PSYCHIC TV - UNCLEAN (12") @ 40

 

Released in August of 1984, Psychic TV's 12" EP, Unclean, turns 40 years old this month. It was the first title issued by Thee Temple ov Psychick Youth's own label imprint, Temple Records, which was inaugurated following the acrimonious demise of their relationship with Stevo's Some Bizzare label, who released PTV's first two LPs, and the single, Just Drifting. Unclean is also the group's first release following the equally conflicted departure of co-founder and former Throbbing Gristle partner, Peter "Sleazy" Christopherson, and his then romantic partner, Geoff Rushton (aka John/Jhon Balance). They departed principally due to their concerns regarding Genesis P-Orridge turning TOPY into a "cult of personality" and would go on to form the widely influential project, Coil.

Without the backing of a major label, leaving the group owed significant sums from their previous releases, budgets for production and studio time were limited, but the founding of an independent label meant that all the proceeds from record sales would belong to TOPY/PTV, and creative control of the product would be entirely under their purview. Given P-Orridge's experience with Industrial Records during the TG days, this was not unfamiliar territory. It would ultimately provide the group with a great latitude when it came to the diversity of their output, from the most bizarre experimentation, to a charting pop single that would help finance a planned film production, though these plans would be eventually derailed by their manager absconding with the single's profits. Still, their own label would help them bounce back from this by virtue of the live series of LPs.

Getting back to the Unclean EP, side A's title track kicks it off with an extended, near ten minute long sluggish dirge that is not too far off from Metal Box era PiL in terms of its repetitive drum loop, throbbing minimal bass and piercing, atonal guitar(?) feedback. Genesis wails atop the cacophonous musical backing with a diatribe against Christianity, declaring its "Saviour" to be a perversion of morality and "obscene". The run-out groove etching on the vinyl exacerbates the blasphemy of the song by declares the record to be "CURSED BY GOD". In comparison to the relatively accessible and tuneful music contained in their first two albums for Some Bizzare, Unclean is nearly a full return to the aggressive bite of TG at its prime, landing comfortably in proximity to something akin to Discipline as far as rhythmic assaults go.

But the mood changes abruptly for the flip side of the record, which includes two ambient compositions that seem to feature P-Orridge as the principal performer. The first is a soundtrack from a Derek Jarman short film, Mirrors, which may be one of the most sublimely beautiful pieces of music PTV ever put to record. It is built from a meandering kaleidoscopic collage of gentle piano improvisations that seem to reflect and refract off each other, perfectly representing the abstract mylar dancing lights of the 8mm film for which it was created. The piece bares a striking resemblance to the fifth and closing movement of the final TG studio album, Journey Through a Body. The section titled, Oltre La Morte / Birth And Death, is also an improvised piano meditation, and likely an early rendition of this conception that now finds its full flower in the PTV recording. I also seem to recall coming across an old COUM era recording of Genesis on the piano performing what sounded like an even more primitive rendition of this theme, so it's likely it was lurking around in various incarnations for years before this most complete realization of its intent.

The third piece, Unclean Monks, is a vocal choral piece created by Genesis repeatedly singing the word "Jesus", layered on multiple tracks to create a sombre, sacred sounding choir reminiscent of medieval monks performing Gregorian chants. As sacrilegious as the A-side is, it's as if Genesis is seeking salvation and repentance with this closing composition, or else and more likely, codifying his curse upon the iconography.

The cover for the single featured the striking graphic template that Temple Records would utilize for many of their "Library" series releases, with it's black and grey primary layout accented by an eye catching red banner. Seeing these releases pop up in the shops was a great way to inspire collectors as aficionados like myself were eager to ensure a complete set of these matching releases. As the label built up its catalogue, seeing all these coordinated artifacts together engendered a kind of satisfying sense of accomplishment in their acquisition. Rather good marketing, I must say. Unclean has remained one of my all time favourite PTV releases, showcasing the group at both their most extreme and confrontational and seductively alluring states.