Glenn O’Brien’s TV Party was an anarchic music/arts show that aired between 1978-1982. Produced with almost no budget and no script it showcased the best talent from NYC and beyond. Fondly remembered for it’s mad performances and guests, it gave a valuable platform to the city’s assorted artists, weirdos and chancers. The likes of Debbie Harry, Jean-Michel Basquiat, James Chance all graced TV Party’s hallowed set and it’s a perfect Downtown artefact.

Brink Films is about to release a best-of DVD, so until then, have a look at these wonderful Youtube clips and join the party!

Start your week with a grandiose slice of  disco from German synth pioneer Harry Thumann. Released in 1979, Underwater is a cult favourite amongst disco aficionados due to it’s bombastic and quite wacky nature. Huge Salsoul-style horns and strings blend seamlessly with the icy simplicity of Moroder-esque synths, resulting in a prime cinematic disco number (also, it also kinda sounds like all those Stars Wars disco songs that you can find in charity shops but better). With so many sounds seemingly coming from every disco sub-genre, Thumann maintains the song’s individuality and funkiness with genuine aplomb.

‘Arry’s liberal use of revolutionary synths and other crazy stuff (ahem), still makes this track, taken from his debut album American Express, sound remarkably fresh and perfectly demonstrates how flexible and experimental disco could be.

Harry Thumann – Underwater

Not many bands would take creative inspiration from the Jewish Mourners’ Prayer – The Kaddish, but cult avant-garde electro-disco pioneers Gina X Performance did just that with their 1981 song ‘Kaddish’.

Led by the charismatic Gina Kikoine and probably best known for their cult 1979 Quentin Crisp-inspired hit ‘No G.D.M’. This curious oddity ranks as one of my favourite records of all time – and I’m not just saying that to get your attention.

‘Kaddish’ is one of the undisputed highlights from the band’s third album ‘Voyeur’. A mesmerizing, slow-mo disco track with ice cold Teutonic vocals, this is a radical and wonderfully peculiar record that still impresses to this day. It was even featured on Lindstrom’s 2007 Late Night Tales Mix, which only furthers the song’s enduring appeal. Track down a copy of the album if you can. I think LTM re-issued it in 2005 with added bonus tracks, it’s definitely worth splashing your cash on.

I mean, who’d have thought religion could be so bloody cool? Well, apart from the Jonas Brothers, Miley Cyrus and my mate Rich but who else, eh?

Gina X Performance – Kaddish

Formed by brothers Stephen and Martin Eicher in 1978, the Swiss band Grauzone were part of the ‘Neue Deutsche Welle’ (New German Wave) – a collective of European bands who took their inspiration from punk, early electro and the grey decaying urban cities around them. From its early beginnings in 1981 from the underground punk scenes of Berlin, Dusseldorf, Hamburg (amongst others) to commercial success in the mid-eighties, the NDW is now regarded to have exerted its influence on genres such as, new beat , electroclash and the ‘dance-punk’ phenomena of the early noughties.

‘Film 2′ is one of the genre’s understated masterpieces.  A b-side from the hit single ‘Eisbar’ (which was later covered by the Ad Man’s wet-dream group Nouvelle Vague), the track is unnerving and extraordinary. With it’s slightly off-kilter four to the floor beat and minimal yet driving sound, it’s a song that was way ahead of its time. Featuring on many mix compilations over the years (most notably Hot Chips’ DJ Kicks album), just shows the timeless quality of this cult 1981 gem.

Grauzone – Film 2