Deceit (album)
Encyclopedia
Deceit is the second album
by This Heat
. Deceit is considered by many as a classic of the post-punk
era and was ranked by Pitchfork Media
as the 20th greatest album of the 1980s. The Trouser Press Record Guide
called the album "austere, brilliant and indescribable."
In a 1991 interview, Charles Hayward
explained that the threat of nuclear warfare
motivated the band and provided the album with an underlying theme: "The whole speak, 'Little Boy
', 'Big Boy
' [sic], calling missiles cute little names. The whole period was mad! We had a firm belief that we were going to die and the record was made on those terms.… The whole thing was designed to express this sort of fear, angst, which the group was all about really." The
album's subject matter also deals with war and imperialism
. The cover art
reflects these concerns and includes a photomontage
of images such as mushroom cloud
s, thematic map
s depicting nuclear arsenal
s, and photographs of Ronald Reagan
, Leonid Brezhnev
, and Nikita Khrushchev
.
As with other This Heat recordings, much of the album was recorded at Cold Storage, a disused refrigerated storeroom at a former meat pie factory in Acre Lane, Brixton
, England
. The music included new improvisations, along with songs the band had been playing during live performances (portions of these songs were culled from actual concert recordings). As Hayward describes, "some of the album was really plush sounding, some dim and pokey. Sometimes it would sound like the machinery was breaking up. We deliberately would make it sound as though the record player was exploding."
During the 1990s, intermittent availability made Deceit a rarity and a collector's item among fans. In 2006, This is (a Recommended Records
imprint) released a remaster
ed version of Deceit as part of the 6-CD
Out of Cold Storage box set. This is also released the album as a separately available CD.
Album
An album is a collection of recordings, released as a single package on gramophone record, cassette, compact disc, or via digital distribution. The word derives from the Latin word for list .Vinyl LP records have two sides, each comprising one half of the album...
by This Heat
This Heat
This Heat were a British experimental music group formed in early 1976 in Camberwell, London by multi-instrumentalists Charles Bullen , Charles Hayward and Gareth Williams .This Heat were active in the ascendancy of British progressive rock and punk rock, but stood apart...
. Deceit is considered by many as a classic of the post-punk
Post-punk
Post-punk is a rock music movement with its roots in the late 1970s, following on the heels of the initial punk rock explosion of the mid-1970s. The genre retains its roots in the punk movement but is more introverted, complex and experimental...
era and was ranked by Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media
Pitchfork Media, usually known simply as Pitchfork or P4k, is a Chicago-based daily Internet publication established in 1995 that is devoted to music criticism and commentary, music news, and artist interviews. Its focus is on underground and independent music, especially indie rock...
as the 20th greatest album of the 1980s. The Trouser Press Record Guide
Trouser Press
Trouser Press was a rock and roll magazine started in New York in 1974 as a mimeographed fanzine by editor/publisher Ira Robbins, fellow Who fan Dave Schulps and Karen Rose under the name "Trans-Oceanic Trouser Press" ...
called the album "austere, brilliant and indescribable."
In a 1991 interview, Charles Hayward
Charles Hayward (musician)
Charles Hayward is an English drummer and was a founding member of the experimental rock group This Heat. He also played with Mal Dean's Amazing Band, Radar Favourites, Dolphin Logic, and gigged and recorded with old schoolfriend and "Pooh and the Ostrich Feather" member Phil Manzanera in the...
explained that the threat of nuclear warfare
Nuclear warfare
Nuclear warfare, or atomic warfare, is a military conflict or political strategy in which nuclear weaponry is detonated on an opponent. Compared to conventional warfare, nuclear warfare can be vastly more destructive in range and extent of damage...
motivated the band and provided the album with an underlying theme: "The whole speak, 'Little Boy
Little Boy
"Little Boy" was the codename of the atomic bomb dropped on Hiroshima on August 6, 1945 by the Boeing B-29 Superfortress Enola Gay, piloted by Colonel Paul Tibbets of the 393rd Bombardment Squadron, Heavy, of the United States Army Air Forces. It was the first atomic bomb to be used as a weapon...
', 'Big Boy
Fat Man
"Fat Man" is the codename for the atomic bomb that was detonated over Nagasaki, Japan, by the United States on August 9, 1945. It was the second of the only two nuclear weapons to be used in warfare to date , and its detonation caused the third man-made nuclear explosion. The name also refers more...
' [sic], calling missiles cute little names. The whole period was mad! We had a firm belief that we were going to die and the record was made on those terms.… The whole thing was designed to express this sort of fear, angst, which the group was all about really." The
album's subject matter also deals with war and imperialism
Imperialism
Imperialism, as defined by Dictionary of Human Geography, is "the creation and/or maintenance of an unequal economic, cultural, and territorial relationships, usually between states and often in the form of an empire, based on domination and subordination." The imperialism of the last 500 years,...
