Ex, The

Ex, The

Blueprints For A Blackout

Superior Viaduct

Emerging out of Amsterdam’s vibrant squat scene in 1979, The Ex—a name chosen for the ease and speed with which it could be spray-painted onto a wall—have for four decades been an entirely self-sustaining musical entity, charting a course through the global underground with a spirit of freedom and radical exploration. Blueprints For A Blackout, The Ex’s fifth album and first double LP, combines caustic studio experimentations and loose songs from their gripping live-set at the time. The band consisted of singer G.W. Sok, guitarist Terrie Ex, two new recruits on bass, Luc and Yoke, and drummer Sabien Witteman, along with a plethora of guests including Mekons’ Jon Langford and long-serving sound engineer Dolf Planteijdt, among others. Originally released in 1984 on the band’s own Pig Brother Productions, Blueprints veers from jagged punk explosions to sharply focused improvisations featuring field recordings that would become a hallmark of their subsequent forays into free jazz and experimental music. The overall effect is not unlike the menace of a slowly building winter storm. Tracks like “Rabble With A Cause,” “U.S. Hole” and “Scrub That Scum” stand out as exemplars of this phase of The Ex. Comparisons can be made to contemporaries Einstürzende Neubauten, NoMeansNo and Svätsox as well as later Crass label bands. This first-time vinyl reissue comes with 24-page booklet.

Ex, The

Pokkeherrie

Superior Viaduct

Emerging out of Amsterdam’s vibrant squat scene in 1979, The Ex—a name chosen for the ease and speed with which it could be spray-painted onto a wall—have for four decades been an entirely self-sustaining musical entity, charting a course through the global underground with a spirit of freedom and radical exploration. On 1985’s Pokkeherrie (Dutch for “terrible noise”), The Ex return to the more stripped-down instrumentation on their early LPs. A key lineup change would also see the arrival of drummer Kat Bornefeld (whose supple rhythms propel the group to this day). Recorded at the new location of Koeienverhuur Studio in the basement of storied squat/venue Emma, Pokkeherrie is a testament to the angular momentum of a group in full creative flux. Right from the opening track, bassist Luc Klaasen generates a relentless pulse. Terrie Ex’s sparse/acidic guitar and G.W. Sok’s impassioned vocals combine in a vein similar to The Minutemen, Flipper or Rudimentary Peni, except The Ex have the patience and wherewithal to sustain their approach beyond just brief explosions. Perhaps only The Fall from this period can match The Ex’s ability to hold a melody together while utilizing otherwise harsh sonic elements over an extended piece, most effectively on “Soviet Threat,” “1,000,000 Ashtrays” and “White Liberals.” This first-time vinyl reissue comes with 17” x 24” poster and 20-page booklet.

Ex, The

Tumult

Superior Viaduct

While awaiting the release of Dignity Of Labour, The Ex headed back into the studio in early 1983; this time with a new friend—The Mekons’ Jon Langford—helping produce. Originally released in April 1983 (only a month after Dignity Of Labour), Tumult marks a major evolution in Ex-sound. Opener “Bouquet Of Barbed Wire” emerges snarling out of post-punk atmospherics with Terrie Ex’s glacial guitar, Bas Masbeck’s loping bass and cascading tom-toms from new recruit Sabien Witteman, while “Fear” and “Survival Of The Fattest” bring to bear the rhythmic core of the band, their signature angular style. Lyrically, the songs on Tumult cycle through a series of familiar concerns: animal rights, squatters, the working class, punk’s penchant for radical chic and the creeping fascism of nationalist sentiments. G.W. Sok’s voice is squalling and perfectly wry throughout. Tumult remains a high-water point of early Ex, serving as both developmental guide and way-station. The next 18 months would see the departure of Bas and Witteman and the arrival of long-serving bassist Luc Klaasen and drummer Kat Bornefeld (whose supple rhythms propel the group to this day). The album stands as one of the most compelling and unique documents of early ’80s DIY exploration. If Mark E. Smith had only one favorite Dutch punk band, then it would undoubtedly be The Ex. This first-time vinyl reissue comes with 28-inch x 39-inch full-color poster.

