The 2024 remastered reissue of Bas Relief by Eleven Pond holds massive historical significance as a celebration of Dark Entries Records' 15th anniversary. Originally released in 1986 in a strictly limited run of just 500 vinyl copies, this debut album by the Rochester, New York post-punk collective dissolved into complete obscurity before slowly becoming a revered, holy-grail relic of the dark pop underground. Formed by art school students James Tabbi, Jeff Gallea, Jack Schaeffer, and Dan Brumley, the band translated their profound adoration for iconic labels like Factory Records and 4AD into a beautiful, localized sonic signature.
What sets this 2024 definitive edition apart from past bootlegs or standard re-pressings is a meticulous archival restoration. Sourced from the original 2-track analog tapes, the fresh audio master directly corrects an unintended pitch shift that had plagued previous digital and physical reissues. True to the aesthetic commitment of Dark Entries, the physical package acts as a gorgeous time capsule: it features a screen-printed replica of the original 1986 jacket design, a cardstock lyric insert, two custom Eleven Pond postcards, and a commemorative Dark Entries bookmark.
The ultimate triumph of the 2024 remaster of Bas Relief is how vividly it strips away decades of tape degradation to reveal a remarkably forward-thinking piece of synth-pop architecture. On timeless standouts like the sweeping opener "Tear and Cinnamon" and the legendary underground anthem "Watching Trees," the album balances the industrial dread of Fad Gadget with the melodic, guitar-driven romanticism of For Against. The updated master gives the low-end frequencies immense punch; the electronic drum-machine programming lands with pristine clarity, and the cold wave synthesizers swirl through the soundstage with a cutting, beautiful presence.
Lyrically, the album plays like an intimate, poetic collection of cold-belt art school anxiety. Songs like "Portugal" and "Ignorant Father" bypass standard darkwave cliches in favor of abstract, emotionally complex reflections on distance, time, and generational friction. James Tabbi's echo-drenched vocals act as a perfect focal point for the record. His delivery shifts seamlessly between a fragile, acoustic folk-tinged vulnerability and a detached, new wave baritone that perfectly captures the isolation of a mid-80s Upstate New York winter.
Musically, the staggering dynamic interplay between the four musicians proves they were far more advanced than your average independent garage outfit. Jack Schaeffer’s pointillistic, churning guitar riffs trade space beautifully with Dan Brumley's avant-garde use of vocoders, samples, and haunting melodica lines. Holding the entire tapestry together are Jeff Gallea's remarkably hook-heavy basslines. These bass grooves push tracks like "Tightrope" and "Asterisk" out of standard goth-rock moodiness and squarely onto the alternative dance floor, creating an infectious hybrid of dark dance and post-punk grit.
Ultimately, the 2024 reissue of Bas Relief stands as an essential and triumphant act of musical preservation. It honors the very roots of Dark Entries Records—serving as a reissue of the exact release that launched the label 15 years prior—while giving a brilliant band their long-overdue flowers. For any serious disciple of minimal wave, coldwave, or the melancholic synth textures of the 1980s, this meticulously corrected, beautifully packaged analog relic is a necessary, high-octane masterpiece.
Ripped to MP3
1. Tear and Cinnamon
2. Watching Trees
3. Days Hence
4. Tightrope
5. Portugal
6. Asterisk
7. Moving Nowhere
8. Changing Face
9. Temporeal
10. Ignorant Father
11. Ask
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