It all started back in 1977 when young tearaway, RT Ripper aka Rat The Ripper aka Ewen, walked out of school aged 15, and never went back. He teamed up with Mike Kane (who was still at school) and formed The Bastards. Rat had no interest in playing instruments in the conventional way, instead opting to explore the sounds they made by bashing them about, mutilating the tuning and generally deconstructing their original use.This approach fitted in perfectly with Dundee noise guru's, Vex, Flux and Novus, of which he was a member.
I have 2 tracks of RT Ripper's solo work from the early 80's below - both, nuggets of darkness!
The 1st track called "Asterisk" is a spooky wee beastie, who's haunting drone lasts 2.40 minutes. Swiftly followed by "Return From The Land Of The Dead", a scary shrieking monster with a really menacing voice. Some of you may be glad it lasts only around a minute - I would have liked more!
If Jack The Ripper had been a musician, he may very well have sounded a little like this..!!
I quite like the first track - spacey. And then just a load of shouting. Mind you I'm fifty in a few weeks.
ReplyDeleteHi retro , are you planning on posting the 2 tracks from R.T. Ripper ? as i dont have them anymore but remember them being excellent !
ReplyDeletehow did craig hear them ? am i missing something ? plus a fifty year old Scrotum Pole ! who would have thought , but I digress , R.T. is an amazing person and a very important influence on Improvised Dundee Music , which is much under rated and now be heralded by copy cats - you know who you are !
VEX
Sounds like the gremlins have got into your broadband, Vex. Both trax are up. Plays fine at my end.
ReplyDeleteIt seems like more than just shouting for noise sake on the 2nd track. I sensed more of a crazed taunting in there, as if he was tormenting a victim! A wee bit unnerving.
Sounds like somebody should have had a career in sound tracks. Like Craig said, first part is really spacey and inviting then second track becomes a total breakdown of freak out vocals. Can't really make out what he's communicating. Maybe the trip took a turn for the worse???
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