Ex, The

Dignity Of Labour

Superior Viaduct

In 1981, The Ex started squatting Villa Zuid, an estate overlooking abandoned Van Gelder paper factory in the village of Wormer, Netherlands. Formerly the home of the factory’s manager, the Villa briefly served as the band’s base of operations and would inspire one of The Ex’s most impactful, enduring albums in their 40+ year history. Originally released in 1983, Dignity Of Labour is “our idea of improvised industrial punk noise,” states Ex-frontman G.W. Sok, which not only offers a perfect summation of these idiosyncratic sounds, but also of the group’s music in the decades to come. During its heyday, Van Gelder employed over 1,000 workers. By 1981, it had gone bankrupt, following the takeover and divestment of a multinational corporation. Having saved the Villa from demolition through squatting, The Ex pored over newspaper articles, interviews and business records to tell the story of the factory and the people whose labor brought it to life—an unparalleled example of DIY archival action. With new drummer Sabien Witteman bringing polyrhythmic accents and a supporting crew of agitators (credits include piledriver, bus engine, printing press, etc.), The Ex recorded eight tracks in-studio and then played them back in the ruins of the factory while recording the playback—giving Dignity Of Labour a haunting sense of space that is at once cavernous and decaying. This first-time vinyl reissue (configured as single LP) comes with 24-inch x 18-inch poster and 24-page booklet.

Ex, The

Disturbing Domestic Peace

Superior Viaduct

Emerging out of Amsterdam’s vibrant squat scene in 1979, The Ex —a name chosen for the ease and speed with which it could be spray-painted onto a wall – have for four decades been an entirely self-sustaining musical entity, charting a course through the global underground with a spirit of freedom and radical exploration. Disturbing Domestic Peace, The Ex’s debut album, appeared mere months after their first single, 1980’s All Corpses Smell The Same. Originally released on the band’s own Verrecords (they made up different label names with each record), the LP falls squarely within a punk idiom and, at the same time, shows this influential Dutch group’s restless energy. Terrie Ex’s guitar serves up vectors of percussive pulse, fraying the edges of the music’s squared-off rhythms. Vocalist G.W. Sok—an anarchist Dziga Vertov with a mic—observes, declaims and condemns across a set of interrelated political concerns that would return in Ex-music for years to come. While The Ex channel the poise and principled attack of Crass or Flux Of Pink Indians, they create a unique declamatory sound all their own—trailing brilliant flashes of color in the wake of punk’s monochrome palette. Offering ten songs in only twenty-two minutes, Disturbing Domestic Peace lays bare a vivid snapshot of a truly singular band who (at the time) were just finding their feet. This first-time vinyl reissue comes with bonus 7-inch, insert and 20-page booklet.

Ex, The

History Is What's Happening

Superior Viaduct

Emerging out of Amsterdam’s vibrant squat scene in 1979, The Ex —a name chosen for the ease and speed with which it could be spray-painted onto a wall—have for four decades been an entirely self-sustaining musical entity, charting a course through the global underground with a spirit of freedom and radical exploration. Originally released in 1982, History Is What’s Happening features one of the most harrowing title/cover art combinations in recent memory. What at first glance looks like a firing squad is, upon closer inspection, a concentration camp orchestra. On their second album, The Ex advance into a distinctly more post-punk style: textural guitar shards and tumbling motorik drumming with Bas Masbeck’s thunderous bass shouldering much of the melodic load. Railing against political duplicity and the illusory nature of “freedom” in an age of manufactured consent, G.W. Sok offers some of punk’s most bracing and memorable agit-prop lyrics. These twenty songs are a quick-moving and caustic trip, a DIY studio rendition of the band’s explosive live set from this era. History Is What’s Happening remains an important signpost in the history of both Ex-evolution and the cataclysmic ’80s. With their sophomore LP, the group would put Holland on the underground music map. Indeed, many now-lifelong fans around the world were just beginning to take notice and get down with the mighty Ex. This first-time vinyl reissue comes with 23” x 16” poster and 24-page booklet.

