die form: zoo

Die Form is a French post-industrial and electronic band formed in 1977-1978. The name 'Die Form' means '(the) form/shape' in German and is a play on the English homonym 'deformed' and on the French homonym 'difforme' (deformed). Die Form is the primary project of electronic musician and multimedia artist Philippe Fichot. He began by recording a number of experimental cassette releases in the late 1970s and formed the Bain Total label to release these early cassettes, as well as various side projects such as Krylon Hertz, Camera Obscura, Eva-Johanna Reichstag, Hurt and Fine Automatic. In 1982 Die Form released their debut vinyl album, “Die Puppe” in a limited edition of 1,000 copies. “Zoo” is a compilation of 10 tracks recorded during the “Die Puppe” sessions from 1980-82. These were the first esoteric electronic experiments, often improvised. Underlying themes of eroticism, death, and other 'taboo' subjects become apparent in both the music and the album artwork, which Philippe also produced. The album was recorded with entirely analog equipment, including a Roland MC4 Micro-Composer, TR-808 Rhythm Composer, ARP 2600, and Kawai 60F recorded to a Revox B77 reel to reel tape machine. Songs range from hypnotic, minimalistic proto-IDM to daring experimental sound manipulation. 4 of these songs were featured as a bonus 7” to accompany the 1989 vinyl reissue of “Die Puppe” but remixed for the project. The remaining 6 songs were also remixed and released on CD in 2001. For this reissue we asked the band to transfer the analog Revox tapes to release never before heard original versions of all 10 tracks. All songs have been remastered for vinyl by George Horn at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley. The front cover was designed by Eloise Leigh and features a black and white photograph by Philipe. Each album includes a double sided post card with liner notes and a rare photo of the band.