PSYCHIC TV - DREAMS LESS SWEET @ 40

 

Celebrating its 40th anniversary today is Psychic TV's sophomore studio LP, 'Dreams Less Sweet', which was released on October 21, 1983. While the band's debut LP, 'Force the Hand of Chance', left the sounds of Throbbing Gristle far behind, PTV's second album demonstrated that, even with the radical departures of their debut, they were still finding new structures to explore and could not be confined to any particular genre or strategic approach. Indeed, the album forges entirely new cornerstones for musical exploration, departing from the almost conventional pop song structures of the first album in favour of a near-classical aesthetic, with short movements carefully interconnected to create a narratively intricate sonic suite.

While still signed to Stevo's Some Bizzare Records, they had the luxury of working with a budget that allowed for the use of some state-of-the-art equipment, including the Zuccarelli Holophonics system, an experimental binaural recording process. This technology utilized a complex sound imaging technique which was capable of creating three dimensional effects using standard stereo speakers. Though headphones provided the optimum listening experience, properly phase aligned loud speakers were able to accomplish the illusion as well. The system does not use standard microphones; instead, it relies on a set of sound pickups housed in a physical 'body' designed to replicate human hearing physiology as accurately as possible.

For recording 'Dreams Less Sweet', this device was used in a variety of ways to capture unique acoustic environments, including extensive location recordings in places like The Hellfire Club caves, Christ Church in Hampstead, and Caxton Hall. Even the sound inside a coffin was captured using the device. This experimental recording process also drove the group to pursue different musical directions, combining aspects of folk, ethnic music, neo-classical and musique concrète. The focus was primarily on natural acoustic sounds, with minimal use of amplified instruments such as guitars, synthesizers, or drum machines, as were common on the first album.

Conceptually, the album represents a set of complex layers of themes and symbols, involving every facet of the production, from the composition of the music to the smallest elements of the graphic design. Whether it was the flower on the front symbolizing a pierced genital, the location of the group shot on the back cover, or the subtle wolves hidden behind chain-link fencing, every element was meticulously considered, calculated, and integrated into the whole. Musically, this included a song composed by Charles Manson and another with lyrics derived from the final sermon of Jim Jones during the Jonestown massacre. At its most subtle and sweet, the album's subliminal implications were often at their darkest and most subversive. When it reached its crescendo of chaos with a flurry of honking car horns, it was at the peak of its innocence and optimism.

The album stands as the single most complex and multifaceted work Psychic TV ever produced, and also their most sophisticated, technically. Shortly after the completion of the album, a rift developed between co-founders Genesis P-Orridge and Peter Christopherson, with the latter and his partner, Geoff Rushton (henceforth known as Jhon Balance), splintering off to found their Coil project. PTV's relationship with Stevo also floundered, resulting in the founding of Temple Records, their own independent label imprint. From here, Psychic TV would venture into more traditional rock structures, entering into their "Hyperdelic" phase, exemplified by the Godstar single, before changing course again into the Acid House electronica vein, which would define their work in the latter half of the 1980s and beyond. While PTV would occasionally get experimental with their music throughout the remainder of their career, nothing they did after 'Dreams Less Sweet' came close to the sophistication and complexity achieved on that album.