With the recent passing of Tony Wilson a few weeks ago, I’d like to shed some light on some lesser known Factory/Factory Benelux bands. Everyone knows New Order, Joy Division, Happy Mondays, and to a lesser extent, A Certain Ratio(who we here at Camp Res disagree on….or I should say rather, no one likes except for me.)
First up is Section 25, who took their name from a British mental health provision. This track is from their third album From the Hip from 1983. For my money, this is an obvious influence on early Detroit techno and Chicago house.
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Section 25 - Looking From A Hilltop
Next up is The Wake out of Glasgow. Before they were indie darlings on Sarah Records, they put out several singles and two albums on Factory.
On Our Honeymoon was from a self-released single that intially got the attention of New Order’s manager, Rob Gretton.
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The Wake - On Our Honeymoon
It’s hyper, minimal, and kinda tinny, but I love it nonetheless. They really start to shine on the 1982 album Harmony. Very Factory-sounding, warm, bouncing bass line pop perfection!
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The Wake - Testament
Okay, time to lace up them skates ya’ll. Various New Order members, but most notably Bernard Sumner and Peter Hook, produced many great 12″s under the moniker of “Be Music”. The productions range from cold and arty to warm and organic, the latter of which I think they did fantastically.
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52nd Street - Look Into My Eyes
Total paradise garage jam. Now that’s some shit to skate to.
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Marcel King - Reach For Love
By the way, the Marcel King track is, according to the Happy Monday’s Shaun Ryder, the best single released on Factory. Stack up them trivia points!
And finally, here’s some weirdness from Stanton Miranda and Carter Burwell’s calloboration, Thick Pigeon. Carter Burwell later went on to score films, including all of the Coen Brothers films(Big Lebowski, Fargo, Raising Arizona, etc).
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Marcel King - Thick Pigeon - Troglodytes
All these tracks and more have been re-released on LTM. They do tons of Factory, Factory Benelux, and Les Disques du Crepuscule reissues so get on it. I’ll have none of those “but it’s out of print, Mr. Jamz” excuses.
Buy LTM releases stateside here at Darla, or at their own site here.
-R.Jamz
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