A journey into the raw and visceral origins: from the demo sessions mixed by Steve Albini to the night of the very first secret show on December 20th, 1988.

In the heart of Chicago, Geordie and Martin Atkins turned frustration and distance into pure creative energy, recording the now-legendary “Black Cassette” demos at Albini’s house. Distorted, menacing bass lines, unruly oscillators, and Albini running endlessly up and down the stairs between the basement drum room and the pantry control room defined a sound that was brutally direct and uncompromising. The first interactions with the Yamaha drum machine foreshadowed elements that would later shape parts of the album. Those sessions sparked essential ideas, while the future studio - purchased from Steve and moved to Wabash Ave - would soon become the core of Invisible Records and Killing Joke’s operations.

On the other side, a truly rare document: excerpts from Atkins’s very first show with the band, at Burberries in Birmingham on December 20th, 1988. In a small, mirror-lined club filled with tension, adrenaline, and inevitable collisions with the walls, Extremities, The Fanatic, Intravenous, and The Beautiful Dead were performed publicly for the first time. It was the night when everything ignited: the blast beat still in its embryonic stage, the controlled fury Geordie demanded - “can you go a bit more Moonie on it?” - and above all Jaz’s theatrical yet strikingly genuine laughter. Not just joy, but a declaration: a giant “fuck off” to the doubters and a prelude of what was about to come.

A raw, essential, indispensable testimony: the birth of an era. 
 

MARKETING & PROMOTION / SELLING POINTS

• A journey into the raw and visceral origins of Killing Joke, an indispensable testimony of an era.

• First official release of the legendary Steve Albini “Black Cassette” demos. 

• On the flip side the recording of the equally legendary concert in which the songs were played for the first time.

• INDIES ONLY EDITION – CREAM WHITE VINYL (ODR128LPI) 

 

TRACK LIST

Side A

STEVE ALBINI MIXES "BLACK CASSETTE" DEMO Side

1. Mondey (DEMO)

2. Unreleased (DEMO)

3. Scrape/North of the border

4. Money (Reflex Mix) 

 

Side B:

SPECIAL SECRET SHOW IN BIRMINGHAM, 20th DEC 1988 Side 

1. Extremities

2. The Fanatic

3. Intravenous

4. Beautiful Dead