Ensemble Pittoresque - For This Is Past (Clogsontronics, 1983)

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Ensemble Pittoresque formed in 1977 when "The Sex Pistols, Kraftwerk, Can, Faust, Fripp & Eno, Pere Ubu and a wide variety of mainstream artists pounded the world with their personal pinnacles of artistic brilliance." Many see Ensemble Pittoresque as fore-bearers of "cold wave," whatever that is... And while it may be true that there would be no Cold Cave without Ensemble Pittoresque, I hear this more as a cross between Bowie's Low and This Heat, whatever that means...

Most songs follow a deceptively simple early synth-pop format, and do it incredibly well, but I'm not sure that I would be discussing this album at all if it weren't for "Auratorium." The first time I put on For This Is Past I was half-asleep and ready to call it a night when this track grabbed my attention and really threw me back into the music. I sat up wide-awake until the record was finished. "Auratorium" stands out from the rest of the record because although it may not be, its choral samples give it a much denser feel. Its forward thrust gives the song an almost proto-house feel. It's just exciting music, plain and simple. Elsewhere "Maitre Satori" uses classic "O Superman" vocoders to great effect. Every song here is a synth-pop classic. It's still available from their label's website, and I believe you get both the LP and CD when you order it, so you should feel even more inclined to pick up this fantastic record!