Always Now
   HOME

TheInfoList



OR:

''Always Now'' is the debut studio album by Section 25. It was released in September 1981 through iconic Manchester record label
Factory A factory, manufacturing plant or production plant is an industrial facility, often a complex consisting of several buildings filled with machinery, where workers manufacture items or operate machines which process each item into another. Th ...
with the catalogue number FACT 45. The album was produced by
Martin Hannett James Martin Hannett (31 May 1948 – 18 April 1991) was an English record producer, musician and an original partner/director at Tony Wilson's Factory Records. Hannett produced music by artists including Joy Division, the Durutti Column, A Cert ...
, best known for producing both of
Joy Division Joy Division were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Salford in 1976. The group consisted of vocalist, guitarist and lyricist Ian Curtis, guitarist and keyboardist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris (musici ...
's studio albums. Joy Division front man
Ian Curtis Ian Kevin Curtis (15 July 1956 – 18 May 1980) was an English singer, songwriter and musician. He was the lead singer, lyricist and occasional guitarist of the band Joy Division, with whom he released the albums ''Unknown Pleasures'' (197 ...
has been credited as co-producing the record in parts before his death in May 1980. Recording took place in February 1981 at
Britannia Row Studios Britannia Row Studios was a recording studio in Islington, London N1 (1975–1995), and then Fulham, London SW6, England (1995–2015). It was built by the English rock band Pink Floyd, who used it to record their albums ''Animals'' (1977) and '' T ...
in
Islington Islington ( ) is an inner-city area of north London, England, within the wider London Borough of Islington. It is a mainly residential district of Inner London, extending from Islington's #Islington High Street, High Street to Highbury Fields ...
, London, owned by
Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English Rock music, rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic music, psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experiments ...
. A version of Dirty Disco with French lyrics was released as a single on
Factory Benelux A factory, manufacturing plant or production plant is an industrial facility, often a complex consisting of several buildings filled with machinery, where workers manufacture items or operate machines which process each item into another. They ...
. The short, improvised instrumental C.P. was a musical collaboration (‘collective project’) between the band and Hannett. Two tracks recorded and finished at Britannia Row (Human Puppets and One True Path), were not included on the original vinyl album. English dance rock band
Friendly Fires Friendly Fires are an English indie rock band from St Albans, Hertfordshire, England. They are currently signed to Polydor Records. Their self-titled debut album was released on 1 September 2008, and was announced as one of the shortlisted twe ...
later took their name from the opening track. While recording the album, Section 25 supported New Order at London nightclub
Heaven Heaven, or the Heavens, is a common Religious cosmology, religious cosmological or supernatural place where beings such as deity, deities, angels, souls, saints, or Veneration of the dead, venerated ancestors are said to originate, be throne, ...
on 9 February 1981. Hannett mixed the live sound for both bands, using quadraphonic equipment rented from Britannia Row. The album was reissued on CD in 1991 through
LTM Recordings LTM Recordings (originally les temps modernes) is a British independent record label founded in 1983, and best known for reissues of artists and music from 1978 to the present day, as well as modern classical and avant-garde composition. The la ...
with several bonus tracks. An expanded double CD edition on
Factory Benelux A factory, manufacturing plant or production plant is an industrial facility, often a complex consisting of several buildings filled with machinery, where workers manufacture items or operate machines which process each item into another. They ...
in 2015 re-mastered from the original analogue tapes, and added a bonus disc featuring their 1981
John Peel John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), better known as John Peel, was an English radio presenter and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original disc jockeys on BBC Radio 1, broadcasting regularly from ...
radio session as well as a complete live concert from 1980. The packaging replicated the original wraparound cover designed by Saville.


Recording

"We recorded and mixed in ten days," recalled singer and bassist Larry Cassidy. "We went in with about six or seven finished numbers, while others were more improvised. C.P. was made up on the spot. I was playing a cheap bass in an expensive studio." The group were then a trio composed of Larry, younger sibling Vin Cassidy on drums, and guitarist Paul Wiggin. Musically the album combined austere post-punk rhythms with abstract and/or abrasive guitar textures, together with elements of Can,
krautrock Krautrock (also called , German for ) is a broad genre of experimental rock that developed in Germany in the late 1960s and early 1970s. It originated among artists who blended elements of psychedelic rock, avant-garde composition, and electron ...
and psychedelia.


