International Observer: Recent Episodes
International Observer
The chief perpetrator of the International Observer experience is keyboardist, songwriter and producer Tom Bailey.
Following the extraordinary success of his post-punk synth-pop group The Thompson Twins, production and writing work for the likes of Deborah Harry, and the ambient techno of his Babble project, Tom Bailey was lured to the exotic climes of Aotearoa/New Zealand.
New Zealand culture has a long history of appreciation for reggae and dub, along with more recent blends like hip hop. this, along with NZ's balmy climes, created the perfect inspiration for Tom's exploration of the dub artform he had deeply loved since the seething post-punk infatuation of the music in the late 70s. Together with sparring partner Rakai, Tom initiated International Observer, a sound system that has quietly infiltrated various Auckland events over the past five years, creating a legendary reputation for marathon five-hour sets of exquisitely-crafted slo-mo dubscapes.
Early in 2002, having amassed enough material for a boxed set, Tom set about pruning the oevre down to an ideal International Observer primer, called 'Seen'. While he attempted to keep the wraps on this absurdly tasty release, it was somewhat inevitable that previews were sneaked out of seclusion, resulting in extensive radio play worldwide and eager members of the press corps frothing at the mouth for IO morsels. It's been called the lushest, deepest, most caringly crafted dub-a-tronic exploration ever released, a cunning experiment in melodic instrumental dub that, without losing its edge, makes for the most gorgeously seductive meditative listening experience. It was released in NZ by Beautiful Music, and the rest of the world by Different Drummer.
This release was followed in 2005 by "All Played Out", a selection of live and sound system favourites that for one reason or another did not make it onto "Seen". Released only in New Zealand and Australia on the cult Auckland label, Round Trip Mars, helmed by the inimitable Stinky Jim, it followed its predecessor into the hands, boxes and players of discerning dubheads.
Some of the tracks from “All Played Out” finally made it out worldwide in 2007 on the “Heard” album through Dubmission Records. Critically acclaimed by the press, it also featured newer tracks and classics such as “The International”.
His third album, “Felt”, came out in September 2009.
Since then his attention has been diverted to his other projects: the Holiwater Band, the Bailey-Salgado Project and his revived pop career as ‘The Thompson Twins’s Tom Bailey’.
Thankfully dub has lured him back into the studio once more, and fresh cuts are promised for 2017.
The third release in my Zoonotic series, Bat considers freedom, love and the future of monarchy, all in a dubwise fashion, of course!
The third release in my Zoonotic series, Bat considers freedom, love and the future of monarchy, all in a dubwise fashion, of course!
The third release in my Zoonotic series, Bat considers freedom, love and the future of monarchy, all in a dubwise fashion, of course!
The third release in my Zoonotic series, Bat considers freedom, love and the future of monarchy, all in a dubwise fashion, of course!
The third release in my Zoonotic series, Bat considers freedom, love and the future of monarchy, all in a dubwise fashion, of course!
Mink is the second installment of my Zoonotic series, following on from Pangolin. Over five tracks, I ponder on life, nature and isolation, accompanied by languid beats, jaunty melodies and rolling dub basslines.
Mink is the second installment of my Zoonotic series, following on from Pangolin. Over five tracks, I ponder on life, nature and isolation, accompanied by languid beats, jaunty melodies and rolling dub basslines.
Mink is the second installment of my Zoonotic series, following on from Pangolin. Over five tracks, I ponder on life, nature and isolation, accompanied by languid beats, jaunty melodies and rolling dub basslines.
Mink is the second installment of my Zoonotic series, following on from Pangolin. Over five tracks, I ponder on life, nature and isolation, accompanied by languid beats, jaunty melodies and rolling dub basslines.
Mink is the second installment of my Zoonotic series, following on from Pangolin. Over five tracks, I ponder on life, nature and isolation, accompanied by languid beats, jaunty melodies and rolling dub basslines.
