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When it comes down to compiling a list of the acts and producers responsible for exerting a crucial influence on the development of popular electronic music during the last two decades, Sydney-based electro / dance act Severed Heads are definitely there. First emerging in the early 1980s with an original lineup of Tom Ellard, Gary Bradbury and Paul Von Deering, Severed Heads announced their presence on the then-emerging ‘coldwave’ scene with a string of chaotic, highly textured and experimental tape-collage based albums such as 1981’s ‘Blubberknife’ and 1983’s ‘Since The Accident.’ Severed Heads’ use of tape decks deliberately ‘interfered with’ (via the covering of erase heads with cardboard enabling shoestring ‘multitrack dubs’) to create dense layers of aggressive sound placed them in the same waters as confrontational acts of the same era such as Cabaret Voltaire and Throbbing Gristle, and like Gristle, they made a practice of hand-assembling limited edition albums (in one case out of a television set) and sending out extensive fan correspondence.
1986’s ‘Come Visit The Big Bigot’ and the following year’s ‘Bad Mood Guy’ saw Severed Heads shift their sound away from dense textured noise towards a new hard-edged electro-pop edge, original member Gary Bradbury leaving to work on his own projects, leaving behind the production core of Tom Ellard and musician / producer Robert Racic. During this distinct ‘second phase’ of their sound, Severed Heads enjoyed some of their biggest commercial hits, including 1991’s 12” dance remix of ‘Greater Reward’, ‘Twister’ (reworked by Racic into a tearing dance version), and a 1994 re-release of their 1983 ‘Dead Eyes Opened’ single. Following on from the release of the 1994 ‘Dead Eyes Opened’ remix single, Ellard and Racic re-entered the studio to record what would be Severed Heads’ last album on a major label (in this case, Sony’s now-defunct ‘Volition’ dance imprint), 1994’s ‘Gigapus.’
Following the release of ‘Gigapus’ and attendant live shows, the sad passing of extremely talented producer and DJ Racic saw Severed Heads’ lineup reduced down to just Tom Ellard. At this point, currently unsigned to any record label, Severed Heads’s profile dropped considerably, and as a longtime fan, I wasn’t completely sure whether I’d heard the last of this consistently innovative and enigmatic outfit. Luckily by complete fortuitous accident around six months ago, I stumbled upon Tom Ellard’s extensive web presence at sevcom.com and realised that in the interim, Ellard had continued to release Severed Heads albums independently online, as well as releases by his Co Kla Coma and Music Server side projects.
Op2 is the latest Severed Heads album to be released through SevCom, following 1997’s collection of reinterpreted live tracks ‘Haul Ass’ and 2001’s ‘Op1.2’ album. In many ways, ‘Op2’ represents both a distinct reference point to and stylistic transition from ‘Op1.2’, with Ellard referring to the relationship between both as like “watching the development of a child – you would have a first burst of activity, a pause, another, a pause and these growth spurts are like a child – their body changes shape and has a childish, then teen, then adult charm.” To this end, ‘Op2’ represents a distinct refinement of the more accessible electro-influenced territory Ellard explored on ‘Op1.2’, with a perceptibly more lush instrumental approach and a greater number of vocal performances.
‘Pilots Hate You’ opens proceedings with icy Kraftwerkian chopping electro beats, the robotically-vocoded title phrase skipping and cutting through dense factory-line percussion and bassy synths, before ‘Capitola’ enters on bleeping synths and taut punching house beats, Ellard’s elliptical lyrics (“Hey girl Jesus is back in town / for dice and maybe a sherry”) gliding over washes of ambient texture, and slightly ominous bass pads. ‘Russia’ reimagines the entire world as some grotesque monocultural version of California with Ellard insisting “everyone is beautiful in a free world” over a lush backing of blocky electro beats and burbling synths, ‘Rental Heart’ approaches peaceful downtempo ambience over zapping retro electro beats and Ellard’s smooth warm vocals, while ‘Kittenette’ pushes the house bpms back up for a bouncing uptempo track that features some trademark oblique Ellard lyrics over a grooving dancefloor-oriented bassline.
‘Symptom Symphony’ throws in some slightly more clanking industrial beats that evoke associations with older ‘Bad Mood Guy’-era material, leading into ‘Nigella Type B’, which stretches what almost sounds like radio-tuned synths over a widescreen ambient backdrop that slowly gathers pace amidst house beats. ‘When Your House Burns Down’ on the other hand lyrically recalls the kind of text you expect to accompany one of those TV insurance ads where the lady returns home head in hands because the garage has burnt down, and perhaps represents a further exploration on some of the themes on ‘Op1.2’ where Ellard would break up text taken from a range of sources, ‘shining a new light’ on them by adding instrumental elements.
‘Pinagoal/Hank’ ventures into punching minimal house, with delayed-out menacing vocal growls offset by an eerie synth decending chord sequence and voice synthesis fragments, ‘Firepower’ creeps along with Ellard’s almost misanthropic oblique vocals (“I’m from a home / and I have no shoulders”) over a nervous electro backing that spirals into a bouncy and idyllic tale of strolling through suburbia (“outside…it’s a beautiful day”), while ‘Turkey Burger Helper’ is filled with ambient dread, echoing synthesised clanking spinning through a lush forest of treated ethereal childlike vocals and punching beats. ‘December Thirteen’ sounds like the graceful icy meeting point between Balinese Gamelan music and Phillip Glass, elegant cycling tones shifting over a backdrop of electro punches and stabbing bass, ‘Offcuts’ melds together some unused elements left over from studio sessions into an extensive atmospheric sample-laden piece, before ‘Escape’ brings the album to a close, evoking the wide-eyed ambient bliss of Andy Rantzen’s classic ‘Plaza At Night’ over slowly throbbing bass and epic synthetic strings.
‘Op2’ is a meticulously- detailed collection of tracks that seems deceptively simple on first listen, but soon reveals myriad undiscovered rewards on repeated listening. While many of the electro-influenced beats first make you wonder whether Ellard’s been cocking an ear towards Berlin or Bambaataa, it soon becomes apparent that as always, Severed Heads are a flavour unto themselves and describing what they do misses the point as they are most definitely better experienced. In terms of production, ‘Op2’ definitely represents a distinct step forward from its ancestor, with a lusher feel to all of the tracks herein.
An exciting new release from this consistently interesting and enigmatic outfit sure to re-ignite interest in Severed Heads that’s also extremely accessible to those keen to know more. And once again, because it’s being made available independently, you know that while you’re paying considerably less than you would in a store, all of that money is going to the right place (ie. the artist).
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