The original line-up of Afterimage may have only existed for a couple of years and released merely one single and one EP, but their take on post-punk—at once raw and explorative, with one eye to the sound that was emanating from across the ocean and one to a past-acknowledging future— left a mark in the underground sonic psyche of the City of Angels. Faces to Hide collects all of Afterimage’s studio recordings, plus demos and live tracks from performances at now legendary spots such as Whisky a Go Go and Al’s Bar.
Listening to this compilation, one can picture the four members of Afterimage—Alec Tension (Dan Voznick), A Produce (aka future ambient explorer Barry Craig), Rich Evac (Rich Robinson) and Holland DeNuzzio—bonding over a love of Public Image Ltd, Pere Ubu, Magazine, The Fall, Gang of Four and Television, while eagerly adding unexpected detours (surf rock, electrifying blasts of saxophone). Faces to Hide also makes it easy to see why, back in the day, the Los Angeles Times was compelled to call Afterimage “L.A.’s Joy Division”. Similarly to the UK trailblazers (of whom they were among the first avowed admirers among the LA punks), Afterimage seemed to sculpt their sound in marble, coming up with hypnotic skittery sonics revealed to be chilly upon their surface and fiery in their details.
Faces to Hide proves as scathing, urgent, taut, angular and gripping as Afterimage’s scarce but unforgettable output must have sounded more than forty years ago. Packaged with a 8-page booklet featuring extensive, career-spanning liner notes by noted journalist Richie Unterberger and previously unseen band photos, Faces to Hide also features Independent Project Records’ signature hand letterpress-printed custom design for the vinyl and CD packaging.
This double LP comes with a bonus flexi-disc containing previously unreleased exclusive tracks and is a numbered vinyl edition which comes in IPR’s iconic die-cut packaging, letterpress printed at Independent Project Press. Includes a postcard-sized full-color download card with code for a free download of the album with 4 bonus tracks.
This listing is for a copy of the black vinyl "Faces To Hide" retrospective double LP -- please see our other listings for the white vinyl or CD versions, or order our limited Afterimage bundle featuring a copy of Faces To Hide along with an original sealed copy of Afterimage's "Fade In" 12" EP from 1981.
TRACK LIST:
A1 Strange Confession 2:42
A2 The Long Walk 2:33
A3 Afterimage 2:59
A4 Relapse 3:04
A5 Soundtrack 2:57
A6 No Dreams 4:39
B1 Surf Generator / Part of the Threat 4:11B2 Satellite of Love 3:53
B3 Idol (Live) 5:54.
B4 Afterimage (Live) 3:45
B5 Faces to Hide (Live) 3:26
C1 Just a Laugh (Demo) 3:52C2 Relapse (Demo) 3:18
C3 Afterimage (Demo) 2:33
C4 No Dreams (Demo) 4:16
C5 Sonic Switch (Demo) 5:13
D1 Surf Generator / Part of the Threat (Live) 4:15D2 Just a Laugh (Live) 2:46
D3 Rhythm Equation (Live) 3:54
D4 Satellite of Love (Live) 3:51
D5 Soundtrack (Live) 2:53
D6 The Long Walk (Live) 2:58
BONUS FLEXI DISC:
E1 Submission (Rehearsal demo - version 1) 1:39E2 Submission (Rehearsal demo - version 2) 2:33
F1 Breaking Point (Live) 4:56
AFTERIMAGE - Faces To Hide double LP on Black Vinyl
"Fans of Chameleons, Joy Division, and early Cure would be most wise to grab this ASAP. This is that–but its cold, anomic heart beats on very American terms. Excellent stuff that deserves obsession."
—The Big Takeover★★★★ "A lovingly compiled retrospective...This lavish set is a textbook reissue that provides a fascinating look at a somewhat neglected band."
—Ben Phillipson, Shindig★★★★ "Live tracks and demos fill out the tale to double-LP length: the slender, potent legacy of a band that hit it, then quit it much too soon."
—David Fricke, Mojo"This compilation is nothing short of a time capsule for those who came of age in the first generation of post-punk... Faces to Hide is a document of an often-overlooked corner of the Los Angeles underground scene. It's a reminder that there were bands crafting dark, urgent, and experimental sounds that could rival anything coming out of Manchester or New York."
—Lawrence Peryer, The Tonearm"Their sound was tough and raw, befitting their Cali punk roots. Anybody into cold wave, dark wave, minimal wave (all the waves, basically) should check out this lavishly produced set."
—Joseph Neff, Vinyl District"Notice the drumming, inventive, propulsive, and powerful. Prepare for slashing, blustery guitars, and their vertiginous, hypnotic menace, which also throbs through tough, grabby bass lines. And then feel the heightened anxiety of Alec Tension’s nervy vocals, as high-pitched and quivering as those of John Lydon, conveying an unsettling, alienated reality and dark surrealism in tantalizingly subversive lyrics. Set up as a scattershot aural gallery, it’s all a mutant, contorted, dizzying experience, with Afterimage’s angular, daring acrobatics and explosive energy planting a flag in even the fullest memory banks."
—Peter Lindblad, Ink19