Ex, The

27 Passports

Ex Records

***BACK IN STOCK ON CD!!!  “The Ex released their previous regular studio album as a four-piece (Catch My Shoe) in 2010. While that might seem like a long stretch, their schedule since then tells you another story. The band also released a second album with Ethiopian legend Getatchew Mekuria, and another one with Brass Unbound, featuring several of their friends from the realm of free improvisation. On top of that, there were also a few 7-inches, several phenomenal birthday festivals and a lavish photo book that was published as a tribute to the late Getatchew Mekuria in 2016. But now there’s new music, with the unmistakable ‘Ex energy.’ The three-pronged guitar approach is still as exciting as ever, with the guitars of Andy Moor, Terrie Hessels and Arnold de Boer creating tense, interlocking webs of connections and drummer Katherina Bornefeld pushing the band with dancing, hypnotic patterns. “There are some remnants of their African adventures, but most of all, this is a return to the power of The Ex as a unit that effortlessly juggles noisy / disjointed guitar parts, trance-like grooves, defiant chanting and a relentless, infectious drive. Colorful and fierce at the same time, 27 Passports once again expands their horizon and enriches their sound, while remaining true to the core of their philosophy: forward in all directions!”  —Guy Peters

Ex, The

The Ex At The Bimhuis

Ex Records

***A compilation of the highlights from almost 25 years of THE EX live history at the Bimhuis, Amsterdam; one of the world’s leading jazz clubs. Some 12 exciting concerts & festivals with dozens of amazing guests from all over the planet. From the almost legendary first gig in June 1991, with guests HAN BENNINK, WOLTER WIERBOS, AB BAARS and comedian HERR SEELE; the OOCTOBER MEETING; Han Buhrs PodiumPrijs; ICP Jubilee; The Ex Orkest; 3 GETATCHEW MEKURIA nights; a New Years Eve Party; 2 nights the 33 1/3 Festival, to the recent concert for Concert For Children. Double CD with booklet, posters and article by Dutch journalist PETER BRUYN. No Export to UK/EU.

Ex, The

Catch My Shoe

Ex Records

***BACK IN STOCK!!! Some statistics: This is the 25th CD/LP release on their own Ex Records and Catch My Shoe is the first with new singer ARNOLD DE BOER. The songs range from high energy Gurage music from Ethiopia to hypnotic full on dance tunes. “In a decade when everyone from The Incredible String Band to the Jesus Lizard has staged a comeback, THE EX top them all; not only are they still together thirty years after they first came together as a punk quartet playing gigs in Amsterdam squats, they’ve never compromised their values, and their music has never sucked. Key to their success is a commitment to constant change and improvisational acumen that enable them to turn circumstances that might break a lesser band into opportunities for growth." No Export.

Ex, The

30: 30 Years Of The Ex

Ex Records

***A selection of the best songs from legendary Dutch group THE EX. Culled from all the band’s releases. No Export to Europe.

Ex, The

Aural Guerilla

Ex Records

Ex, The

Blueprints For A...

Ex Records

Ex, The

Dead Fish

Ex Records

Ex, The

Dignity & Labor

Ex Records

Ex, The

Disturbing Domestic Peace

Ex Records

Ex, The

Hands Up! You're Free

Ex Records

Ex, The

History Is What's...

Ex Records

Ex, The

Joggers & Smoggers

Ex Records

Ex, The

Mudbird Shivers

Ex Records

Ex, The

Pokkeherrie

Ex Records

Ex, The

Too Many Cowboys

Ex Records

Ex, The

Tumult

Ex Records

Ex, The

Spanish Revolution

Alternative Tentacles