Factory Benelux: February 2014

17 February 2014

Factory Benelux presents a new deluxe 2xCD edition of Sparks In A Dark Room, the second studio album by Dutch electronic group Minny Pops, originally released by Factory Benelux in May 1982.

Formed in Amsterdam in 1978 by vocalist Wally Van Middendorp, Minny Pops took their name from the primitive Korg drum machine which propelled their austere, post-punk rhythms and provocative live performances. An early association with Factory Records in Manchester saw the band work with producer Martin Hannett, share stages with Joy Division and New Order, and become the first Dutch band to record a BBC radio session for John Peel.

Sparks... is their second studio album, originally issued on Factory Benelux in May 1982. Self-produced by the group, the album was recorded without a guitarist and as a result sounded unusually polished and layered, its smooth sequencers and motorik rhythms often redolent of Moroder, Kraftwerk and Cabaret Voltaire. Bonus tracks include the non-album singles Time and Een Kus, as well as demo tracks and an EP by instrumental splinter project Smalts.

This new edition on FBN also adds a bonus disc featuring an entire live performance (13 tracks), recorded at Amsterdam Melkweg on 7 April 2012 on their 30th anniversary tour, with original members Wally Van Middendorp, Wim Dekker and Pieter Mulder joined by new guitarist Mark Ritsema.

Tracklist:
Disc 1:
1. Mountain
2. A Feeling
3. Tracking
4. Crack
5. Vital
6. Blue Roses
7. Black Eye
8. Wong
9. Experience
10. Dream
11. Night Visit
12. Trance
13. Time
14. Lights
15. Een Kus
16. Son
17. Secret Story (demo)
18. Schitterende Ogen (demo)
19. Time (demo)
20. Werktitel #7
21. Werktitel #5
22. Werktitel #1
23. Werktitel #8

Disc 2 (live):
1. Kogel
2. Blue Roses
3. Tracking
4. Vital
5. Goddess
6. Dolphin’s Spurt
7. Wong
8. Night Visit
9. Secret Story
10. Time
11. Trance
12. Mental
13. Son

The CD is available now by direct mailorder from Factory Benelux. Copies dispatched in special FBN slipcase.

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4 February 2014

Size matters!

Factory Benelux has two brand new tees on the way. One is a Section 25 shirt in striking safety orange with a colour-coded graphic celebrating From The Hip (Fact 90/FBN 33), thirty years young in March 2014. The other is a Crispy Ambulance shirt based on the sexy front cover design of FBN 4 ('Live On A Hot August Night') by Benoit Hennebert, with spineline. Both are high-quality Gildan shirts and will be available in all sizes (S, M, L, XL, XXL) so long as you order in advance! Each shirt costs £15.00 plus postage at cost. If you more two or more shirts in advance then the cost remains £15.00 per shirt including postage and packing, regardless of where you are in the world. Buy three or more and we might even give you an even bigger discount! Apologies if all this looks a bit greedy. It's just that pre-selling teeshirts seems to be the only way we can get sizing right and keep everyone happy.

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Tunnelvision Watching the Hydroplanes FBN 38		The Durutti Column Obey the Time FBN 274 / CD
Nine track anthology on clear vinyl by Tunnelvision, including their 1981 Factory single Watching the Hydroplanes (produced by Martin Hannett) and demo tracks produced by Peter Hook. Outer sleeve printed in PMS silver and green. Limited edition of 500 copies, includes digital copy (MP3).		Remastered 2xLP and boxed 3xCD editions of the classic 1990 album by Vini Reilly, with bonus tracks including singles, remixes, outtakes and a previously unreleased live performance from Manchester recorded in 1990.

Section 25 Always Now FBN 3-045		Various Artists New Order Presents Be Music FBN 60 / CD
Remastered 5xLP boxed edition of the classic 1981 album produced by Martin Hannett. Bonus disc includes singles, outtakes, complete live concert, improvised albums The Key of Dreams and Illuminus Illumina, as well as an unreleased live jam with New Order.		3xCD and double vinyl collection of mixes and productions by members of New Order, including tracks by Section 25, Factory Floor, ACR, Marnie, The Other Two, Quando Quango, Marcel King, Beat Club and New Order themselves.