RUINS 黑胶唱片和CD

Review: The unstoppable Music From Memory label invites you into another musical dream world, this time in the form of a reissued "lost" art record from Italian Wave duo Alessandro Pizzin and Piergiuseppe Ciranna aka Ruins. This first volume of "Marea/Tide: Sound & Image Research" is taken from music made for art galleries, exhibitions and various multimedia projects back in the 1980s. It is a gorgeous mix of synth and ambient that was lost when only 300 copies were pressed and because of legal disagreements, were later destroyed. All hail Music From Memory for their work on this one.

Review: Recent years have seen sporadic releases from Ruins, a long-serving combo who can rightly claim to be Italian new wave's most celebrated act. Stroom has decided against asking the band for new material; instead, they've rifled through Ruins' archives and put together this fine compilation of rare and unheard material recorded between 1981 and '84. There's much to admire, from the breezy pop shuffle of "Alone" and Cure-influenced, bass-propelled oddness of "Skeleton In Love", to the sparkling synth-pop brilliance of high-tempo number "Boys & Girls" and the punk-funk/dub disco-influenced throb of killer closing cut "It's Not Too Grand".

Review: Skingraft presents a reissue of "Refusal Fossil", Ruins' heaviest, rawest effort. All remixed and remastered by the band's Yoshida Tatsuya.