Packaging

The album was packaged in a lavish sleeve devised by Factory design director Peter Saville (credited as Grafica Industria). "I did get a fascinating brief from Larry," Saville told author James Nice in Factory history ''
Shadowplayers ''Shadowplayers'' is the title of both a 2006 documentary film and a 2010 book by James Nice of LTM Recordings, tracing the detailed history of Factory Records and the Manchester post-punk music scene between 1978 and 1981. Film The documentar ...
''. "I seem to remember he wanted something quite European, but psychedelic – and with some Oriental influences. After that, I was on my own." The exterior sleeve featured black
Berthold Berthold may refer to: * Berthold (name), a Germanic given name and surname * Berthold Type Foundry, former German type foundry * Berthold, North Dakota, a place in the United States See also * Berthod, a surname * Berchtold Berchtold (also Bert ...
type on a yellow background, printed on heavy card die-cut to form a ''pochette'' envelope, and sealed with a small red I Ching sticker. The psychedelic element was concealed within, the lining and separate inner sleeve featuring a rich marbled pattern in dark blue, yellow and red supplied by specialist French paper company Keller-Dorian. Some copies of FACT 45 also included a home-made poster, printed cheaply by the group and featuring lyrics and photos.


Reception

The first edition of ''Always Now'' went on to sell 5,000 copies and entered the indie Top Ten, although the cost and complexity of the packaging made it problematic to license abroad. On release in September 1981 the album was reviewed in scathing terms by ''
NME ''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming and culture website, bimonthly magazine, and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a "Rock music, rock inkie", the ''NME'' would be ...
'', who drew comparisons with Factory labelmates
Joy Division Joy Division were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Salford in 1976. The group consisted of vocalist, guitarist and lyricist Ian Curtis, guitarist and keyboardist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris (musici ...
. Dutch magazine ''Vinyl'' also expressed reservations, observing that early Section 25 "always had something paper-thin about it - a sound, or rather an absence of sound, giving the impression that the slightest breeze would blow it away." However, in 2006 '' Q'' described ''Always Now'' as "one of the best albums Britain's second city has unleashed", while avant garde magazine ''
The Wire ''The Wire'' is an American Crime fiction, crime Drama (film and television), drama television series created and primarily written by the American author and former police reporter David Simon for the cable network HBO. The series premiered o ...
'' also praised "the wind-dried skeins of their blasted guitar harmonics and skimped electronics." In February 2016 album track "Hit" was sampled by
Kanye West Ye ( ; born Kanye Omari West ; June 8, 1977) is an American rapper, singer and record producer. One of the most prominent figures in hip-hop, he is known for his varying musical style and polarizing cultural and political commentary. After ...
on a new song, "FML", featured on his seventh studio album, ''
The Life of Pablo ''The Life of Pablo'' is the seventh studio album by American rapper Kanye West. It was released on February 14, 2016, through GOOD Music and distributed by Def Jam Recordings. Recording sessions took place from 2013 to 2016, in Italy, Mexico, ...
''.


Track listing


LTM reissue extra tracks

LTMCD-2308, 1991Section 25 - Always Now (CD, Album) at Discogs
/ref> *"Haunted" (3:17) *"Charnel Ground" (3:55) *"Knew Noise" (4:30) *"Up to You" (4:00) *"Girls Don't Count" (4:16) *"Oyo Achel Ada" (4:21) *"After Image" (2:50) *"Red Voice" (1:49)


Factory Benelux 2015 reissue

Disc one :same tracks as LTM reissue Disc two # "One True Path" (Peel Session) # "Babies in the Bardo" (Peel Session) # "Hit" (Peel Session) # "Je Veux Ton Amour" (7") # "Loose Talk (Costs Lives)" (live) # "Human Puppets" (live) # "Knew Noise" (live) # "Friendly Fires" (live) # "Girls Don't Count" (live) # "New Horizon" (live) # "Haunted" (live) # "You're On Your Own" (live) # "Floating" (demo) # "Friendly Fires" (outtake) # "One True Path" (outtake)


Personnel

*
Martin Hannett James Martin Hannett (31 May 1948 – 18 April 1991) was an English record producer, musician and an original partner/director at Tony Wilson's Factory Records. Hannett produced music by artists including Joy Division, the Durutti Column, A Cert ...
production Production may refer to: Economics and business * Production (economics) * Production, the act of manufacturing goods * Production, in the outline of industrial organization, the act of making products (goods and services) * Production as a stat ...
* John Caffery –
engineering Engineering is the practice of using natural science, mathematics, and the engineering design process to Problem solving#Engineering, solve problems within technology, increase efficiency and productivity, and improve Systems engineering, s ...


References


External links

* {{Authority control 1981 debut albums Section 25 (band) albums Factory Records albums Albums produced by Martin Hannett