Name: Spinal Injuries
Brand: Cortex

Bonus disc

Bonus disc: No

Catalogue number

SBR3029lp-C1

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Colour

Clear

Colour details

Clear vinyl.

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Discogs ID

Format multiplier

Download code

Download code: No

Rough Trade Exclusive

Rough Trade Exclusive: No

Extended format

Extended format: Yes

Format detail

Includes bonus “Sleepwalking / Jesus I Bitong” 7". Includes 24-page zine featuring liner notes & archival photos/flyers.

Format Music US

Limited edition

1000

Release date

2019-07-12

Signed copies

Signed copies: No

Supplier US

Secre­tly

Tax rate US

Sales:8.875

UPC / Barcode

843563117385

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Total Cap

1 / Extended format: Yes / LP / Rough Trade Exclusive: No / Signed copies: No / clear

Artist

Cortex

Genre US

Label US

Sacred Bones Records

Cortex is a French jazz fusion group from the seventies. The key members of the band were Alain Mion on piano and Alain Gandolfi on drums and percussion. Known for their unique blend of jazz, funk, and rock influences, Cortex created a sound that was both innovative and captivating.

With their intricate compositions and energetic performances, Cortex quickly gained recognition in the music industry. Their music resonated with audiences around the world, earning them a dedicated fan base. Influenced by artists such as DJ Harrison, Idris Muhammad, Roy Ayers Ubiquity, Dorothy Ashby, and Lonnie Liston Smith among others; Cortex's music showcased their versatility and creativity.

Whether you are a long-time fan or new to their music, exploring the discography of Cortex is sure to be an enriching experience. With each track filled with soulful melodies and mesmerizing rhythms - courtesy of *Alain Mion* on piano - combined with *Alain Gandolfi's* impeccable drumming skills; it is no wonder that they have left an indelible mark on the jazz fusion genre.

New Wave / Post Punk

Informed by deep and enthusiastic underground music knowledge, Cortex were key in the ongoing musical narrative of Swedish punk and post-punk. The late frontman of Cortex, Freddie Wadling (1951-2016) is a legend of enormous stature in Sweden: he is revered on the level of, say, Captain Beefheart or Serge Gainsbourg, and has been a key influence for generations of Swedish artists over the past four decades. His work ranges from proto-punk to equilibrist jazz vocals, and the trajectory of his cultural life from the Swedish underground of the early 1970s to his final years as an iconic interpreter of the Swedish songbook in the mainstream has to include a discussion and the experience of what many consider his greatest album: Cortex’s debut LP Spinal Injuries.

Recorded in April 1981, released in August 1983, Spinal Injuries by Cortex stands as one of a handful of masterpieces of Scandinavian post-punk. Freddie Wadling played in bands locally in his hometown of Gothenburg starting in the mid-1960s: garage bands, jam bands, one-offs, party-bands. Wadling belonged to the generation of the culturally astute who embraced the milestones as they happened: Captain Beefheart, The Velvet Underground, Zappa, Bowie, Eno, The Stooges, Hawkwind, alongside underground lit, underground comix, and art movements outside of the mainstream at a time where you had to dig hard to find out about stuff. No internet, no media mentions, no TV or radio. All word of mouth, hepcat to hepcat.

Spinal Injuries is an extraordinary record that does not necessarily resonate Swedish, or post-punk, or 1981. It is one of the finest unsung albums of this era, remaining a highly original rock record to this day, and still stands outside of time. As informed by punk rock as by art rock – echoes of Brian Eno, Roxy Music, Swell Maps, Neu!, Can, Tuxedomoon, and the list goes on – certainly a rock record that is truly well-informed by its influences, but that not even once recedes into a representation. Like most of the albums that we reach for over and over again, there is something within the grooves that makes us feel like we can step outside of the limits of contextual time and place.

Spinal Injuries

Music US