The Belbury Circle : Outward Journeys

A few years back I was really into the Ghost Box label. I found the whole concept rather brilliant. A small, independent label; a sort of cottage industry run by a couple of enthusiastic and enlightened fellows. Which basically what Ghost Box is.
Though the label has released a good few recordings by others the whole set up is more or less a Julian House, Jon Brooks, and Jim Jupp project.

The admirable Julian House artwork / graphic design; all that idea about hauntology, the 70s retro feeling, the library music schtick really appealed to me at that time. I bought  a batch of releases -the whole Study Series of singles, albums by The Focus Group, Belbury Poly, The Advisory Circle, Mount Vernon Arts Lab. I particularly like The Focus Group -a project of experimental electronic musician and graphic designer Julian House- with its blend of influences ranging from old library music sounds, sixties melodies, seventies film soundtracks and TV programmes.

House probably made his best disc though with the collaboration with Broadcast on the 'Broadcast and The Focus Group Investigate Witch Cults of the Radio Age' album (Warp, 2009). I say probably because I'm not quite aware of what he's released on Ghost Box in the past couple of years or so. Can imagine that I've missed out on some good stuff. In fact, I'll have to time to listen to all of the older releases too.

Of course,  the Ghost Box releases that I acquired were (are) rather splendid. As I mention, I bought a batch of singles and some albums - as well as their two packs of Ghost Box badges. Badges that had actually been inspired by me as I'd been making my own Ghost Box badges. Jim Jupp actually informed me via the Belbury Parish Magazine that mine had been the inspiration for Ghost Box to set about producing their own.

Somehow I sort of went of the label. More or less something else caught my fancy and attention. That was until I saw that they were releasing a cassette! Being the tape fetishist that I am I just had to have this highly desirable item. I hope that they release some more tapes in the near future. Maybe even some back catalogue on cassette?

As for the tape itself; The Belbury Circle consists of Jon Brooks (The Advisory Circle) -someone who has a fascination with sixties & seventies public information films, and Jim Jupp (Belbury Poly -the studio band of Ghost Box Records co-founder Jim Jupp and Jon Brooks). Hence the name: Belbury Circle. Belbury Poly's influences, much like those of House and Brooks, range from old library music, synth sounds, analogue and TV soundtracks to keyboard driven 70s prog rock, folk and Krautock

Anyhow, 'Outward Journeys' is the first album for this collaborative project  It also features John Foxx on vocals and synth on a couple of the tracks 'Trees' and 'Forgotten Towns'- reprising his appearance on The Belbury Circle’s debut six-track EP (Empty Avenues) in 2013. As with previous releases 'Outward Journeys' draws heavily on late 70s and early 80s synth pop and library music.
It's not my favourite Ghost Box release but all in all its rather fine indeed.

The ever-excellent design is by Julian House. Here he uses the aesthetic of early software and computer packaging though at first sight it reminded me more of Polaroid™ packaging.

Tape comes with a download code for those obsessed with the digital age who want listen to it on a laptop or a smartphone.