Deep | Mlehst ‎/ Split Tape (1996)

Deep | Mlehst ‎/ Split Tape (1996)

The term 'tape-trading' acquired negative connotations due to the volume of (mostly crap-sounding) bootleg live recordings that made the rounds that way, but it was a perfectly viable method for small or independent labels and/or unsigned bands and artists to distribute demos and limited-run releases to interested parties.

It was through such channels that I bought Split Tape in '96. Only 333 official copies exist, but you can find it from time to time on places like Discogs or eBay.

Both artists play a kind of ambient/electronica with an industrial and experimental vibe. 01. The Deep track(s) in particular are a fine example of a hypnotic exchange given the time to grow from an idea into an all-encompassing mood, occasionally reminiscent of Tribes of Neurot. 02. Mlehst is noisier, less rhythmic, with two bass guitars, a drum machine, loops and samples.

I ripped the cassette to digital files many years ago for use in my mp3 player. You can find a DL link for both below the cut. [1]

DEEP: 

01. EM(BIENT) 2000 [23 minutes]

02. EM(BIENT)     '96 [07 minutes]

Recorded and mixed July/August live to a 4-track recorder. Note: I kept them as one track for organisation purposes - my mp3 player used to mix things up, seemingly arbitrarily.

MLEHST: 

01. TRUSSED BY CHANCE [30 minutes]

Produced July 1996

-- MEGA LINK --

[1] For those that care about such things: I used a Terratec Pre-amp USB device with the Steinberg Clean programme. It wasn't top of the range stuff, but it worked. I encoded at 320kbs, but it's from cassette, so don't expect miracles. The runtimes in the inlay (quoted above) don't match my files. I don't know why. I also don't know if the tracks were released outside of the cassette version. I'd buy the DEEP tracks in better quality, if anyone knows how or where.