Dark Entries Release Long Lost Patrick Cowley Opus

Dark Entries may have just come up with the re-issue of the year. The label, which has spent the year ceaselessly upping the ante with a series of essential dark wave/ post punk/ synth and disco reissues, has just announced they are to release Catholic, the lost opus of disco pioneer Patrick Cowley and Indoor Life vocalist Jorge Socarras. Due out November 12th, the anniversary of Cowley's death, this compilation features over 80 minutes of music recorded by these two musical pioneers between 1975 and 1977. Having been previously released on CD, this is the first time the collaborative album has seen a vinyl release, and comes accompanied by two previously unheard tracks.

We're going to go right ahead and the post the press release on this, because the whole story is fascinating –

"Patrick moved to San Francisco at the age of 21. He studied at the City College of San Francisco and met Jorge Socarras in 1973 through mutual friends. The duo’s first collaboration was a ten­ minute trance like piece that Cowley composed for a performance piece by Socarras in 1975. Patrick, who played drums, guitar and keyboards, provided the perfect match for Jorge’s vocal talents. Between 1975 and 1977 they recorded an album’s worth of material before Socarras moved to London and Cowley started playing synthesizers for Sylvester. Upon Jorge’s return to San Francisco in 1979, the duo would re­record some of the “Catholic” songs with Patrick’s newly accumulated equipment. Meanwhile, Socarras met the musicians with whom he would form Indoor Life, and in 1980 Patrick co­produced their first album before the band relocated to New York in 1981. The “Catholic” album was offered to San Francisco’s Megatone Records who passed on it. Fast forward to 2007 when Honey Soundsystem was contacted by John Hedges, former co­owner of Megatone Records.

Hedges’ was moving to Palm Springs and invited the crew over to his basement to collectover 2,000 records from his collection. Among the archives were three moldy boxes of quarter inch reel to reel tapes featuring unreleased music by Cowley, including the “Catholic” material. The reel was passed on to Stefan Goldmann of Macro Recordings in Berlin who tracked down Jorge Socarras to clear the rights, and released the album on CD in 2009.

“Catholic” is a genre­bending concept album that ranges from minimalistic proto­techno to synth­driven post­punk, pre­dating the dance punk acts LCD Soundsystem and The Rapture by almost 30 years. It shows a much broader range than any Cowley or Socarras material available and gives a totally new perspective to one of the most inspiring eras in music history. Influenced by Tomita, Wendy Carlos, the Velvet Underground and Roxy Music, “Catholic” fills in the gaps between these artists and preempts bands like Talking Heads, Units, The Human League or Chris & Cosey. Patrick forges his unique electronic sound from his collection of synthesizers, modified guitars and self­constructed equipment while Jorge’s vocals go from hypnotic to camp, singing about gay love juju and tackling classics by Donovan and Stoller & Leiber.

Featuring over 80 minutes of music, never before released on vinyl, this compilation contains two bonus tracks not on the CD. The tapes were meticulously restored by mastering guru Rashad Becker at D+M, in Berlin, then remastered for vinyl by George Horn at Fantasy Studios in Berkeley, CA. The vinyl comes housed in a glossy dual pocket gatefold featuring the intended album cover from the original “Catholic” photo shoot in 1979 plus original hand­lettering by Arch Connelly aka A. Style for the first 45rpm single that never was. Inside the gatefold sleeve contains lyrics and an essay from Jorge Socarras. For the 32nd anniversary of Patrick's death, Dark Entries and Honey Soundsystem present a glimpse into the innovative minds of two geniuses. These recordings shine a new light on the experimental side of a disco legend who was taken too soon. All proceeds from “Catholic” will be donated to the San Francisco AIDS Housing Alliance."