Maybe the most schizophrenic of all the major-associated labels in the 1980s? I mean, you've got everything from Stryper to T.S.O.L. to Devo, Wire, Mojo Nixon, The Smithereens and Game Theory. And that's just scratching the surface. How did they get away with being so weird for so many years?
― Johnny Fever, Sunday, 10 February 2008 08:58 (seventeen years ago)
Also, why did their cassette packaging smell like tacos?
― Johnny Fever, Sunday, 10 February 2008 08:59 (seventeen years ago)
You'll understand when you go on down to Tacoland.
― kingkongvsgodzilla, Sunday, 10 February 2008 09:22 (seventeen years ago)
The other record label that is exactly like this (minus the bit about the tacos) is I.R.S.: English Beat, Nuclear Assault, R.E.M., Go-Go's, Camper Van Beethoven, Black Sabbath, Wall of Voodoo?
I seem to remember hearing rumors about Enigma being controlled by the mafia.
― kingkongvsgodzilla, Sunday, 10 February 2008 09:35 (seventeen years ago)
Well, Enigma's deal with Mute made a lot of the weirdness... thankfully. I never would have discovered Sonic Youth, Renegade Soundwave, or Wire if it were not for Enigma/Restless
― Mackro Mackro, Sunday, 10 February 2008 09:46 (seventeen years ago)
No mention of the logo yet!
Never understood the logo.
But HUGE classic otherwise. Loved the compilation, Enigma Variations: Kraut, TSOL, Pandoras, Game Theory, SSQ, Texacala & the Horsehead, Untouchable, John Trubee & the Ugly Janitors of America. Redd Kross, Channel 3,.... great stuff.
http://www.sa-wa-ro.com/Compilation-Pages/images-Compilation/comp-tev1-f.jpg
The sleeve art, however, was kinda embarrassing.
― Alex in NYC, Sunday, 10 February 2008 15:38 (seventeen years ago)
Never released on CD, naturally.
― Alex in NYC, Sunday, 10 February 2008 15:50 (seventeen years ago)
http://www.thelibraryofhope.com/bsp15-1.jpg http://i26.tinypic.com/10hq8wn.jpg
― Johnny Fever, Sunday, 10 February 2008 19:33 (seventeen years ago)
Aaaah, see the popular rumor was that the Enigma logo was something else turned upside down.
― Mackro Mackro, Sunday, 10 February 2008 20:05 (seventeen years ago)
Really? That's kind of a stretch.
I never had any idea what it was until a few minutes ago, though. Thanks GIS!
― Johnny Fever, Sunday, 10 February 2008 20:12 (seventeen years ago)
All the marginals underwritten by Stryper dollars, kind of like Uriah Heep keeping Bronze afloat a decade earlier.
― Gorge, Sunday, 10 February 2008 21:21 (seventeen years ago)
I thought it was shark's fin for the longest time.
― Alex in NYC, Sunday, 10 February 2008 21:46 (seventeen years ago)
TSOL popped into my head first.
What a shame that band could never live up to the Weathered Statues EP that wasn't on Enigma I don't think? Sorry.
Learned later that TSOL were these meathead types us true punks should hate
― Fer Ark, Sunday, 10 February 2008 23:40 (seventeen years ago)
Is it navel fluff?
― kingkongvsgodzilla, Sunday, 10 February 2008 23:41 (seventeen years ago)
The original TSOL were invariably a helluva lot more punker than you. Granted, they morphed into bad L.A. metal, but hey. C'est la guerre.
― Alex in NYC, Sunday, 10 February 2008 23:51 (seventeen years ago)
http://static.rateyourmusic.com/album_images/13524.jpg
― Eazy, Monday, 11 February 2008 00:06 (seventeen years ago)
Did my Green on Red Gas Food Lodging image disappear there?
― Eazy, Monday, 11 February 2008 00:08 (seventeen years ago)
There just probably isn't anywhere else on ILM that anybody's gonna mention Metal MC!
http://spotlightmusic.blogspot.com/2009/07/metal-mc-born-to-party-1988.html
http://1.bp.blogspot.com/_yGubABYThtk/Sk-Ub0ooGYI/AAAAAAAABwg/Asj-yI1yLBY/s1600-h/MetalMC.JPG
― kingkongvsgodzilla, Thursday, 4 February 2010 02:05 (fifteen years ago)
― kingkongvsgodzilla, Thursday, 4 February 2010 02:06 (fifteen years ago)
Who were somehow connected to this band!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uSbFBerKIPI
― kingkongvsgodzilla, Thursday, 4 February 2010 02:09 (fifteen years ago)
AGENT ORANGE!
― Jake Gyllenhaal needs more juggalo in it (jjjusten), Thursday, 4 February 2010 02:11 (fifteen years ago)
fire in the rain owns
Gonna scan the completely ridiculous Enigma mail order insert that is in this Game Theory 'Big Shot Chronicles' LP I just opened. Kinda want this Allan Holdsworth T shirt though. What a weird label Enigma was though,huh? Slayer, Smithereens, Stryper...
― BlackIronPrison, Wednesday, 20 February 2013 00:17 (twelve years ago)
Allan Holdsworth T shirt
this is just awesome to contemplate
― available for sporting events (underrated aerosmith bootlegs I have owned), Wednesday, 20 February 2013 01:05 (twelve years ago)
It helps if you understand that Enigma was originally run out of Greenworld Distribution. Pretty typical of that sort of set up. See Homestead, The major difference was that Homestead was A&Red by Gerard Cosloy, who had, you know... an ear.
― factcheckr (eat my dirt), Friday, 22 February 2013 05:00 (twelve years ago)
Which of the giant conglomerate labels owns the Enigma catalog these days, I wonder? Would love to see the two Plugz albums (on Restless) come back into print...
― 誤訳侮辱, Friday, 22 February 2013 20:43 (twelve years ago)
always associte the label with wire and always will
― akm, Friday, 22 February 2013 23:15 (twelve years ago)
Peter Hammill was on Enigma for a while but has since recovered the rights to the albums he did for them. He complained that the amount of interest they had in promoting him was zero. Strange label. Al Stewart too.
― my father will guide me up the stairs to bed (anagram), Thursday, 7 March 2013 16:10 (twelve years ago)