1. Illumina
2. Memories Of Dr. Bliss
3. A Grain Of Salt
4. Homage
5. Gomorrha
6. Mayday
7. The Never Man
8. Laughing Venus
9. There Was A Crooked Man
10. Illumina 2*
11. The Last Door On The Left*

 

April 5, 2024
UK/NL Remastered MP3 self released on EK’s and TLPD’s Bandcamp

1. Illumina
2. Memories Of Dr. Bliss
3. A Grain Of Sand
4. Homage
5. Gomorrha
6. Mayday
7. The Never Man
8. Laughing Venus
9. There Was A Crooked Man
10. Illumina / The Last Door On The Left

 

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Credits

• Edward Ka-Spel – vox, keyboards, toys, acoustic guitar
• Raymond Steeg – sound tools
• Ryan Moore – drums, percussion, bass, electric guitar
• Elke – machines, keys, graphics

artwork- Elke Peucker
Mixed by Raymond and Edward

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Notes

Recorded July & August 1994 in Bino’s living room. Mixed at TeKaHq.
Originally released in a quantity of 1100.
Soleilmoon/Caciocavallo edition is remastered and includes a lyrics booklet.
* The last 2 tracks are combined on the Bandcamp version

from Bandcamp 2013:
1993. Picture this. It’s a glorious Summer day but EK is inside with only Sabine’s dog, Skoi, to keep him company. An old friend, Sabine, had asked him and Elke to look after her house (and hound) for a week while she went on holiday.

On this sunny afternoon, EK is strumming an out-of-tune acoustic guitar. Skoi seems to object and HOWLS (a lot). The howls are recorded, as the would-be guitarist runs around the room, followed by one small dog.

Then it’s overdub time….Ballbearings are rolled across the wooden floor. Skoi takes a rest.

Then there’s the vocal part…EK seems annoyed by a record company. In retrospect, it’s a little embarassing (said label really wasn’t THAT BAD). However they made it clear that they didn’t like LPDs’ “Shadow Weaver”, and childish as it may seem, criticism goes down very badly with the singer.  Consquently, the lyrics are painfully vitriolic.

“Scriptures” was that kind of album – peculiar, noisy and rather unique but sadly not so well recorded. The Soleilmoon reissue remastered by Raymond put some of this matter to rights, but consider this latest downloadable version to be definitive. -EK

From April 2024 release:
“Serious sonic surgery” was performed on this album and released for April 2024’s Bandcamp Friday.

Around 30 years since this rough, explosive album was released. It has been sonically overhauled, but with plenty of respect!- EK

 

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Lyrics

Illumina

Killer bees patrolled the border, Mad Dog Caesar rolled the dice, they seized control while we were sleeping, glued pitch black patches on our eyes. If seeing you is loving you, I think I’ll tear out both my eyes. I’m happy on this private island, the only place I have to hide. We huddle close, we’re wearing muzzles, we carry crosses nine to five. And though we roll in black sand blisters, somehow we just stay alive. It’s in their interest but I haven’t figured out the reason why and if I did I’d keep it quiet cos black is white and truth is lies. In this place called Illumina the white light never fades. Oh, Illumina my door is open, I’m nervous in the shade. In this place called Illumina the white light never fades. Oh, Illumina my door is open, I’m nervous in the shade.

Speech: Breakfast is served at the monument at precisely 5:05. Not a second earlier, not a second later. A neon light flashes ‘EAT – DON’T TALK.’ It’s blazing above our heads. Just as if we’d never seen it before, if we’d actually needed to be reminded. We don’t want to be reminded. A friend of mine once whispered out, hinting somehow the food seemed better one morning. They took him away, they strapped him to the chair. They put electrodes in his head and they illuminated him and his eyes would turn into bright bright candle like messages that flashed and flashed, “I talked, I did not eat. I am a reminder.” I am a constant reminder of how you should behave. I am a constant reminder of the priviliges of being obedient at all times. We must fade out, out.

Memoires Of Dr. Bliss

We called it Operation Friendly because the victims were restricted. Nothing got beyond the fence, the gifted were extracted. For the greater good we kept it classified. We filed survivors under S, ran some tests, I served the finest medication. I watched them laugh themselves to death. It makes a tidy end. We called them Holy Mercy candies cause it’s Christ who buys the wine. He slowly runs his finger down the perforated spine. He takes the time to listen carefully. Your pain drifts away, your pain drifts away. I should know it was me who ran the tests, watched you laugh yourself to death. It makes a tidy end. The jury all wore clothes-pins, the judge was unimpressed. There simply was no punishment devised to suit the hellish inner squirms of the one called Dr. Bliss. So they locked him in his playpen where he’s busy playing chess with Napoleon. I stand here unimpressed. But I shall laugh myself to death cause it makes a tidy end. It makes a tidy end.

