Dalis Car: The Waking Hour 1984 + InGladAloneness EP 2012

Dali's Car was a musical group formed in 1984 by Peter Murphy (vocalist), Mick Karn (bassist, keyboardist, guitarist, saxophonist) and Paul Vincent Lawford (rhythm construction).
The band was formed soon after Murphy and Karn left their former bands (Bauhaus and Japan, respectively). They took their name from a Captain Beefheart song from his album "Trout Mask Replica".

THE WAKING HOUR 1984

                                                                           

Initially, the band recorded one album, "The Waking Hour" (UK No. 84), and released one single, "The Judgement Is the Mirror" (UK No. 66). The cover of the album features a detail from Maxfield Parrish's seminal painting Daybreak. The recording of the album took place in unusual circumstances, as neither Karn nor Murphy spent much time together in the recording studio, preferring to send tapes back and forth between each other, to work on alone. Much of the video to the single was recorded on location in Malta.

                                                                                   

[ AllMusic Review by Ned Raggett  [-]

Either a temporary project, a promising alliance that fell apart, or a waste of time -- Dali's Car and its

sole effort isn't something easily agreed upon, even by longtime fans of both Peter Murphy and Mick Karn. Even its original appearance was fraught with doubt given that the two were signed to separate record companies, resulting in the creation of a wholly new label just to get it in print (Beggars Banquet has since taken over full pressing on its own).
While on the one hand Waking Hour is pretty much the sum of its parts -- Murphy's dramatic, edgy singing style and Karn's fluid, immediately recognizable fretless bass and other instruments, plus percussion from Paul Lawford -- there was enough variety going on to set it apart enough from the legacies of both Bauhaus and Japan. On the one hand, the band's music feels a little harsher and more electronic than the flowing arrangements of late Japan, no doubt accentuated by the electronic drums in place of Steve Jansen's work. 

                                                                             

    
Similarly, the production feels a bit hollower -- not quite demo level, but a little more straightforward all around, occasional fripperies like the exotic synth line on "His Box" aside. Meanwhile, Murphy

avoids the more torturous roars and screams of his most extreme work in Bauhaus -- it's still recognizably him at 50 paces off, but everything feels a touch gentler and more meditative. He indulges in his usual cryptic images, admittedly -- quite what "Dali's Car" itself is meant to be is unclear -- but as is so often the case, his all-around performance is what counts the most. If nothing else, points for credit for the cover art: a lovely reproduction of the famed Maxfield Parrish painting Daybreak.]                                                                            

In August 2010, Peter Murphy announced on Twitter that he and Karn were planning to head into the studio in September to begin work on the second Dali's Car album. The project was cut short, however, as Karn had recently been diagnosed with cancer. He died on 4 January 2011, thus ending the reunion. The tracks they did record—including a re-working of Artemis from The Waking Hour with newly added vocals, guitar, and drums, and renamed Artemis Rise—were released on 5 April 2012 as an EP entitled InGladAloneness.

                                                                                

TRACKS

1. Dali's Car         5:12
2. His Box         4:42
3. Cornwall Stone         5:19
4. Artemis     Mick Karn    4:37
5. Create and Melt         5:36
6. Moonlife    Traditional    4:56
7. The Judgement Is the Mirror         4:40

Dalis Car

Mick Karn – production, cover design, and all other instruments than those listed
Peter Murphy – vocals, lyrics, and production
Paul Vincent Lawford – percussion

MP3 @ 320 Size: 82.7 MB
Flac   Size: 216 MB

InGladAloneness EP  2012

In August 2010, Peter Murphy announced on Twitter that he and Karn were planning to head into the studio in September to begin work on the second Dalis Car album. Five of the tracks they did record

shipped on April 5, 2012. as an EP entitled InGladAloneness. The tracks were mixed by Steve Jansen, mastered by Pieter Snapper in Istanbul and the artwork for the EP was created by Thomas Bak with a painting by Jarosław Kukowski. The Japanese version of the EP contains a memorial photo booklet with photos of Karn by Steve Jansen along with comments from artists who had collaborated with him. The EP features Karn’s Japan bandmate Steve Jansen on drums and original Dalis Car drummer Paul Lawford on congas.

                                                                                 

The track "Artemis Rise" was made available as a download through the Burning Shed MK Music store on Sunday July 24, 2011, to commemorate what would have been Karn’s 53rd birthday. The song is an updated version of the song "Artemis" as it appeared on The Waking Hour, with added vocals by Murphy, drums by Jansen and guitar by Jakszyk. The first 250 copies were signed by Steve Jansen. 

                                                                                

This album should be taken holistically, and the listerner must understand the conditions it was made. There is no way whatsoever this album could be better. It´s not perfect, but the musicians did what they

could while Karn was in his last and painful days. The other option is: they could have not recorded it. But I guess it´s better to have this flawed gem than nothing.
This album is a tribute to a great man, Karn, made with heartfelt emotion and with his closest friends, who gave everything they had to complete it. Steve Jansen´s work on this must be praised, because he was the one who mixed it.  

TRACKS

1. King Cloud    lyrics by David Hornsby    5:01
2. Sound Cloud         4:25
3. Artemis Rise         4.52
4. Subhanallah    Traditional    2:16
5. If You Go Away (cover of "Ne Me Quitte Pas")    Jacques Brel    2:51

Personnel

Peter Murphy - Vocals, Keyboards
Mick Karn - Bass, Bass Clarinet, Additional Guitars

Additional Personnel:

Steve Jansen - Drums, String Arrangement on "If You Go Away", Mixing
Jakko M Jakszyk - Nylon Acoustic Guitars, Electric Guitars, Gu Zheng, String Arrangements
Theo Travis - Saxophones, Flute
Şengül - Additional Vocals on "Subhanallah"
Gill Morley - Violin
Ellen Blair - Violin, Viola
Pete Lockett - Percussion
Paul Lawford - Congas
Steve D'Agostino - Additional Keyboards

MP3 @320 Size: 47 MB
Flac  Size: 121 MB