About this item

Emerging from London’s underground music scene, The Sick Man Of Europe is distinctly monochrome in its outlook. Each note counts in this climate – economical but played with absolute precision and conviction.

Propelled forward by machines and seeking solace in repetition. There are echoes of the post-punk and European art rock pioneers at the cusp of the 80s, but re-tooled for the present. The same fears. Looking for answers or something to believe in, but finding more questions in an age of absolutes.

The Sick Man Of Europe name connects the current post-Brexit landscape to the austerity of Thatcherite Britain and the social conditions that shaped the likes of Bauhaus and Joy Division. These are touchstones for TSMOE, but the influence and discipline of Neu!, Suicide and Swans are just as intrinsic to the sound.

The debut album follows the release of the Moderate Air Quality EP on limited edition cassette and digital in February. (EP tracks are included as a bonus on the CD version of the album.)

Minimal, but with a strong eye for the right detail - on the eponymous debut album, that eye is focussed firmly on the battle between the internal and the external. TSMOE draws on the tensions between human identity, technological advancement and the pursuit of meaning in the modern world.

Produced as a reaction to previous musical projects, TSMOE was looking for clarity and complete control in its creative endeavours. It’s consciously anti-rock in its recorded approach - no low-end bass guitar, minimal effects and no live drums. Dedication to the craft of focussed song writing rather than attempting to follow current production trends.

‘BLENDS PULSATING MOTORIK BEATS , NAGGING BASSLINES AND DRONING ELECTRONICS INTO ALL-CONSUMING ATMOSPHERES….FRONTED BY FOREBODING VOCALS THAT SIT SOMEWHERE BETWEEN IAN CURTIS’ MELANCHOLIC BARITONE AND SOMETHING MORE EXPERIMENTAL, PHRASES ARE REPEATED OVER AND OVER LIKE MANTRAS’ - ELECTRONIC SOUND.

TRACK LISTING

LP: CD:
A1. 1. Obsolete (6:04)
A2. 2. Transactional (4:12)
A3. 3. Sanguine (9:44)
B1. 4. Profane Not Profound (4:48)
B2. 5. Slow Down, Friend (4:08)
B3. 6. Movement (3.52)
B4. 7. Acidity Regulator (2:51)
B5. 8. I’m Alive (2:52)
    - 9. Moderate Air Quality (6:08) (CD Bonus Track)
   - 10. The Son Of A Diplomat (7:42) (CD Bonus Track)
   - 11. Consumption (5:14) (CD Bonus Track)