle deployed their music as a weapon attacking the apparatus of the music industry. TG set up their own imprint, Industrial Records, for the distribution of their noises and even incorporated the art gallery practice of making special limited edition hand-assembled LPs, pre-packaged videos and live cassettes. In addition, they sent out regular pop profile communiqués, including special postcards, patches and badges, which detailed the activities of the various members. Nothing was beneath them. TG have never been afraid to confront, confound and expose. Whilst 1978's 'United' sounds like an eerie football chant referencing occultist Aleister Crowley's "Love Is The Law.", over a crackled electro groove, its B-side - named for the chemical used in Nazi death chambers, 'Zyklon B Zombie' was deliberately recorded so as to sound like it was being broadcast through a haze of gas. Other equally disturbing TG classics include the queasy 'Hamburger Lady', where Genesis intones a letter describing the plight of a woman with horrific fat burns in a feeble voice echoed by nagging electronics. TG also often displayed a more harmonious and gentle side that was adeptly shown on their most accessible album, 1979's "20 Jazz Funk Greats" and the disco hypnosis of 'Hot on The Heels of Love' whilst 'Weeping' originally from "The Third And Final Report" reverberates beautifully around four types of acoustic violin through a space echo. Indeed, if tracks such as 'Dead On Arrival' further underpin TG's status as electronic funk pioneers then the ultra-disturbing and grating 'We Hate You (Little Girls)' seems only to further prove that TG were and still are unique outsiders who consistently buckled the mould and in doing so laid the foundations for today's maverick producers. As Throbbing Gristle were to later state. "We wanted to re-invest Rock music with content, motivation and risk. Our records were documents of attitudes and experiences and observations by us and other determinedly individual outsiders. Fashion was an enemy, style irrelevant." Chris Carter, Peter Christopherson, Genesis P-Orridge and Cosey Fanni Tutti have announced that they will briefly regroup to present RE~TG, a weekend of music, art, film and performance culminating in an exclusive set by Throbbing Gristle, live for the first time in 23 years and never to be repeated. This is the final ever TG show. The location will be Pontin's Holiday Resort, Camber Sands, Sussex, UK. RE~TG will take place on 14th-16th May 2004. Also available: "TG+" released on Mute on 26th January 2004 - contains CD releases of the final ten live Throbbing Gristle shows, the companion to the legendary TG24 box set. "Mutant TG" released on novamute on 29th March 2004 - remixes of classic TG by Carl Craig, Two Lone Swordsmen, Simon Ratcliffe, CarterTutti, Hedonastik and Motor. The Taste of TG - A Beginner's Guide to the Music of Throbbing Gristle TRACKLISTING: Industrial Introduction Distant Dreams - Part Two Persuasion U.S.A. Something Came Over Me Dead On Arrival Hot On The Heels Of Love We Hate You (Little Girls) United Cabaret Voltaire (Live at Industrial Training College Wakefield 1st July 1978) Exotic Functions Zyklon B Zombie Walkabout Hamburger Lady His Arm Was Her Leg (Live at The Factory Manchester 18th May 1979 - Edit) www.throbbing-gristle.com www.mute.com/tg www.novamute.com