Five fresh dubs from the Observer studio, inspired by recent events, Lauren Drescher's Zoonotic print series and our rapacious approach to the natural world.
Five fresh dubs from the Observer studio, inspired by recent events, Lauren Drescher's Zoonotic print series and our rapacious approach to the natural world.
Five fresh dubs from the Observer studio, inspired by recent events, Lauren Drescher's Zoonotic print series and our rapacious approach to the natural world.
Five fresh dubs from the Observer studio, inspired by recent events, Lauren Drescher's Zoonotic print series and our rapacious approach to the natural world.
Five fresh dubs from the Observer studio, inspired by recent events, Lauren Drescher's Zoonotic print series and our rapacious approach to the natural world.
The release of Free from the Dungeons of Dub heralds the end of a particular chapter in International Observer's runnings.
He was three deep into his sense orientated series of albums (Seen, Heard and Felt) when he was lured back to his previous incarnation as an international pop star. While that has been the Twins fans' pleasure, it has been the dub world's loss, as there has been no significant body of new Observer material for the last 9 years.
It hasn’t been all bad though, as the time out of the dub studio inspired a trawl through the Observer archives where dubs a plenty were found locked away on unmarked discs in the corner of his eyrie.
This mission into the dub vault inspired two series of releases: the first was the collections Touched and Retouched, which focused on the remixes he had done over the last 25 years of acts including platinum selling pop stars like Bic Runga and Stellar*, underground electron herders such as Pitch Black and Banco de Gaia, as well as modern reggae stars The Black Seeds and even his own post-Twins act Babble.
The second series began with a selection of Observer originals that had only been released on CD in New Zealand, followed up with a mix of new tunes and some old ones that had been forgotten in the towering pile of master discs, and then delivered some of the big guns from his live show, honed over the years into bass wobbling weapons.
Free from the Dungeons of Dub is a selection of thirteen tracks from this second series, gilded with the addition of three brand new dubs recorded over the last 18 months, one of which is an exclusive remix of the title track of his brand new pop album, Science Fiction.
Now all the archives have been freed, here's hoping that he can find the time to address the final two senses ……………
The release of Free from the Dungeons of Dub heralds the end of a particular chapter in International Observer's runnings.
He was three deep into his sense orientated series of albums (Seen, Heard and Felt) when he was lured back to his previous incarnation as an international pop star. While that has been the Twins fans' pleasure, it has been the dub world's loss, as there has been no significant body of new Observer material for the last 9 years.
It hasn’t been all bad though, as the time out of the dub studio inspired a trawl through the Observer archives where dubs a plenty were found locked away on unmarked discs in the corner of his eyrie.
This mission into the dub vault inspired two series of releases: the first was the collections Touched and Retouched, which focused on the remixes he had done over the last 25 years of acts including platinum selling pop stars like Bic Runga and Stellar*, underground electron herders such as Pitch Black and Banco de Gaia, as well as modern reggae stars The Black Seeds and even his own post-Twins act Babble.
The second series began with a selection of Observer originals that had only been released on CD in New Zealand, followed up with a mix of new tunes and some old ones that had been forgotten in the towering pile of master discs, and then delivered some of the big guns from his live show, honed over the years into bass wobbling weapons.
Free from the Dungeons of Dub is a selection of thirteen tracks from this second series, gilded with the addition of three brand new dubs recorded over the last 18 months, one of which is an exclusive remix of the title track of his brand new pop album, Science Fiction.
Now all the archives have been freed, here's hoping that he can find the time to address the final two senses ……………
The release of Free from the Dungeons of Dub heralds the end of a particular chapter in International Observer's runnings.
He was three deep into his sense orientated series of albums (Seen, Heard and Felt) when he was lured back to his previous incarnation as an international pop star. While that has been the Twins fans' pleasure, it has been the dub world's loss, as there has been no significant body of new Observer material for the last 9 years.
