The CyberNoise Directives 2017 (Best Of Year 2017)

by Graham Needham (© 14th December 2017)

The CyberNoise yearly lists are compiled from the music that has been played the most by the CyberNoise team this year, using various metrics including iTunes play counts, longevity, personal memory and most importantly those albums still on rotation months after their release - they are in no specific order. The gigs of the year and design awards sections are purely CyberNoise's favourites based on what stood out to us the most from this year! Well done to everyone on this year's lists. Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

10 Albums Of The Year 2017
10 Compilations And Reissues 2017
Gigs Of The Year 2017
Officially Released Live Video Awards 2017
Documentaries of 2017
Books of 2017
Favourite Designs/Box Sets of 2017
Recommendations For 2018

10 Albums Of The Year 2017

UnderViewer

• Wonders & Monsters
This album was actually released in 2016 but so late in the year it couldn't make last year's list.

"B Sides & Bonus Material" companion album:

Gary Numan

• Savage (Songs From A Broken World)

Kyle Dixon & Michael Stein Stranger Things 2 original television TV series soundtrack front cover image picture

Kyle Dixon & Michael Stein (of S U R V I V E)

• Stranger Things 2
(Original Television Series Soundtrack)

Legend

• Midnight Champion

Nothing But Noise

• eXistence Oscillation prEsent Available from Wool-E Tapes

10 Compilations and Reissues 2017

Ennio Morricone

• (John Carpenter's) The Thing
(Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

limited edition vinyl LP

Originally available from Waxworks online store

Cubanate

• Brutalism

limited edition CD / Digital

D.A.F. DAS IST DAF box set front cover image picture

D.A.F.

• DAS IST DAF

5xLP+7" or 5xCD box set

Noise Reduction System: Formative European Electronica 1974-1984 box set front cover image picture

Various Artists

• Noise Reduction System: Formative European Electronica 1974-1984 (CyberNoise article)

4xCD box set

Art Of Noise In Visible Silence Deluxe Edition front cover image picture

The Art Of Noise

• In Visible Silence
(Deluxe Edition)

2xCD / Digital

Tangerine Dream

• Miracle Mile
(Expanded Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

limited edition 2xCD

Also available from buysoundtrax.com

Andy Bell

• Electric Blue
(Deluxe Expanded Edition)

3xCD / 85(!) Track Digital Download

Underworld

• Beaucoup Fish
(Super Deluxe Edition)

4xCD Box Set / Digital

Cosey Fanni Tutti

• Time To Tell
(Deluxe Special Edition)

limited edition clear vinyl LP

Trisomie 21

• Trisomie 21

limited edition 5xLP Box Set

Also available directly from Dark Entries

Gigs Of The Year 2017

22nd February

S U R V I V E
Village Underground, London, United Kingdom

15th May

The Sugarhill Gang
Rock Cafe, Prague, Czech Republic

24th May

Depeche Mode
Eden Aréna, Prague, Czech Republic

6th June

Skinny Puppy + Öhm
Lucerna Music Bar, Prague, Czech Republic
Read the CyberNoise interview with Öhm

Laibach (Live at Palác Akropolis, Prague 05/11/2017)

5th November

Laibach
Palác Akropolis, Prague, Czech Republic

20th November

Liars
Underdogs', Prague, Czech Republic

Officially Released Live Video Awards 2017

1st - Kraftwerk - 3-D The Catalogue

--> Only a few decent electronic music related live concerts were released on video in 2017 and in first place it has to be Kraftwerk especially as this video was also released on Blu-Ray including 3D version (2D compatible), the actual (3D) visuals + many extras!

Available on Blu-Ray or DVD:

4xBlu-Ray in 12"x12" box set

Blu-Ray + DVD

2nd - Rammstein - Paris

--> Another great blu-ray live experience along with another lovely box set.

Available on Blu-Ray or DVD:

4xLP + 2xCD + Blu-Ray box set

Blu-Ray

DVD

3rd - Yello - Live In Berlin

--> Another great blu-ray release but it has to come third because, you know, those "live" unplugged synths!

Available on Blu-Ray or DVD:

Blu-Ray

DVD

Documentaries of 2017

Industrial Accident: The Story Of Wax Trax! Records

--> The story of the famous Wax Trax! Records, first shown on 1st April 2017. Wax Trax! Records From humble beginnings in Denver, Colorado, Jim Nash and Dannie Flesher built one of the most influential American independent record labels. In 1978 they opened Wax Trax! Records in Chicago, Illinois, which would evolve into a record store and music label like no other—Wax Trax! became the nexus of the new wave, punk rock and industrial music scenes, and America’s preeminent industrial label of the 1980s and ’90s.

Not available to buy yet!
More information at the official web site.

Laibach - Liberation Day

--> Under the loving but firm guidance of an old fan turned director and cultural diplomat, and to the surprise of the whole world, the ex-Yugoslavian now Slovenian cult band Laibach becomes the first rock group ever to perform in the fortress state of North Korea. Confronting strict ideology and cultural differences, the band struggles to get their songs through the needle’s eye of censorship before they can be unleashed on an audience never-before-exposed to alternative rock’n’roll. Meanwhile, propaganda loudspeakers are being set up at the border between the two Koreas and a countdown to war is announced. The hills are alive...with the sound of music.

