Vox fanzine #6 : 1981
the original (spk) was operator and ne/h/il psych. nurse and certified
schizophrenic (now deceased). at the time of the album's release the line
up was: operator - synthesizers, rhythms, treatments, vocals/ Wilkins -
guitars, tapes, vocals/mr. clean - technician/tone generator - synthesizers,
treatments.
spk stands for surgical penis klinic and system planning korporation.
in their own words are expressed the ideas and interpretations behind the
group and the ideas involved in their first album 'information overload
unit' - a harsh and direct attempt to come to terms with an enforced reality.
the content of the album contains a maze of both precise and obscure ideas
which will definitely hurt you. you should try and experience the ideas
expressed.
1. the music itself has two sides. we are very much involved with mental
'illness' - its criminal repression in glamour-clean society - but also
its break out possibilities (a maniac - schizo dynamic which moves too
quickly for capitalism to water down and control). by overloading information
so that it is out of our control when we construct a piece of sound, we
try to give the technology a chance to act for itself (rather than 'dominating'
or 'humanizing it'). and also the listener a chance to construct something
as well. on a lyrical level that is why the operator screams either in
bed german (because he likes the sound) or electronically destroys what
has taken hours to write. we have no wish to tell anybody what to think
- who gives a shit what we think - we would then be just like critics in
the music press - we are interested in what other people think, which is
why we encourage personal communication with us. our aim is to encourage
young people to do something different and not to identify/mimic, even,
indepent stuff - because it's the same thing. that is why we have very
amicably decided not to record again with industrial and have re-established
our original side effects label and recorded everything ourselves in our
south london squat bedroom - to diversify the attack on any front no matter
how small or insignificant it may seem."
the project ideal is to express the content of various psychopathological
conditions, especially schizophrenia, manic - depressive psychosis, mental
retardation and paranoia. information overload supersedes normal, rational
thought structures, forcing deviation into less restrictive mental procedures
of so - called 'mental illness'. spk is trying to be a voice for those
individuals condemned to the slow decay of mental hospitals and chemical/electro/surgical
therapy, without fetishising them into blatant entertainment product. 'sonics
for manics' aims to be a vehicle for sharing mental experiences through
sound.
owing to the instability of personalities associated with spk output
is likely to be irregular, as it has been up to now.
we would like to hear from anyone interested in what we are doing,
especially those with interest in, or history of, psychotic disorder. we
will reply personally to all correspondence. our name and material will
vary with each project, but once established, you will have no difficulty
in maintaining contact. please write to mike wilkins, 15, king edward's
road, hackney, london e9 7sf. england.
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