It hasn’t been all bad though, as the time out of the dub studio inspired a trawl through the Observer archives where dubs a plenty were found locked away on unmarked discs in the corner of his eyrie.
This mission into the dub vault inspired two series of releases: the first was the collections Touched and Retouched, which focused on the remixes he had done over the last 25 years of acts including platinum selling pop stars like Bic Runga and Stellar*, underground electron herders such as Pitch Black and Banco de Gaia, as well as modern reggae stars The Black Seeds and even his own post-Twins act Babble.
The second series began with a selection of Observer originals that had only been released on CD in New Zealand, followed up with a mix of new tunes and some old ones that had been forgotten in the towering pile of master discs, and then delivered some of the big guns from his live show, honed over the years into bass wobbling weapons.
Free from the Dungeons of Dub is a selection of thirteen tracks from this second series, gilded with the addition of three brand new dubs recorded over the last 18 months, one of which is an exclusive remix of the title track of his brand new pop album, Science Fiction.
Now all the archives have been freed, here's hoping that he can find the time to address the final two senses ……………
The release of Free from the Dungeons of Dub heralds the end of a particular chapter in International Observer's runnings.
He was three deep into his sense orientated series of albums (Seen, Heard and Felt) when he was lured back to his previous incarnation as an international pop star. While that has been the Twins fans' pleasure, it has been the dub world's loss, as there has been no significant body of new Observer material for the last 9 years.
It hasn’t been all bad though, as the time out of the dub studio inspired a trawl through the Observer archives where dubs a plenty were found locked away on unmarked discs in the corner of his eyrie.
This mission into the dub vault inspired two series of releases: the first was the collections Touched and Retouched, which focused on the remixes he had done over the last 25 years of acts including platinum selling pop stars like Bic Runga and Stellar*, underground electron herders such as Pitch Black and Banco de Gaia, as well as modern reggae stars The Black Seeds and even his own post-Twins act Babble.
The second series began with a selection of Observer originals that had only been released on CD in New Zealand, followed up with a mix of new tunes and some old ones that had been forgotten in the towering pile of master discs, and then delivered some of the big guns from his live show, honed over the years into bass wobbling weapons.
Free from the Dungeons of Dub is a selection of thirteen tracks from this second series, gilded with the addition of three brand new dubs recorded over the last 18 months, one of which is an exclusive remix of the title track of his brand new pop album, Science Fiction.
Now all the archives have been freed, here's hoping that he can find the time to address the final two senses ……………
The release of Free from the Dungeons of Dub heralds the end of a particular chapter in International Observer's runnings.
He was three deep into his sense orientated series of albums (Seen, Heard and Felt) when he was lured back to his previous incarnation as an international pop star. While that has been the Twins fans' pleasure, it has been the dub world's loss, as there has been no significant body of new Observer material for the last 9 years.
It hasn’t been all bad though, as the time out of the dub studio inspired a trawl through the Observer archives where dubs a plenty were found locked away on unmarked discs in the corner of his eyrie.
This mission into the dub vault inspired two series of releases: the first was the collections Touched and Retouched, which focused on the remixes he had done over the last 25 years of acts including platinum selling pop stars like Bic Runga and Stellar*, underground electron herders such as Pitch Black and Banco de Gaia, as well as modern reggae stars The Black Seeds and even his own post-Twins act Babble.
The second series began with a selection of Observer originals that had only been released on CD in New Zealand, followed up with a mix of new tunes and some old ones that had been forgotten in the towering pile of master discs, and then delivered some of the big guns from his live show, honed over the years into bass wobbling weapons.
Free from the Dungeons of Dub is a selection of thirteen tracks from this second series, gilded with the addition of three brand new dubs recorded over the last 18 months, one of which is an exclusive remix of the title track of his brand new pop album, Science Fiction.
Now all the archives have been freed, here's hoping that he can find the time to address the final two senses ……………
The release of Free from the Dungeons of Dub heralds the end of a particular chapter in International Observer's runnings.
