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7"
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EHAW 006EP
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Edition Hawara's third 7" release is a slow-moving synth gem from 1983. Its producer, Chris Duchatschek or just Chris, is hardly a household name in Austrian pop music. But Duchatschek was not only an early member of Drahdiwaberl, the legendary anarchist band that was headed by Falco before his global breakthrough. He also produced a string of almost-forgotten hits, not least José Feliciano's "The Sound of Vienna". "San Francisco Night" is one of Duchatschek's few solo productions. It's the soundtrack for a party in a dark, smoke-filled basement in early 1980s Vienna, but it should work just fine in today's smoke-free basements too. Or in your living room, as long as you turn the lights off.
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7"
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EHAW 005EP
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Edition Hawara's fifth release is a raw funk gem by a little-known Austrian pop band called Magic Sound. Edition Hawara's second 7" release features one of the more obscure Austrian bands from the 1980s. Little is known about Magic Sound. The cover suggests that their label wanted them to be Austria's Village People, though their sound is much rawer and funkier. One thing that is known is that the group included Andy Töfferl, who was also a member of the famous Austrian pop ensemble EAV (Erste Allgemeine Verunsicherung). And it's known that they went to the studio to record a whole album after touring Sweden in 1980. Only these two songs survived, and they are worth listening to over and over again. Enjoy in fancy dress, or dressed down. With or without a moustache.
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LP
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EHAW 004LP
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Edition Hawara present a reissue of Robert Ponger's self-titled album, originally released in 1979. Robert Ponger is perhaps best known as the producer for Austria's biggest pop sensation Falco. His unparalleled production skills are on full display in the iconic hit single "Der Kommissar", and he is also the main man behind Falco's legendary early albums Einzelhaft and Junge Römer. But Ponger deserves at least as much credit for his solo recordings. The most sought-after of these is Ponger's 1979 self-titled LP. The album contains twelve disco-inspired pieces that are unabashedly playful, but also signal serious musical knowledge and finesse. Recorded in the vicinity of Mistelbach, a village even locals struggle to find on a map, Ponger's LP breathes the vibe of Studio 54 -- with the little special extra that only Mistelbach can add. A true Austrian classic.
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7"
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EHAW 003EP
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Of course everyone knows Kurt Hauenstein, aka Supermax. He was one of the few Austrians to shape the sound of late-1970s disco, performing and selling records around the world. Not many know his daughters Judy and Nicola, however, and the fact that they in 1987 wrote a song that they recorded together with their father. Well, here it is: Cracy Coconuts, "Rubberdub Dance" -- a true Hauenstein family affair. Edition Hawara re-release this super rare 7" that proves, once and for all, that Austrians can excel at digi-dub. Timelessly tropical and beautifully bouncy, its vibe is quite different from the iconic Supermax productions. Here, Judy and Nicola's sweet yet confident vocals replace the moustache-driven sotto voce singing that you love Supermax for. The result is oh-so-catchy and bound to be a hit.
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LP
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EHAW 001LP
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Edition Hawara present a reissue of Zenit's Straight Ahead, originally released in 1986. Zenit is a jazz ensemble from Krems in Lower Austria, founded in 1976 by Hannes Treiber and Willi Langer. Their music was celebrated locally, but to reduce them to their local fame would be a shame: after all, their first two LPs, Stimmungswechsel (Change of Moods) (1982) and Früchte (Fruits) (1983), quickly gained them a much wider audience of discerning listeners. Arguably, however, Zenit's third and final LP, Straight Ahead, is the most special of their records. It initially came out in 1986 on the producer's label Spray Records, and is today one of the hardest-to-find Austrian jazz records. Its centerpiece is the infectious slow-motion disco piece "Waiting", with vocals by American jazz singer Linda Sharrock. Effortlessly bringing together pop, soul, and new age vibes, this is a record that is as unique as it is difficult to date. Does it sound like from it's the '80s? Maybe. But it could also be from the future.
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12"
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EHAW 002EP
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The Word is one of the better kept secrets of 1980s Austrian disco music. Yet, once you put the needle on this record, you notice that it sounds oddly familiar. The awe-inspiring signature piece "Lobster" has the same analog, slow-moving aesthetic as Zenit's timeless "Waiting", featured on Edition Hawara's first release (EHAW 001LP). The same goes for the three other wonderfully unconventional, proto electronic songs: "Easy", "All My Life", and the eponymous "The Word". And there are even more commonalities with Zenit's LP: the vocals are Linda Sharrock's, who here teamed up with Karl "Charly" Ratzer and Peter Ponger, the twin brother of legendary Falco producer Robert Ponger. The result of this collaboration is, well, also quite legendary. How this kind of sound emerged in Vienna in 1984 is still a bit of a mystery, but clearly all the stars were aligned when Sharrock, Ratzer, and Ponger were jamming in the studio. Just as there are very few lobsters in landlocked Vienna, there are very few records like this out there. All four tracks were originally taken from the band's debut and second EP, released between 1983 and 1984. The original EPs has been discontinued and second-hand copies of the original pressing are expensive.
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