This week’s monday mixtape isn’t a guest mix for Lodown, but a guest mix by Lodown’s Skism for Balearic Social - kind of an exchange for the superb mix that Andy Pye (the mastermind behind Balearic Social) did for us some weeks ago. It exclusively features only music from the German Democratic Republic. Here’s what Skism has to say about it:

"Balearic music from the German Democratic Republic? Keeping a few things in mind it sounds like an oxymoron:

Only one(!) record label (AMIGA) existed in the GDR. Although AMIGA licensed a good bunch of „harmless“ international artists’ records, each East German band’s release needed to be checked and permitted by governmental institutions (lyrics, track names, artwork). Instruments, especially synthesizers, were hard to get and basically unaffordable, the underground scene was observed by the secret agency. Only studied musicians were able to release records. And then there was a strict travel limitation (no Western countries). Most people never saw beaches with palm trees in real. There were no beach parties with soundsystems and outlaws doing drugs, playing trippy music. Definetly not.

But people were dreaming. There was wanderlust, desire, the craving for summer, dreams of travelling far away places, beaches, foreign cultures, space. So with that in mind it feels just natural for me. This is my mind’s version of a beach party on the shores of „Hiddensee“ - probably the east German free spirit equivalent to Ibiza. A mix with recordings exclusively from the GDR from 1970 to 1989 (fall of the iron curtain). All music released on the AMIGA label except for two tracks that were recorded on tape and sold illegally.“

01 Karl-Ernst Sasse - Die Erde grüsst Euch, Kosmonauten & Main Title (1970/ All Score Media 2002)
02 Prinzip - Vorspiel (AMIGA 1980)
03 Wolfgang Paulke - Steppe (AMIGA 1985)
04 Bayon - Suite Nr. 3 (AMIGA 1977)
05 Veronika Fischer & Band - Philodendron (Disco Instrumental) (AMIGA 1975)
06 Jürgen Ecke - HAYH-HAYH (AMIGA 1986)
07 Pop Projekt - Rain In Champagne (AMIGA 1987)
08 Pond - Jumbo (AMIGA 1984)
09 IC - Traumarchiv (AMIGA 1987)
10 Servi - Kirkes (AMIGA 1986)
11 Reinhard Lakomy - Das Unendliche Rätsel (AMIGA 1982)
12 AG Geige - Yachtclub & Buchteln (KlangFarbe (Tape) 1987)
13 Reinhard Lakomy & Rainer Oleak - Gleichzeit (AMIGA 1985)
14 Stern-Combo Meissen - Der Kampf Um Den Südpol (AMIGA 1977)
15 Das Freie Orchester - ? (Kröten Kassetten (Tape) 1987)
16 Günther Fischer - Severino (AMIGA 1979)
17 Bayon - Fantasia (AMIGA 1980)
18 L’Art De Passage - Jana (AMIGA 1989)
19 Berluc - Bleib Sonne, Bleib (AMIGA 1979)
20 Outro from Eleomea