He was three deep into his sense orientated series of albums (Seen, Heard and Felt) when he was lured back to his previous incarnation as an international pop star. While that has been the Twins fans' pleasure, it has been the dub world's loss, as there has been no significant body of new Observer material for the last 9 years.
It hasn’t been all bad though, as the time out of the dub studio inspired a trawl through the Observer archives where dubs a plenty were found locked away on unmarked discs in the corner of his eyrie.
This mission into the dub vault inspired two series of releases: the first was the collections Touched and Retouched, which focused on the remixes he had done over the last 25 years of acts including platinum selling pop stars like Bic Runga and Stellar*, underground electron herders such as Pitch Black and Banco de Gaia, as well as modern reggae stars The Black Seeds and even his own post-Twins act Babble.
The second series began with a selection of Observer originals that had only been released on CD in New Zealand, followed up with a mix of new tunes and some old ones that had been forgotten in the towering pile of master discs, and then delivered some of the big guns from his live show, honed over the years into bass wobbling weapons.
Free from the Dungeons of Dub is a selection of thirteen tracks from this second series, gilded with the addition of three brand new dubs recorded over the last 18 months, one of which is an exclusive remix of the title track of his brand new pop album, Science Fiction.
Now all the archives have been freed, here's hoping that he can find the time to address the final two senses ……………
The release of Free from the Dungeons of Dub heralds the end of a particular chapter in International Observer's runnings.
He was three deep into his sense orientated series of albums (Seen, Heard and Felt) when he was lured back to his previous incarnation as an international pop star. While that has been the Twins fans' pleasure, it has been the dub world's loss, as there has been no significant body of new Observer material for the last 9 years.
It hasn’t been all bad though, as the time out of the dub studio inspired a trawl through the Observer archives where dubs a plenty were found locked away on unmarked discs in the corner of his eyrie.
This mission into the dub vault inspired two series of releases: the first was the collections Touched and Retouched, which focused on the remixes he had done over the last 25 years of acts including platinum selling pop stars like Bic Runga and Stellar*, underground electron herders such as Pitch Black and Banco de Gaia, as well as modern reggae stars The Black Seeds and even his own post-Twins act Babble.
The second series began with a selection of Observer originals that had only been released on CD in New Zealand, followed up with a mix of new tunes and some old ones that had been forgotten in the towering pile of master discs, and then delivered some of the big guns from his live show, honed over the years into bass wobbling weapons.
Free from the Dungeons of Dub is a selection of thirteen tracks from this second series, gilded with the addition of three brand new dubs recorded over the last 18 months, one of which is an exclusive remix of the title track of his brand new pop album, Science Fiction.
Now all the archives have been freed, here's hoping that he can find the time to address the final two senses ……………
The release of Free from the Dungeons of Dub heralds the end of a particular chapter in International Observer's runnings.
He was three deep into his sense orientated series of albums (Seen, Heard and Felt) when he was lured back to his previous incarnation as an international pop star. While that has been the Twins fans' pleasure, it has been the dub world's loss, as there has been no significant body of new Observer material for the last 9 years.
It hasn’t been all bad though, as the time out of the dub studio inspired a trawl through the Observer archives where dubs a plenty were found locked away on unmarked discs in the corner of his eyrie.
This mission into the dub vault inspired two series of releases: the first was the collections Touched and Retouched, which focused on the remixes he had done over the last 25 years of acts including platinum selling pop stars like Bic Runga and Stellar*, underground electron herders such as Pitch Black and Banco de Gaia, as well as modern reggae stars The Black Seeds and even his own post-Twins act Babble.
The second series began with a selection of Observer originals that had only been released on CD in New Zealand, followed up with a mix of new tunes and some old ones that had been forgotten in the towering pile of master discs, and then delivered some of the big guns from his live show, honed over the years into bass wobbling weapons.
