Bleep

Fascinating release from Mute here. In 2018, almost two decades on from his previous solo LP Small Moon (1999), Chris Carter released Chris Carter’s Chemistry Lessons (CCCL) Volume One. At the same time, the Miscellany box set emerged to offer a more cohesive look at Carter’s solo output. Along with three of his full-lengths, Miscellany contained the rarities collection Archival Recordings 1973-1977. Now, for the first time, the Archival Recordings are given a standalone release.

This set allows us to chart Carter’s early musical development. The period of 1973-1977 covers the first four years of his twenties, a time that only just crosses over into his involvement with Throbbing Gristle. As such, these entries demonstrate the way in which Carter discovered his own musical aesthetic before putting it to good use alongside Cosey Fanni Tutti, Genesis P-Orridge and the rest of the gang.

The tracks here certainly set the scene for the music Carter would later make with Throbbing Gristle. Many of them are murky, eerie and thrilling electronic experiments, ones in which we can see the beginning of the industrial disco sound. However, it’s no surprise to find that these pieces also prefigure the music that Carter would later make on his own - the penchant for dubby delays and greater emphasis given to pure groove are tropes that Carter would return to many times across his discography.

Chris Carter’s Archival Recordings 1973-1977 shines new light on one of British electronic music’s most enduring figures.