A Grain Of Salt

All the world’s a stage – you failed the first audition. Doomed to walk the wings beyond my vision. Send in the hand. I tried to understand. I tried to find the man behind the mouse, the sleeping lion just was not there. I screamed, I shook you, I shot you twice, you apologized. That’s why Jack’s a dull boy.

Homage (instrumental)

Gomorrha

Jenny danced with Joey on the table when the jukebox played their tune. He’d kiss her navel, she’d swoon like Isadora. Hit the floor. The special room would saw clean through the gates of old Gomorrha. Oh, they never saw us watching, clapping, gnawing, snapping, clawing through the jungle, twisted arms and knotted legs. And that for every secret wish you slept with. Down in Lazy Lover’s Leap I took a seat inside a cubicle. I peeked at you, watched movies starring meecey films of you. See me, see you, we are everything, we’re nothing. Wish I had another coin. The star attraction of this evening is a ceiling full of holes. The thrusted Brits on a pole, and all the bodies I’ve lusted for line up. I’m transparent. No one sees the hunger in my eyes. No, no one sees the hunger in my eyes. If every dream’s a growing seed, I will not sleep in your dimension.

Mayday (voice with distortion)

The Never Man

I bleeded for my purple card, I didn’t have a stamp so I pleaded for my stamp, I didn’t have a card. And everywhere I traveled faces turned and turned away. Yes I cleared the shopping malls, I watched them slowly climb the walls dive head first in the river, one by one. I’m the never man, the man without a face without a number. I strolled into the movies, turned a camera on myself. I screened my never profile coast to coast. I fantasized the countdown and a melt down. {14, 13, 12, 11, 10, 9, 8, 7, 6, 5, 4, 3, 2, 1, 0} Now I’m walking through the ghosts but no they don’t see me. They don’t see each other. They’re the never men and no they don’t see me. (Never never never man.) They don’t see each other. (The never man.) I’m the never man, the man without a face without a number. No one knows the number that sits proudly on the front of heaven’s door. The never man. Run away, run away. Never meant to be. Run!

Laughing Venus

Lost in light to face the far side. Touch me. Kissed by time. Still young enough to fly. Touch me. The stars seem closer tonight. If I had hands, well I’d surely dig them. If I had ears I’d steal your thunder. Just give me life. I will roll through famine fields on giant wheels. I’ll sprinkle, heal, I’ll give you back the day. Just touch me.

There Was A Crooked Man

Play it, play it then behave. Oh yessiree, we have the chains. Now here’s the instructions: Thou shalt rave, Thou shalt give us more Marias. For our lady, she is fertile. Our lady, she sells, and we can smell that pot of silver. It is waiting maybe you can have some here, here. But play it, play it one more time again, again, again, again. A thousand times come out from that shadow boys. It’s kind of hard to hear you through that god awful fucking noise. They have trouble selling accidents like this. Oh play it, play it, play it one more time, one more time. I wish they all were virgins, oh they’ve been screwing us for years. They wish that they were virgins, screwing us for years. You Wish you were a virgin, you’ve been screwing us for years.

Illumina 2

Killer bees besieged the border, evil warders rolled the bees. The eyes of wise guys, slick reporters now hanging from the Judas tree. The TV screen is scrambled and the radio’s jammed but I dutifully follow orders cause you never can, you never can. Who slinks through the cracks across my wall, who listens for my footsteps as night falls, who amplifies the sighs, the curses, fantasizes all the worst things. And I’d rather be a gray man than the great pretender shouting at the moon. Ah, the moon. They switch it off at night because it isn’t square. And I’d like to think back to those midnight walks with you but I don’t dare. I guess that knowing you is loving you so I’ll simply change the channel. I’ll wipe a cold flannel across my face. I’ll watch that space. I’ll watch that scrambled space and think of nothing just in case they’re watching, prying, tapping, probing, watching, prying, tapping, probing, watching, prying, tapping, probing. Sure thing nothing’s sacred in this place they call Illumina. Our Illumina. The door is open. I’m nervous in the shade oh Illumina.

The Last Door On The Left (instrumental)