Tolerance - Anonym

Our fellow blogger Die or DIY is posting a run of releases from the fantastic (and remarkably prescient) Vanity Records label, so what the hell... I'm going to join in the fun. In case you haven't discovered them yet, Vanity Records only existed for a few years (from 1979 until 1981). During their truncated tenure, they put out some LPs, a handful of flexi-discs, and finally some spectacular cassettes of Japanese proto-techno/industrial/"minimal synth" madness by artists who, for the most part, never made any other records. One of the finest gems from their gem-heavy catalog were the two LPs by Tolerance. "Anonym", from 1979, is a classic LP by a band that only released two albums and a flexi, all on Vanity Records, then promptly decided that they had better things to do.  I can't tell you anything more about them because (like most of the artists Vanity would briefly shine a light on) aside from these three releases, they left virtually no trace. Did the band members form other bands afterwards? Who knows? (It should go without saying that if you know, please feel free to educate us in the comments)

This album shares some superficial qualities with contemporaries TG and Nocturnal Emissions (stark production, low-fidelity murk, machine rhythms) but also somehow evoke the late-night hush of Young Marble Giants on heavy xanax. If you aren't sure what to make of this one, then you are comfortably in the majority. Oh, but just you wait... because the record they made a year later is even better and further out then this one. Fans of the Zero Gravity and Sonic Plate/Far East Experimental Sounds labels take note!

Tolerance - Anonym

10 comments:

  1. YESSSSS!!!! pleez more vanity label!!!

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  2. Thanks for this. The house is now waking up to this soundscape.

    No doubt you are already familiar with it...
    Not a Vanity release, but related. 沫 Foam on the Ylem label

    http://www.discogs.com/Various-%E6%B2%AB-Foam/release/1630058

    http://pettyvendetta.blogspot.com/2012/05/va-foam-dlp-ylem-ydl-0000-1981.html

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  3. Oi! What d'ya think y'doing!? Usurping my next posts in his manner? Good stuff though. One Vanity release I haven't got is BMG's "Background Music"....have yee that?
    Cheers JZ

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  4. hahaha ... the Mrs had a dozen Vanity releases scheduled and then you mercilessly stole her thunder, I could hear her tears from here!

    Yep, BMG is one of them so no doubt that will appear soon ...

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  5. Well I hate making grown women cry.....well....I don't really,but thats not a popular stance is it? I'm sure there's room for both of our blog spaces to plug the Vanity legend. Two different points of view on the same subject is a healthy situation,so i'm told by certain politicians on me telly box. Looking forward to the BMG post anyways'

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  6. Hi JZ! Yep, I had a large amount of the Vanity ready to go, and then... psychic convergence in blogland! Haha! But do address your query, I do have BMG "Background Music" and will post it later in the week. It's a good one. All the tapes and the rest of the vain vinyl is yours for Die or DIY, though (spoiler alert) I've got the next Tolerance LP coming tomorrow morning. After that and BMG, my vanity will cease.

    Now, I would be chuffed to bits if you had any of the Vanity flexis. I've got exactly none of those things, and wish to correct that gap in my nerdly knowledge.

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  7. In that case i shall shelve my Tolerance posts, although i am also lacking That Aunt Sally LP,and the Morio Agata LP (005)....but,on the bright side, I have the Morio Agata Flexi-disc,and the Die Krupps Flexi. So not too far off the Vanity completists dream? Wasn't gonna post them,but will now,just 'cus you asked.

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  8. Nice ... I've got the Aunt Sally and the Morio Agata so will post them soon!

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  9. Caligari:
    great!!!

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  10. this is a wonderful discovery...thank you...

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