Zoe Dewitt: NEKROPHILE REKORDS 1983-1990

Published on occasion of the release of the Nekrophile Rekords 10-LP box set by Vinyl on Demand Records, this book documents the activities of the Viennese cassette label Nekrophile Rekords run by electroacoustic musician Michael Dewitt from 1983 to 1990. With releases of Dewitt’s own music projects Zero Kama and Korpses Katatonik, the first ever published album by Coil, as well as recordings by Genesis P-Orridge, Ain Soph and LAShTAL, Nekrophile Rekords played a pioneering role in the development of the musical genre ritual industrial.

Besides a preface by Nicolas Ballet, the book contains the text of the lecture ‘Zero Kama, Nekrophile Rekords and the Occult Underground of the Post-Industrial Era’ held at the Academy of Fine Arts Vienna in 2015, an interview on Zero Kama’s album The Secret Eye of L.A.Y.L.A.H., and ‘Love from a Secret Domain’, a previously unpublished essay on the collaboration of Nekrophile Rekords with John Balance. Documents, promo and news sheets released by Nekrophile Rekords provide insight into the intellectual background of the label and its subversive and occult philosophy, while articles, reviews and play lists shed light on its contemporary reception. Photos of the two only live performances of Zero Kama in Amsterdam and Arnhem (NL), as well as a series of action photos by Heinz Cibulka documenting Michael Dewitt’s participation in the 3-Days-Play of Hermann Nitsch’s Orgien-Mysterien Theater furthermore show the artist’s excursions to the field of performance art.

In addition to facsimiles of letters from Nekrophile Rekords to Graf Haufen, the volume furthermore contains the entirety of John Balance's letters to Michael Dewitt, as well as letters from Genesis P-Orridge (Psychic TV), Cosey Fanny Tutti (Chris and Cosey), Graeme Revell (SPK), David Tibet (Current 93), Steve Stapleton (Nurse with Wound), Masami Akita (Merzbow), Laibach, and many more, providing a comprehensive look at the correspondence of the cassette label that has enjoyed an undisputed cult status in the electronic music underground since its existence in the 1980s.

Zoe Dewitt
NEKROPHILE REKORDS (1983-1990)
Texts. Documents. Materials.
ISBN 3-901134-25-8, 240 pages, 29,7 x 22 cm, full color illustrations.
Date of publication: January 2022