Recorded 1979 at Pathway studios, an eight-track studio in Islington, North London, this is an album of inventive, timeless electro-pop. Mastered from the original analogue tapes, the album still sounds incredible thanks to Foxx’s minimalist approach, which was partly inspired by his experience of watching Lee “Scratch" Perry produce records at Island Records’ studios in the 1970s. Engineer Gareth Jones - who later worked on some of Depeche Mode’s finest recordings - also proved to be a fantastic collaborator and innovator on this record.
John Foxx:
"I was in retreat from bands, touring, etc, mightily convinced that electronics were the future, and reading too much J.G. Ballard. I lived alone in Finsbury Park, spent my spare time walking the disused train lines, cycled to the studio every day and wobbled back at dawn, imagining I was the Marcel Duchamp of electropop. Metamatic was the result. It was the first British electronic pop album. It was minimal, primitive technopunk. Carcrash music tailored by Burtons.”
For the 45th anniversary, the album will be pressed on a grey vinyl edition of John Foxx's era and genre defining classic from 1980.
Released: January 2025
Cat: META80LP
Label: Metamatic Records
Listen
Tracklist
Side One
1. Plaza
2. He’s A Liquid
3. Underpass
4. Metal Beat
5. No-One Driving
Side Two
1. A New Kind Of Man
2. Blurred Girl
3. 030
4. Tidal Wave
5. Touch And Go