Free from the Dungeons of Dub is a selection of thirteen tracks from this second series, gilded with the addition of three brand new dubs recorded over the last 18 months, one of which is an exclusive remix of the title track of his brand new pop album, Science Fiction.
Now all the archives have been freed, here's hoping that he can find the time to address the final two senses ……………
The release of Free from the Dungeons of Dub heralds the end of a particular chapter in International Observer's runnings.
He was three deep into his sense orientated series of albums (Seen, Heard and Felt) when he was lured back to his previous incarnation as an international pop star. While that has been the Twins fans' pleasure, it has been the dub world's loss, as there has been no significant body of new Observer material for the last 9 years.
It hasn’t been all bad though, as the time out of the dub studio inspired a trawl through the Observer archives where dubs a plenty were found locked away on unmarked discs in the corner of his eyrie.
This mission into the dub vault inspired two series of releases: the first was the collections Touched and Retouched, which focused on the remixes he had done over the last 25 years of acts including platinum selling pop stars like Bic Runga and Stellar*, underground electron herders such as Pitch Black and Banco de Gaia, as well as modern reggae stars The Black Seeds and even his own post-Twins act Babble.
The second series began with a selection of Observer originals that had only been released on CD in New Zealand, followed up with a mix of new tunes and some old ones that had been forgotten in the towering pile of master discs, and then delivered some of the big guns from his live show, honed over the years into bass wobbling weapons.
Free from the Dungeons of Dub is a selection of thirteen tracks from this second series, gilded with the addition of three brand new dubs recorded over the last 18 months, one of which is an exclusive remix of the title track of his brand new pop album, Science Fiction.
Now all the archives have been freed, here's hoping that he can find the time to address the final two senses ……………
The release of Free from the Dungeons of Dub heralds the end of a particular chapter in International Observer's runnings.
He was three deep into his sense orientated series of albums (Seen, Heard and Felt) when he was lured back to his previous incarnation as an international pop star. While that has been the Twins fans' pleasure, it has been the dub world's loss, as there has been no significant body of new Observer material for the last 9 years.
It hasn’t been all bad though, as the time out of the dub studio inspired a trawl through the Observer archives where dubs a plenty were found locked away on unmarked discs in the corner of his eyrie.
This mission into the dub vault inspired two series of releases: the first was the collections Touched and Retouched, which focused on the remixes he had done over the last 25 years of acts including platinum selling pop stars like Bic Runga and Stellar*, underground electron herders such as Pitch Black and Banco de Gaia, as well as modern reggae stars The Black Seeds and even his own post-Twins act Babble.
The second series began with a selection of Observer originals that had only been released on CD in New Zealand, followed up with a mix of new tunes and some old ones that had been forgotten in the towering pile of master discs, and then delivered some of the big guns from his live show, honed over the years into bass wobbling weapons.
Free from the Dungeons of Dub is a selection of thirteen tracks from this second series, gilded with the addition of three brand new dubs recorded over the last 18 months, one of which is an exclusive remix of the title track of his brand new pop album, Science Fiction.
Now all the archives have been freed, here's hoping that he can find the time to address the final two senses ……………
The release of Free from the Dungeons of Dub heralds the end of a particular chapter in International Observer's runnings.
He was three deep into his sense orientated series of albums (Seen, Heard and Felt) when he was lured back to his previous incarnation as an international pop star. While that has been the Twins fans' pleasure, it has been the dub world's loss, as there has been no significant body of new Observer material for the last 9 years.
It hasn’t been all bad though, as the time out of the dub studio inspired a trawl through the Observer archives where dubs a plenty were found locked away on unmarked discs in the corner of his eyrie.
This mission into the dub vault inspired two series of releases: the first was the collections Touched and Retouched, which focused on the remixes he had done over the last 25 years of acts including platinum selling pop stars like Bic Runga and Stellar*, underground electron herders such as Pitch Black and Banco de Gaia, as well as modern reggae stars The Black Seeds and even his own post-Twins act Babble.