. The cover art
Cover art
Cover art is the illustration or photograph on the outside of a published product such as a book , magazine, comic book, video game , DVD, CD, videotape, or music album. The art has a primarily commercial function, i.e...
reflects these concerns and includes a photomontage
Photomontage
Photomontage is the process and result of making a composite photograph by cutting and joining a number of other photographs. The composite picture was sometimes photographed so that the final image is converted back into a seamless photographic print. A similar method, although one that does not...
of images such as mushroom cloud
Mushroom cloud
A mushroom cloud is a distinctive pyrocumulus mushroom-shaped cloud of condensed water vapor or debris resulting from a very large explosion. They are most commonly associated with nuclear explosions, but any sufficiently large blast will produce the same sort of effect. They can be caused by...
s, thematic map
Thematic map
A thematic map is a type of map or chart especially designed to show a particular theme connected with a specific geographic area. These maps "can portray physical, social, political, cultural, economic, sociological, agricultural, or any other aspects of a city, state, region,nation , or...
s depicting nuclear arsenal
Nuclear weapon
A nuclear weapon is an explosive device that derives its destructive force from nuclear reactions, either fission or a combination of fission and fusion. Both reactions release vast quantities of energy from relatively small amounts of matter. The first fission bomb test released the same amount...
s, and photographs of Ronald Reagan
Ronald Reagan
Ronald Wilson Reagan was the 40th President of the United States , the 33rd Governor of California and, prior to that, a radio, film and television actor....
, Leonid Brezhnev
Leonid Brezhnev
Leonid Ilyich Brezhnev – 10 November 1982) was the General Secretary of the Central Committee of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union , presiding over the country from 1964 until his death in 1982. His eighteen-year term as General Secretary was second only to that of Joseph Stalin in...
, and Nikita Khrushchev
Nikita Khrushchev
Nikita Sergeyevich Khrushchev led the Soviet Union during part of the Cold War. He served as First Secretary of the Communist Party of the Soviet Union from 1953 to 1964, and as Chairman of the Council of Ministers, or Premier, from 1958 to 1964...
.
As with other This Heat recordings, much of the album was recorded at Cold Storage, a disused refrigerated storeroom at a former meat pie factory in Acre Lane, Brixton
Brixton
Brixton is a district in the London Borough of Lambeth in south London, England. It is south south-east of Charing Cross. The area is identified in the London Plan as one of 35 major centres in Greater London....
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
. The music included new improvisations, along with songs the band had been playing during live performances (portions of these songs were culled from actual concert recordings). As Hayward describes, "some of the album was really plush sounding, some dim and pokey. Sometimes it would sound like the machinery was breaking up. We deliberately would make it sound as though the record player was exploding."
During the 1990s, intermittent availability made Deceit a rarity and a collector's item among fans. In 2006, This is (a Recommended Records
Recommended Records
Recommended Records is a British independent record label and distribution network founded by Chris Cutler in March 1978. RēR features largely "Rock in Opposition" and related music, but it also distributes selected music released on other independent labels.In 1982 Cutler established November...
imprint) released a remaster
Remaster
Remaster is a word marketed mostly in the digital audio age, although the remastering process has existed since recording began...
ed version of Deceit as part of the 6-CD
Compact Disc
The Compact Disc is an optical disc used to store digital data. It was originally developed to store and playback sound recordings exclusively, but later expanded to encompass data storage , write-once audio and data storage , rewritable media , Video Compact Discs , Super Video Compact Discs ,...
Out of Cold Storage box set. This is also released the album as a separately available CD.
Personnel
- Charles Bullen: voice, guitar, clarinet, drums, tapes
- Charles HaywardCharles Hayward (musician)Charles Hayward is an English drummer and was a founding member of the experimental rock group This Heat. He also played with Mal Dean's Amazing Band, Radar Favourites, Dolphin Logic, and gigged and recorded with old schoolfriend and "Pooh and the Ostrich Feather" member Phil Manzanera in the...
: voice, drums, keyboards, guitar, bass, tapes - Gareth WilliamsGareth Williams (English musician)Gareth Williams was a British musician best remembered as the bassist and vocalist for the experimental rock group This Heat.-Career Summary:...
: voice, bass, keyboards, tapes, mask - Martin FrederickMartin FrederickMartin E. Frederick , is the Corporate Director of Civil Space Programs at Northrop Grumman Corporation. Prior to this appointment, he worked at the National Aeronautics and Space Administration as Deputy Director for the in the Earth Science Division of the Science Mission Directorate...
: studio and live mix - Peter Bullen: live mix, tape operation, projection
- Phil Clarke: organisation
Track listing
- "Sleep" – 2:13
- "Paper Hats" – 5:57
- "Triumph" – 2:55
- "S.P.Q.R.SPQRSPQR is an initialism from a Latin phrase, Senatus Populusque Romanus , referring to the government of the ancient Roman Republic, and used as an official emblem of the modern day comune of Rome...
" – 3:26 - "Cenotaph" – 4:35
- "Shrink Wrap" – 1:40
- "Radio Prague" – 2:21
- "Makeshift Swahili" – 4:04
- "Independence" – 3:39
- "A New Kind of Water" – 4:57
- "Hi Baku ShoHibakushaThe surviving victims of the atomic bombings of Hiroshima and Nagasaki are called , a Japanese word that literally translates to "explosion-affected people"...
" (Suffer Bomb Disease) – 4:03