Tuxedomoon
Half Mute

Steve Brown, Blaine Reininger, and Peter "Principle" Dachert. Three American geniuses who, in 1977, in San Francisco, raised their voices to the roaring and multifaceted British post-punk-industrial scene. They are accompanied by the cyber influence of Chrome and the collage approach of the Residents with "Not Available". Even today, "No Tears" from their early period strikes resoundingly and manages to touch the heart even of the Matia Bazar with "Tango". The synthetic sounds of the initial new wave and the cultured avant-gardes from the violin and sax flourishes greatly enhance the sound of the combo. For the completion of the band's image, style, and setup, the first 45s, singles, and concerts are essential.

From the black-tinged funky sax, at times raw, they move to the consecration in 1980 with the first album "Half Mute". The line is minimalist, with an almost progressive/Canterbury approach, and originality, tenacity and foresight are evident from the very first seconds. The year is significant for the continuity flow of the new wave/post-punk scene, and works like PIL's "Metal Box" and Pop Group's "Y" have already been released, while terrifying anarchies are glimpsed in This Heat. The evocative cover of "Half Mute" captivates us with the pink of the scene, creating suspense, oppression, and abstraction. The bass lines will be more essential than those of The Cure for figures like our own Maroccolo and perfectly interact with the sax in "59 To 1" and "Fifth Column".

From the start, one understands the idea of creating short and structured compositions but with the immediacy and space for improvisation underneath. The alienating beauty in fertile grounds like theirs, Echo & The Bunnymen, XTC, and Gang Of Four is sensed. Therefore, the late Seventies is also characterized by a disarming liveliness of the music scene. One should not dwell on the frivolous and mushy disco music scene or the anonymity of some funky choices. It's not just about pomade, teased hair, and lights. It's a phase of the soul's darkening, an excessive awareness of life's emptiness, and many minds diving into atonality, sparse and neurotic forms.

The Tuxedomoon of this masterpiece are three ghosts that appear and hide in reality, showing a very hidden side of the spirit and intriguing us in their fog. They are shadows that play chamber music in a room where the windows of our mind open. And the sense of vulnerability is as high as that of the ear's contact with Einsturzende Neubauten's "Die Zeichnungen Des Patienten O.T.". This particular music scene almost maternally heals the mind's perversions, justifying them, while everything seems already seen, predictable, and empty. It's dangerous to venture into this, but it is truly advisable for those with a heightened sensitivity, a critical spirit that spills over not only in listening to music but also in daily life.

These laments of the most desolate Eno and the Dadaism explained by the beauty of the sax are the components that leave a mark in this work. Free jazz is the alibi to transgress one's ailments, fears, and beliefs. The melody is impregnated with dissonances, controlled by choking the sounds and establishing a masochistic relationship with them that leaves no room for the listener's imagination. Each track is the manifesto of all this, and no other work will be able to be as expressive. "Desire" and "In A Manner Of Speaking" are the only subsequent glimmers that the band will cross, but it's the exquisite importance of the compositional structure that must be savored.