The Ecstacy Of Saint Theresa

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Czech shoegazers propped up stateside by endless accolades by Claire Records over the years. Incessant comparisons to My Bloody Valentine and early Lilys have made me more than curious...

so last night i'm in Amoeba and I see that someone unloaded (all?) 6 of their CDs and they're all priced between $5-$9... not bad for being out of print.

― gygax!, Tuesday, 27 August 2002 21:57 (twenty-one years ago) link

any recommendations before i head over to the sonic youth instore tomorrow?

― gygax!, Tuesday, 27 August 2002 21:58 (twenty-one years ago) link

The first album Susurrate is pretty good but has a very murky sound, and hilariously sub-Colm O'Ciosoig drumming at times.

― electric sound of jim (electricsound), Tuesday, 27 August 2002 22:40 (twenty-one years ago) link

Part of the appeal. If you're going to start anywhere, Fluidtrance Centauri, which is utterly godlike, three songs of pure genius. I remember someone somewhere in a review trying to say how this effort 'wasn't really shoegaze' or something similarly amusing, which struck me as missing the forest for the trees.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Tuesday, 27 August 2002 23:09 (twenty-one years ago) link

They made 6 CDs? Wow... go for the early stuff, the EP Ned has mentioned and the one with the pink flowers on the front (can't remember the name of it). And now I feel like going in my attic and finding my copies.

― Rob M, Wednesday, 28 August 2002 05:11 (twenty-one years ago) link

nice, thanks all. i will head over there around noon-ish and hope it's all still there.

― gygax!, Wednesday, 28 August 2002 14:28 (twenty-one years ago) link

I also adore EOST. I have the (I think) second alb, the one with the tweeting birds and the church bells and the pulsing 'womb' bass noises. It's incredibly good. I used to have quite a thing about the singer, who is just the epitome of the ethereal, enigmatic, mysterious, cerebral and totally fanciable Czech female. Or that could have been my ceske-pivo-addled brain back in the early 90s.

― Daniel (dancity), Thursday, 29 August 2002 07:36 (twenty-one years ago) link

>Colm O'Ciosoig

Sorry about the rude thread hijack, but...is Colm still involved in music?

― Venga, Thursday, 29 August 2002 07:40 (twenty-one years ago) link

Answering my own q but I see he's in Hope Sandoval's current band.

Carry on with yer EOST musings.

― Venga, Thursday, 29 August 2002 08:22 (twenty-one years ago) link

he lives in kensington (berkeley hills) in the sf bay area (california)... been here for quite a few years i think.

― gygax!, Thursday, 29 August 2002 16:39 (twenty-one years ago) link

I find it funny that of all the post-MBV stuff, the records Colm has been involved with have been far and away the best.

― electric sound of jim (electricsound), Thursday, 29 August 2002 23:11 (twenty-one years ago) link

six months pass...

is this the same eost that have an ep called Astralavista with remixes by disco inferno and bandulu?

― gaz (gaz), Thursday, 20 March 2003 04:13 (twenty-one years ago) link

yes 'tis

― electric sound of jim (electricsound), Thursday, 20 March 2003 04:20 (twenty-one years ago) link

The very same...

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 20 March 2003 04:31 (twenty-one years ago) link

b-b-but, thats not shoegazer! i've always ignorantly loved that record. I obviously now must enter my belated shoegazer phase...

― gaz (gaz), Thursday, 20 March 2003 04:44 (twenty-one years ago) link

The last one 'Slowthinking' sounds to me like Vespertine as played by a jazz trio.

― Fabrice (Fabfunk), Thursday, 20 March 2003 08:27 (twenty-one years ago) link

six months pass...

Right now, my copy of Fluidtrance Centauri is travelling across the central United States by Pathfinder, getting closer and closer by the day...

― adaml (adaml), Wednesday, 8 October 2003 16:49 (twenty years ago) link

there's a 4CD set, which includes all their shoegaze-era material. It sells for the price of a single CD.

― Baaderist (Fabfunk), Thursday, 9 October 2003 06:20 (twenty years ago) link

Er? Tell me more, please! Like how to find it and so forth.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Thursday, 9 October 2003 14:09 (twenty years ago) link

Yes, more please.