The second series began with a selection of Observer originals that had only been released on CD in New Zealand, followed up with a mix of new tunes and some old ones that had been forgotten in the towering pile of master discs, and then delivered some of the big guns from his live show, honed over the years into bass wobbling weapons.
Free from the Dungeons of Dub is a selection of thirteen tracks from this second series, gilded with the addition of three brand new dubs recorded over the last 18 months, one of which is an exclusive remix of the title track of his brand new pop album, Science Fiction.
Now all the archives have been freed, here's hoping that he can find the time to address the final two senses ……………
The release of Free from the Dungeons of Dub heralds the end of a particular chapter in International Observer's runnings.
He was three deep into his sense orientated series of albums (Seen, Heard and Felt) when he was lured back to his previous incarnation as an international pop star. While that has been the Twins fans' pleasure, it has been the dub world's loss, as there has been no significant body of new Observer material for the last 9 years.
It hasn’t been all bad though, as the time out of the dub studio inspired a trawl through the Observer archives where dubs a plenty were found locked away on unmarked discs in the corner of his eyrie.
This mission into the dub vault inspired two series of releases: the first was the collections Touched and Retouched, which focused on the remixes he had done over the last 25 years of acts including platinum selling pop stars like Bic Runga and Stellar*, underground electron herders such as Pitch Black and Banco de Gaia, as well as modern reggae stars The Black Seeds and even his own post-Twins act Babble.
The second series began with a selection of Observer originals that had only been released on CD in New Zealand, followed up with a mix of new tunes and some old ones that had been forgotten in the towering pile of master discs, and then delivered some of the big guns from his live show, honed over the years into bass wobbling weapons.
Free from the Dungeons of Dub is a selection of thirteen tracks from this second series, gilded with the addition of three brand new dubs recorded over the last 18 months, one of which is an exclusive remix of the title track of his brand new pop album, Science Fiction.
Now all the archives have been freed, here's hoping that he can find the time to address the final two senses ……………
The release of Free from the Dungeons of Dub heralds the end of a particular chapter in International Observer's runnings.
He was three deep into his sense orientated series of albums (Seen, Heard and Felt) when he was lured back to his previous incarnation as an international pop star. While that has been the Twins fans' pleasure, it has been the dub world's loss, as there has been no significant body of new Observer material for the last 9 years.
It hasn’t been all bad though, as the time out of the dub studio inspired a trawl through the Observer archives where dubs a plenty were found locked away on unmarked discs in the corner of his eyrie.
This mission into the dub vault inspired two series of releases: the first was the collections Touched and Retouched, which focused on the remixes he had done over the last 25 years of acts including platinum selling pop stars like Bic Runga and Stellar*, underground electron herders such as Pitch Black and Banco de Gaia, as well as modern reggae stars The Black Seeds and even his own post-Twins act Babble.
The second series began with a selection of Observer originals that had only been released on CD in New Zealand, followed up with a mix of new tunes and some old ones that had been forgotten in the towering pile of master discs, and then delivered some of the big guns from his live show, honed over the years into bass wobbling weapons.
Free from the Dungeons of Dub is a selection of thirteen tracks from this second series, gilded with the addition of three brand new dubs recorded over the last 18 months, one of which is an exclusive remix of the title track of his brand new pop album, Science Fiction.
Now all the archives have been freed, here's hoping that he can find the time to address the final two senses ……………
The release of Free from the Dungeons of Dub heralds the end of a particular chapter in International Observer's runnings.
He was three deep into his sense orientated series of albums (Seen, Heard and Felt) when he was lured back to his previous incarnation as an international pop star. While that has been the Twins fans' pleasure, it has been the dub world's loss, as there has been no significant body of new Observer material for the last 9 years.
It hasn’t been all bad though, as the time out of the dub studio inspired a trawl through the Observer archives where dubs a plenty were found locked away on unmarked discs in the corner of his eyrie.
