Mark Mothersbaugh — Musik for Insomniaks (Limited edition Japanese boxed cassette with deck of cards)
Author: tracysigler | Posted: December 16th, 2007 | | Tags: 1985, box set, cassette, Devo, electronic, experimental, Mark Mothersbaugh | 3 Comments »
- Artist: Mark Mothersbaugh
- Title: Musik for Insomniaks (Limited edition Japanese boxed cassette with deck of cards)
- Year: 1985
- Format: Cassette
- Rating (1-10): 6
- Owner: Tracy
- Acquired: 1985? – I must’ve been working at a record store…
- Keeper: Yes
All the nerds in the house say, “Hey!” This one is for you. I know I promised something for the nerds the other day, but I’ve been planning on posting Mark Mothersbaugh’s Musik for Insomniaks since I saw him playing “guest programmer” on TCM a couple weeks ago.
Mark had some interesting movie choices. I didn’t see his entire shift. I wonder if Robert Osborne asked him about Devo. Anyhow… Of course, Mark has made many soundtracks and that’s pretty much what Musik for Insomniaks sounds like. It’s a little too staccato to be considered truly soporific (false advertising!) but it does get boring at times. And those times really depend on the listener because all of the “songs” sound similar. I thought I was playing the same side of the tape by mistake for a minute, but it turned to be side 2 after all. Even the names of the songs are similar: “XP25”, “XP31”, etc. To be fair, the collection is really more like a film score where the pieces are variations of the core theme. It’s all instrumental, with no drums or guitar, that I could tell.
What makes this piece interesting enough to keep is the total package. This version was a Japanese import produced as limited edition boxed cassette with a deck of cards. Mothersbaugh completely covered this thing with art and quirkiness. The text on the cover is in gold leaf box, the cassette itself is metallic gold, there is a comic inside the box top, and included is a letter in kanji signed by Mark. I saved the best for last, there is also a full deck of playing cards, to play some sleep-inducing Solitaire I assume. All the cards have a different picture of Mark. For each suit he is wearing a different suit of his own. I don’t know who the woman is with him on one of the Joker cards.
Hi,
When visiting LA in 1990 I got a copy of Musik for Insomniaks from a friend who designed graphically for the music business. While going through current digitising sound times I rediscovered this item amongst my belongings and google brought me here. While listening to the ’85 weirdness there is some nostalgia and remember this music very suitable to get rid of unwanted guests.
never heard this anywhere else.
kars
netherlands
The girl on the joker card with Mark is Nancye Ferguson.
She’s an actress, and at the time was fronting a band called Visiting Kids, which a few of Mark’s relatives sang in. (The singers were aged 6 to 8).
I know this because I was friends with Nancye- who gave me the limited edition Japanese M for Insomniaks back in 1985.
An interview link:
http://twinpeaksarchive.blogspot.com/2008/07/exclusive-nancye-ferguson-interview.html
Hey Chalky, Great info. Thanks for the comment and link. Tracy