― adaml (adaml), Thursday, 9 October 2003 14:12 (twenty years ago) link

Well, it's called '4B4', packaged in a neat but incovenient fold-out digipackish format. It's got the 1st single, the 1st album, the 'Fluidtrance Centauri' EP and the ambient soundtrack (sorry my memory's not too good today..)
It's widely available here (Czech Republic), but maybe it wasn't released elsewhere. Let me check on that.

― Baaderist (Fabfunk), Thursday, 9 October 2003 14:28 (twenty years ago) link

here's more detailed info:

4B4
Mute CS / Magic Tree 2001

01CD. Pigment
02CD. Susurate
03CD. ...fluidtrance centauri...
04CD. Free-D (Original Soundtrack)

― Baaderist (Fabfunk), Thursday, 9 October 2003 14:33 (twenty years ago) link

do you know who's distributing it? i can't find anything on mute's site.

― gygax! (gygax!), Thursday, 9 October 2003 15:04 (twenty years ago) link

tonevendor had copies, i don't know if they still do

― the surface noise (electricsound), Friday, 10 October 2003 01:44 (twenty years ago) link

no they don't

― the surface noise (electricsound), Friday, 10 October 2003 01:46 (twenty years ago) link

haha, i went back to amoeba tonight (only 13.5 months later) and bought sussurate (clairecords reissue) for $2.95 and fluidtrance centauri for $1.95.

(fyi: amoeba is having a huge used clearance right now).

― gygax! (gygax!), Friday, 10 October 2003 02:06 (twenty years ago) link

Really? Their timing is fucking lousy.

― adaml (adaml), Friday, 10 October 2003 03:48 (twenty years ago) link

Gygax, it's Mute Czechoslovakia and a small Czech label called Magic Tree. I don't think either of them sells it online. If you really want it, I can always get it/mail it for you. I think here it sells for roughly 25-28 dollars.

― Baaderist (Fabfunk), Friday, 10 October 2003 06:32 (twenty years ago) link

two months pass...

Did it ever get US distribution? I still want it badly.

― @d@ml (nordicskilla), Monday, 22 December 2003 17:30 (twenty years ago) link

One of my favorite works of art!

http://www.mcah.columbia.edu/dbcourses/arthum/medium/920632614858_07.jpg

― Jeanne Fury (Jeanne Fury), Monday, 22 December 2003 18:05 (twenty years ago) link

Wow! Thanks, Jeanne!

― @d@ml (nordicskilla), Monday, 22 December 2003 18:06 (twenty years ago) link

The new one, 'Slowthinking', has finally received distribution in the UK. I don't know about the US though..

― Baaderist (Fabfunk), Tuesday, 23 December 2003 09:06 (twenty years ago) link

MUST GET

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Tuesday, 23 December 2003 22:11 (twenty years ago) link

one month passes...

Gygax!, did you ever get 4B4? Alternately, do you have the separate components of it? You wouldn't be errrr, willing to help out a good buddy, would you?

Also-Baaderist, if you read this, I'd be very interested in buying a copy were you able to accomodate me.

― @d@ml (nordicskilla), Tuesday, 17 February 2004 22:50 (twenty years ago) link

i have the fluidtrance centauri 10" and it's great, but i detested the free-d album i later found and gave a spin... which one is susurate more similar to?

― fortunate hazel (f. hazel), Wednesday, 18 February 2004 02:06 (twenty years ago) link

Well, Sussurate is more similar to Fluidtrance -- but in the sense how, say, "You Made Me Realize" is similar to "Sometimes" (recorded earlier, 'rougher' -- I'm really forcing the connection here admittedly).

I do not have Slowthinking yet and that pains me.

― Ned Raggett (Ned), Wednesday, 18 February 2004 02:09 (twenty years ago) link

Adam, I'll look for it next time I'm down at the store and we can work something out. I'll let you know.