This mission into the dub vault inspired two series of releases: the first was the collections Touched and Retouched, which focused on the remixes he had done over the last 25 years of acts including platinum selling pop stars like Bic Runga and Stellar*, underground electron herders such as Pitch Black and Banco de Gaia, as well as modern reggae stars The Black Seeds and even his own post-Twins act Babble.
The second series began with a selection of Observer originals that had only been released on CD in New Zealand, followed up with a mix of new tunes and some old ones that had been forgotten in the towering pile of master discs, and then delivered some of the big guns from his live show, honed over the years into bass wobbling weapons.
Free from the Dungeons of Dub is a selection of thirteen tracks from this second series, gilded with the addition of three brand new dubs recorded over the last 18 months, one of which is an exclusive remix of the title track of his brand new pop album, Science Fiction.
Now all the archives have been freed, here's hoping that he can find the time to address the final two senses ……………
The release of Free from the Dungeons of Dub heralds the end of a particular chapter in International Observer's runnings.
He was three deep into his sense orientated series of albums (Seen, Heard and Felt) when he was lured back to his previous incarnation as an international pop star. While that has been the Twins fans' pleasure, it has been the dub world's loss, as there has been no significant body of new Observer material for the last 9 years.
It hasn’t been all bad though, as the time out of the dub studio inspired a trawl through the Observer archives where dubs a plenty were found locked away on unmarked discs in the corner of his eyrie.
This mission into the dub vault inspired two series of releases: the first was the collections Touched and Retouched, which focused on the remixes he had done over the last 25 years of acts including platinum selling pop stars like Bic Runga and Stellar*, underground electron herders such as Pitch Black and Banco de Gaia, as well as modern reggae stars The Black Seeds and even his own post-Twins act Babble.
The second series began with a selection of Observer originals that had only been released on CD in New Zealand, followed up with a mix of new tunes and some old ones that had been forgotten in the towering pile of master discs, and then delivered some of the big guns from his live show, honed over the years into bass wobbling weapons.
Free from the Dungeons of Dub is a selection of thirteen tracks from this second series, gilded with the addition of three brand new dubs recorded over the last 18 months, one of which is an exclusive remix of the title track of his brand new pop album, Science Fiction.
Now all the archives have been freed, here's hoping that he can find the time to address the final two senses ……………
The release of Free from the Dungeons of Dub heralds the end of a particular chapter in International Observer's runnings.
He was three deep into his sense orientated series of albums (Seen, Heard and Felt) when he was lured back to his previous incarnation as an international pop star. While that has been the Twins fans' pleasure, it has been the dub world's loss, as there has been no significant body of new Observer material for the last 9 years.
It hasn’t been all bad though, as the time out of the dub studio inspired a trawl through the Observer archives where dubs a plenty were found locked away on unmarked discs in the corner of his eyrie.
This mission into the dub vault inspired two series of releases: the first was the collections Touched and Retouched, which focused on the remixes he had done over the last 25 years of acts including platinum selling pop stars like Bic Runga and Stellar*, underground electron herders such as Pitch Black and Banco de Gaia, as well as modern reggae stars The Black Seeds and even his own post-Twins act Babble.
The second series began with a selection of Observer originals that had only been released on CD in New Zealand, followed up with a mix of new tunes and some old ones that had been forgotten in the towering pile of master discs, and then delivered some of the big guns from his live show, honed over the years into bass wobbling weapons.
Free from the Dungeons of Dub is a selection of thirteen tracks from this second series, gilded with the addition of three brand new dubs recorded over the last 18 months, one of which is an exclusive remix of the title track of his brand new pop album, Science Fiction.
Now all the archives have been freed, here's hoping that he can find the time to address the final two senses ……………
The release of Free from the Dungeons of Dub heralds the end of a particular chapter in International Observer's runnings.
