coh: cohgs

The ongoing relationship between Editions Mego and CoH continues with this special collection of works made by CoH over a number of years, released on a variety of labels. What brings these works together is the incorporation of vocalists and lyrics. Neatly compiled here, a diverse pool of vocalists elevate the otherwise instrumental works of CoH (Ivan Pavlov) into worlds of narrative, the human and the haunted. Little Annie brings her sly subversive cabaret style to one of the works whilst delivering an intense list of daily activities on another whereas Peter "Sleazy" Christopherson conjures a world beyond our own with his cracked spectral delivery interpreting Pavlov's disembodied electronics. "I wrap my last kiss in a bandage... I send you this message." Frankie Gothard provides classic distorted industrial swagger to the proto-disco "Fffetish" where "Love's Septic Domain", featuring John Balance and Louise Weasel, screams from the abyss of "dirty hospitals"; as starlit and damaged as any of the classic Balance deliveries. A previously unreleased work featuring the renowned fashion designer Ann Demeulemeester skips along a metronomic beat whilst the voice lays out dry settings and instruction. Elsewhere, Noriko Taguchi embeds a fragile sensibility to a music box melody whilst Anna Yamada's collaboration results in an exquisite blend of disorientating pop. The versatility of Pavlov's practice is on display, as proto disco, industrial simulation, and pop all come together with the vocalists presenting a wide range of human function, from the absurd to the mundane to world's unknown. Cover photo and graphic design by Victor Robyn; Cut by Rashad Becker at Dubplates & Mastering, Berlin, June 2017.