Well informed preview of Landscape A Go-Go.

Post-Punk Monk 23 March 2023

Landscape Career Box “Landscape-A-Go-Go” Now Ready For Launch On July 21st

Posted on March 23, 2023 by postpunkmonk

In January we teased the first notice of the upcoming Landscape ultrabox without too much to know about it, other than the general gist of it, and since then we’ve had comments on that post from band member John L. Walters; always good to hear from the actual participants! The other day we got the e-mail with the full details and the box of digital delights will be released on July 21, 2013. And the pre-order is now live in the Landscape website store. And now we have full details on the package.

DISC 1 • Landscape (1979)

Japan

Lost In the Small Ads

The Mechanical Bride

Neddy Sindrum

Kaptin Whorlix

Sonja Henie

Many’s the Time

Highly Suspicious

Gotham City

Wandsworth Plain

Caterpillar Tracks [Live In Norwich 1979]

The High Window [Live In Norwich 1979]

Kaptin Whorlix [Live In Norwich 1979]

The Mechanical Bride [Live In Norwich 1979]

Highly Suspicious [Live In Norwich 1979]

Stranger [Live In London 1977]

DISC 2 • From the Tea-Rooms of Mars … to the Hell-Holes of Uranus [1981]

European Man

Shake the West Awake

Computer Person

Alpine Tragedy

Sisters

Face of the 80s

New Religion

Einstein a Go-Go

Norman Bates

The Doll’s House

From the Tea-Rooms of Mars … a) Beguine

From the Tea-Rooms of Mars … b) Mambo

From the Tea-Rooms of Mars … c) Tango

When the Chips Are Down

European Man [7-inch]

Norman Bates [7-inch with narration]

Electro New Religion

European Man [12-inch]

Einstein a Go-Go [12-inch]

Norman Bates [12-inch without narration]

DISC 3 • Manhattan Boogie-Woogie [1982]

One Rule For the Rich

Manhattan Boogie-Woogie

Colour Code

The Long Way Home

It’s Not My Real Name

Bad Times

When You Leave Your Lover

It’s Not My Real Name [12-inch]

Back On Your Heads [7-inch B-side]

(A Case Of) Mistaken Identity

Manhattan Boogie-Woogie [instrumental mix]

The Long Way Home [instrumental mix]

Bad Times [‘Good Times’ instrumental mix]

One Rule For the Rich [instrumental mix]

DISC 4 • Before and After

U2XME1X2MUCH EP (1977) • WORKERS PLAYTIME EP (1978) • LIVE IN LONDON UNRELEASED (1977-78) • LANDSCAPE III (1983)

U2XME1X2MUCH

Don’t Gimme No Rebop

Sixteen

Workers’ Playtime

Nearly Normal

Too Many Questions (Don’t Ask Me Why)

The Camera Never Lies [Live in London ’77-’78]

Bagel Street Blues [Live in London ’77-’78]

Sleazy Feet [Live in London ’77-’78]

Eugenie [Live in London ’77-’78]

Watt is Knott [Live in London ’77-’78]

Goldilox and the Jelly Bean Shuffle [Live in London ’77-’78]

Tribute [Live in London ’77-’78]

So Good, So Pure, So Kind [7-inch]

The Fabulous Neutrinos [7-inch]

You Know How To Hurt Me [7-inch]

Feel So Right [7-inch]

(I’d Love To) Fly Away [7-inch]

DISC 5 • Xcursions 2 Other Versions

Rare Mixes • LANDSCAPE III • BITS AND PIECES

Einstein a Go-Go [‘Einstein on the floor’, 2023 remix]

One Rule For the Rich [UK cassette]

Japan [12-inch]

It’s Not My Real Name [UK 7-inch]

Colour Code [UK cassette]

When You Leave Your Lover [UK cassette]

(A Case of) Mistaken Identity

Back On Your Heads

(I’d Love to) Fly Away [12-inch]

So Good, So Pure, So Kind [12-inch]

You Know How To Hurt Me [12-inch]

The Fabulous Neutrinos [12-inch]

Feel So Right [12-inch]

Norman Bates [short version without narration, released as 12-inch]

It’s Not My Real Name [UK cassette]

Einstein a Go-Go 7-inch [UK ‘no phones’ radio mix]

The package is five CDs in card sleeves in the clamshell box format; all designed by John Warwicker, who designed the first two Landscape albums. There will be a 52 page book of liner notes in that box; fat with info and photos. I’m most interested in hearing the band’s first two self-released EPs which were the first six tracks on disc 4. I’ve heard material from the first album, and it’s synthetic instrumental music; poppy but not quite the Technopop that were the second and third albums. But the band’s origins were said to be Jazz Fusion, so I’m wondering exactly what awaits my ears.

Looking over the track listings reveals a wealth of material including live recordings from this band who evolved into such advanced electronics that I can’t have imagined them playing live in the pre-MIDI universe of 1981-1982. There are also lots of alternate mixes, but not everything under the sun. The song “Eastern Girls” from “Manhattan Boogie-Woogie” was conspicuous in its absence. The LP and 12″ mixes were not here, although its B-side was. I have the US promo 12″ of “It’s Not My Real Name” what might be down to US RCA having a go at the title with the band’s masters at their disposal only coming from the UK side of the business. A not uncommon scenario.

But that also takes me to one of the key points here. Every track in the set was mastered from a master tape. To wit:

All tracks were mastered from high-resolution digitisations of the original analogue master tapes. The ‘previously released’ tracks from the analogue stereo two tracks, the ‘remixes’ and ‘instrumentals’ from digitisations of the original analogue multi-tracks, and the ‘live’ tracks were mastered from edited digitisations of the original analogue stereo live recordings.

from the Landscape webstore page

So every note here is mastered with integrity from the best possible source. A not inconsiderate perk in this fallen world! And how much will this set us back? A modest $47.00 for the huge job of pulling this together. And the first 500 copies sold in the band’s webstore comes with the photo print below of the band in their finery, posing with their de facto sixth member; the Roland Microcomposer MC-8; without whom their mature sound would not exist! Every member of the band will sign the free print – yow! That’s great attention to detail.

Do we want this? Of course we do! I’m looking forward to finally getting the “European Man” 12″ version on CD and truth be told, would be buying this if only for that! If this exerts a gravitational pull on your wallet too, then D.J. hit that button!