The Eye (KUKL album)

The Eye is the debut studio album by Icelandic post-punk band Kukl. It was released in September 1984 by Crass Records. The album peaked at No. 6 in the UK Independent Albums Chart.

The Eye
Studio album by
Kukl
ReleasedSeptember 1984
RecordedJanuary 1984
StudioSouthern Studios
Genre
Length27:15
Label
ProducerPenny Rimbaud
Kukl chronology
"Söngull" single
(1983)		 The Eye
(1984)		 Kukl á Paris 14.9.84
(1984)

A music video for the track "Anna" was released, directed by Tage Ammendrup.

The album has been reissued numerous times: in 1997 by Crass, and in 2002, 2004 and 2008 by One Little Indian.

Production

The Eye was recorded at Southern Studios in January 1984.[1] It was produced by Crass member Penny Rimbaud and engineered by Tony Cook. The cover art was designed by Dada Nana. It was named after Björk's favorite book, Story of the Eye by Georges Bataille (1928), an intense story about a young French couple involved in sexual perversions and violent behaviors. The album included "Dismembered", a new version of the band's first single, "Söngull" (1983), with most of the guitars replaced by pipes and bells.

Critical reception
Professional ratings
Review scores
SourceRating
AllMusic[2]
Sounds[3]

In a 1984 review at Sounds magazine, David Tibet gave the album a perfect score, saying: "'The Eye' steps boldly out of the supposed confines that the Crass label is meant to impose...and drags the listener into a glacial world of confused emotion and shattered visions." He compared it to The Scream by Siouxsie and the Banshees, "primarily I suppose because of the howling vocals and decaying metal".[3]

AllMusic praised the album, stating that "The Eye is a patently draining affair seemingly devoid of any coherent structure. Repeated spins, however, unearth a highly sophisticated aesthetic that borrows evenly from punk, noisecore, avant garde, and good old-fashioned indie. Although highly discordant and often atonal, it's a curiously engaging record, aided in part by Björk's darkly emotive vocals and the presiding, almost mythical, sense of impending lunacy. It may not be for everyone, but this is gutsy, non-conformist music as authored by one of the most passionate, intense bands in Iceland's esteemed history".[2]

Track listing
Side A
No.TitleLength
1."Assassin"3:15
2."Anna"6:08
3."Open The Window And Let The Spirit Fly Free"2:35
4."Moonbath"2:06
Side B
No.TitleLength
5."Dismembered"4:29
6."Seagull"3:04
7."The Spire"4:28
8."Handa Tjolla"1:27

Personnel

Credits adapted from the album's liner notes.[1]

Kukl

Additional personnel

  • Tony Cook – engineering
  • Dada Nana – artwork and design
gollark: You see, Rust makes things immutable by default! Which is a good default!
gollark: Or any of these:
gollark: No mutiny, or mutation.
gollark: Primarily, I have to fill out my journal and stuff, since I'm using ext4 by hand.
gollark: ...

References
  1. The Eye (CD liner notes). KUKL. Crass Records. 1984.CS1 maint: others (link)
  2. "The Eye - K.U.K.L." AllMusic.
  3. Tibet, David. Kukl The Eye review. Sounds. 3 September 1984
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