Ned's pretty much OTM about Sussurate, but keep in mind it very rough... (ie. sunday-evening-jam-in-dad's-garage type of recording quality)

― Baaderist (Fabfunk), Wednesday, 18 February 2004 08:34 (twenty years ago) link

For whoever's interested, it seems you can order the 4B4 boxset from this website (US): http://tonevendor.com/item/6261

― Baaderist (Fabfunk), Wednesday, 18 February 2004 09:18 (twenty years ago) link

The best from this lot are defo Fluidtrance and Free-D. Be prepared to get an LP of sub Trip-Hop drivel with the later stuff, esp. Slowthinking...
(just warning you like)

― Debord (Debord), Wednesday, 18 February 2004 09:53 (twenty years ago) link

Not sure I agree with you on Slowthinking, which I'd rather compare to Vespertine, with a slight jazz sensibility (i.e. lots of upright bass and some horns, all cut-up and glitch-y). The single 'I'm (not really) optimistic' is pretty representative of the album.

― Baaderist (Fabfunk), Wednesday, 18 February 2004 09:59 (twenty years ago) link

I thought it was a bit like a bad rip off of Vespertine, crossed with dodgy Trip Hop. Then again I did get it when I was listening to "Free D" just about every day. I still think that's a fucking good record too, why don't people make them like that anymore?

― Debord (Debord), Wednesday, 18 February 2004 11:31 (twenty years ago) link

two weeks pass...

@d@ml, no i didn't get it... but i do have all the original print CDs! also, i'm going to be around part of the week that i expected not to so i'll make you a little gift package.

― gygax! (gygax!), Thursday, 4 March 2004 23:38 (twenty years ago) link

Hooray!

Anything you need in return?

― @d@ml (nordicskilla), Thursday, 4 March 2004 23:40 (twenty years ago) link

not that i could mention here

― gygax! (gygax!), Friday, 5 March 2004 00:01 (twenty years ago) link

three weeks pass...

haha, i knew i forgot to give you something!!!

― gygax! (gygax!), Monday, 29 March 2004 20:39 (twenty years ago) link

It's okay! but..

Recommend me somewhere to play pool here!

― @d@ml (nordicskilla), Monday, 29 March 2004 20:46 (twenty years ago) link

one year passes...

I heard their version of the Telescopes classic "Perfect Needle"....interesting but nowhere near the emotion level of the original. For those interested in the original version, send email to transmission@antenna.wanadoo.co.uk which is the mailing list for The Telescopes and other labelmates!

― Gazinka, Friday, 27 May 2005 10:33 (eighteen years ago) link

six years pass...

this thread is unsearchable
new album out - haven't listened to them since 'Slowthinking' - they might have grown out of their boring trip-hop phase by now.

― licorice oratorio (baaderonixx), Friday, 17 June 2011 07:57 (twelve years ago) link

That first EP blew my mind but I was disappointed by subsequent material.

― Gerald McBoing-Boing, Friday, 17 June 2011 11:17 (twelve years ago) link

I don't know much of their work, but I love "Surfing on Steam"

― Mr. Patrick Batman (WmC), Friday, 17 June 2011 12:25 (twelve years ago) link

two years pass...

comprehensive article about them in Quietus this morning - too bad it's about a release I've never managed to get into

― licorice oratorio (baaderonixx), Monday, 17 February 2014 11:07 (ten years ago) link

Yeah I've got that record. It's certainly good/not particularly dated but not anywhere near as compelling as Susurrate (completely different style aside) to me.

― Evan, Monday, 17 February 2014 14:58 (ten years ago) link

five years pass...

Lost track of Jan P. Muchow but his latest project, The Antagonists, is really good. Sountracky torch music.

― licorice oratorio (baaderonixx), Friday, 6 December 2019 14:19 (four years ago) link

three years pass...

― licorice oratorio (baaderonixx), Tuesday, 4 July 2023 17:09 (nine months ago) link

Reminds me -- I was interviewed a few years back for a book on the band. I hope it's still coming out!

― Ned Raggett, Tuesday, 4 July 2023 17:47 (nine months ago) link

Ah wait I think Baaderonixx's post missed the link to the story, which I believe is by the fellow who interviewed me!

https://www.theguardian.com/music/2023/jul/04/we-didnt-want-to-sound-close-to-anything-like-sting-the-exhilarating-freedom-of-the-czech-shoegaze-scene

― Ned Raggett, Wednesday, 5 July 2023 00:30 (nine months ago) link

That’s it, thanks!

― licorice oratorio (baaderonixx), Wednesday, 5 July 2023 06:18 (nine months ago) link

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The Ecstacy Of Saint Theresa - S/D