Available as digital download:

Conny Plank - The Potential Of Noise

--> Konrad "Conny" Plank (1940-1987) was one of the most innovative sound designers and music producers of his time. The recordings, which were made in the 1960s in his legendary recording studio in Wolperath near Cologne, have revolutionised the music world. He was the pioneer of Krautrock and the pioneer of electronic pop music. Bands and artists like NEU!, Brian Eno, David Bowie, Ultravox and the Eurythmics recorded with him and still emphasise the influence he had on their music. Without Plank, Gianna would have sung Nannini forever in English, and if a certain Bono had been more likable to him, U2's "Joshua Tree" would sound very different today.

Not available to buy yet!
More information at the official web site.

Books of 2017

Cosey Fanni Tutti - Art Sex Music

--> Art Sex Music is the autobiography of a musician who, as a founding member of the avant-garde group Throbbing Gristle and electronic pioneers Chris & Cosey, has consistently challenged the boundaries of music over the past four decades.

Available as limited hardback, softback and digital:

Mute: A Visual Document

--> Mute Records is one of the most revered and influential independent music labels of all time. Through the music of its tight-knit community of artists – ranging from Cabaret Voltaire, Throbbing Gristle, Nick Cave’s The Birthday Party and Einstürzende Neubauten to Depeche Mode, Yazoo, Erasure, Laibach and Goldfrapp – it has had an incalculable impact on popular music for forty years. This authoritative, sumptuously illustrated history of the label features stunning artwork and photography – much of it previously unseen – and insights from those who have worked with the label. Text contributions from key players, together with ground-breaking shots and video stills from lengendary photographers, make this book the definitive chronicle of the iconic label, which today has offices in the USA, UK, Germany and France and an unparalleled reputation worldwide.

Available as hardback:

SIGNED copies available from Rough Trade while stocks last!

The Justified Ancients Of Mu Mu - 2023

--> Well we're back again, They never kicked us out, Twenty thousand years of SHOUT SHOUT SHOUT. Down through the epochs and out across the continents, generation upon generation of The Justified Ancients of Mu Mu have told variants of the same story - an end of...

Available as limited hardback, softback and digital:

Favourite Designs/Box Sets of 2017

1st - Ennio Morricone - The Thing (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack)

Ennio Morricone The Thing (Original Motion Picture Soundtrack) deluxe Trapped In The Ice vinyl LP edition photo picture

Limited edition coloured vinyl LP

--> Incredible deluxe "Trapped In The Ice" edition with:

Heavyweight, Hand-Assembled, High-Gloss, Break-Away “Ice” Slipcase
180 Gram “Ice” Vinyl (Deep Blue with White Haze)
Satin Coated Old-Style Gatefold Jacket with UV Spot-Gloss
11” x 22” Poster
New Artwork By Justin Erickson of Phantom City Creative
Booklet Featuring Exclusive Interview with Director John Carpenter

2nd - Kyle Dixon & Michael Stein (of S U R V I V E) - Stranger Things Volumes 1+2

Kyle Dixon & Michael Stein Stranger Things Volumes 1+2 vinyl LP box set edition photo picture

Limited coloured vinyl 4xLP box set (2000 copies worldwide)

--> Georgous limited edition "deluxe" box set with:

Brand new 'Boys On Bikes' front cover artwork
2 x Printed inserts with liner notes written by the show's creators (The Duffer Brothers) and by soundtrack composers Kyle Dixon & Michael Stein
2 x 11"×22" fold out large posters (“Retro Montage” Vol. 1 & “Boys On Bikes” Vol. 2)
10 4”×6” character cards (5 x Kids Vol. 1 & 5 x Adults Vol. 2)
Hand pressed 180g ‘Flashlight’ coloured vinyl (4 discs)
425g extra-thick heavyweight gatefold sleeves
Housed in a deluxe heavyweight box with a foil embossed Stranger Things logo

3rd - Kraftwerk - 3-D The Catalogue

Kraftwerk 3-D The Catalogue blu-ray box set edition photo picture

4x Blu-Ray box set

--> Fantastic, sturdy 12"x12" box set with:

3D visuals (2D compatible)
Dolby Atmos 3D sound - 7.1/6.1/5.1 surround compatible
Headphone Surround 3D - Virtual 3D speaker simulation on standard headphones/ear plugs
PCM Stereo 48KHz/24Bit
31x30cm 228 page book
Deluxe heavyweight box

BONUS - Cosey Fanni Tutti - Art Sex Music

Cosey Fanni Tutti Art Sex Music brown bag edition hardback book photo picture

Limited hardback book (200 copies worldwide)

--> Although this is not a music release, we just had to mention this amazing limited edition "brown bag" hardback book:

Quantity: 200 signed and numbered copies for sale (plus 5 copies with roman numerals for author)
Extent: 512pp
TPS: royal, 234x156mm
Paper: Munken Premium White 80gsm woodfree
Bind: cased, sewn, square back, head and tailbands
Endpapers: 150gsm Olin white, printed 1/0 with image of Cosey reclining
Case: plc, 150gsm white art paper, with supermatt lamination, debossed area on front with printed photographic image affixed in place, title blind blocked on spine only
Slipcase: 3000 micron board, lined in red paper, covered in 135gsm white art, supermatt laminated blocked in red pigment on front only
Extra material: exclusive photographic print, signed and numbered in red envelope, inserted into front of book loose, book inserted into slipcase, wrapped in brown paper, labelled and hand numbered to match inside