He was three deep into his sense orientated series of albums (Seen, Heard and Felt) when he was lured back to his previous incarnation as an international pop star. While that has been the Twins fans' pleasure, it has been the dub world's loss, as there has been no significant body of new Observer material for the last 9 years.
It hasn’t been all bad though, as the time out of the dub studio inspired a trawl through the Observer archives where dubs a plenty were found locked away on unmarked discs in the corner of his eyrie.
This mission into the dub vault inspired two series of releases: the first was the collections Touched and Retouched, which focused on the remixes he had done over the last 25 years of acts including platinum selling pop stars like Bic Runga and Stellar*, underground electron herders such as Pitch Black and Banco de Gaia, as well as modern reggae stars The Black Seeds and even his own post-Twins act Babble.
The second series began with a selection of Observer originals that had only been released on CD in New Zealand, followed up with a mix of new tunes and some old ones that had been forgotten in the towering pile of master discs, and then delivered some of the big guns from his live show, honed over the years into bass wobbling weapons.
Free from the Dungeons of Dub is a selection of thirteen tracks from this second series, gilded with the addition of three brand new dubs recorded over the last 18 months, one of which is an exclusive remix of the title track of his brand new pop album, Science Fiction.
Now all the archives have been freed, here's hoping that he can find the time to address the final two senses ……………
A little remix I did for soundcloud.com/pitchblacknz
Available from http://smarturl.it/futureknocking
Babble - Love Has No Name (International Observer's Archaeopteryx Dub) Written by Alannah Currie and Tom Bailey Produced by Alannah Currie, Tom Bailey & Keith Fernley Remix assisted by Simon Rycroft Originally featured on the 'Love Has No Name' single Published by Loaded / Sony Music Publishing Produced Under License From Warner Bros. Records Inc
Holiwater Band - Only a Dream (International Observer Dub) Composed by Pandit Vikash Maharaj & Tom Bailey Arranged, produced and mixed by Tom Bailey Original track released on 'MAYA' Published by Copyright Control facebook.com/holiwaterband
Deep Fried Dub - Ivory Towers (International Observer Remix) Written and produced by Ben Dudding & Ben Hartley Original track released on 'Slow Cooked' Published by Copyright Control deepfriedub.com
SILVA - Vista Pro Mar (International Observer's Dancehall Mix) Written by SILVA & Lucas Silva, produced by SILVA Original track released on 'Vista Pro Mar' Published by Ed. Farol Music/Som Livre Edições Musicais (ECAD)/BMG Chrysalis Kindly licensed from Som Livre / Slap silva.tv
stellar - Pretty Violent (International Observer's Dub Riotous Sound System Clash) Written by Boh Runga, produced by stellar & Tom Bailey Originally featured on the 'Every Girl' single Published by Copyright Control Kindly licensed from Sony Music Entertainment NZ stellar.co.nz
Pitch Black - Speech (International Observer Remix) Written and produced by Mike Hodgson & Paddy Free Originally featured on 'Dub Obscura' Published by Native Tongue pitchblack.co.nz
Pitch Black featuring Brother J - 1000 Mile Dub (International Observer's Stink Mix) Written and produced by Mike Hodgson & Paddy Free Original track released on 'Rude Mechanicals' This version was made as a special for DJ Stinky Jim and has never been released before Published by Native Tongue pitchblack.co.nz
stellar - Slack Dub (International Observer Instrumental Dub) Written by Boh Runga Produced by stellar & Tom Bailey Original track released on the 'What you Do' single This version has never been released before Published by Copyright Control Kindly licensed from Sony Music Entertainment NZ stellar.co.nz
The Exponents - Change your Mind(International Observer's Slack Mind Dub) Written by Jordan Luck Produced by Eddie Rayner & The Exponents Originally featured on the 'Change your Mind' single Published by Mushroom Music Publishing Kindly licensed from Sony Music Entertainment NZ theexponents.com