aka The Vinyl Villain incorporating Sexy Loser
‘GIGS FROM YESTERYEAR, WHEN I WAS YOUNG + PRETTY AS A PICTURE’
# 05: The Cassandra Complex & Sleeping Dogs Wake – Metropol, Aachen (1990)
Rodney Orpheus back then…
….and now
Sleeping Dogs Wake
Dear friends,
for a change, Little Loser‘s girlfriend drew this ticket yesterday – let’s call her Jana, for that’s her real name in fact. And another great choice it was, although “industrial goth” isn’t my preferred cup of tea, it must be said.
But in 1985, things were quite different. Musical styles weren’t as separated as they are nowadays, it was a bit of a mishmash then, at least to me. So when I first heard the band on Peel, I just loved the tune, regardless of its intended style. And that song was the mighty ‘Moscow Idaho’ – their second single and still a gem today!
Moscow is a border town in Idaho, and it’s just a very short drive from there into Washington state. Now, I was told that apparently the drinking laws are different between Idaho and Washington (at least they were in ’85), which results in a vast trail of youths driving from Washington to Moscow (or the other way around, I forgot) every weekend in order to get their feverish hands on cheap booze … that’s what the song is about.
I always loved ‘Moscow Idaho’ but I must admit I didn’t closely follow up what Cassandra Complex released after it. Now, you can surely understand how surprised I was a few years later when I learnt that the band had signed with Taboo, the tour agency located in Aachen mentioned previously, the one my mate Alfred sort of freelanced for within his more or less sad management ambitions. And for various reasons, being closer to Taboo probably having been one of them, the band moved from Leeds to Aachen. I could imagine that UK under Thatcher was another one, who knows.
To cut a long story short, I then got to know them and on occasions I went drinking with them in town. Rodney Orpheus, singer, was a very difficult character, I always thought. Nice, but absolutely weird. I have no memories of Paul Dillon (synths and drum machine), but the third guy in the band was ace: Andy Booth, a Leeds journalist who stayed with them as their guitarist after an interview. Whenever I entered the bar this twerp would shout at the top of his lungs, misquoting Adam Ant: “Dirk Wears White Socks” – which I did not, promised!
Rodney relocated to Hamburg later and found quite some fame as a producer, author and top-rank Illuminati. Unbeknownst to me, he re-recruited Dillon in 2007 and they are still going strong, had a world tour and will be playing Europe this autumn – and guess who will be with them on this occasion again? Right, Andy Booth! So probably I should go and see them again, just in order to shout something back at him when he’s onstage – let’s wait and see!
Obviously I have seen them playing in Aachen many times, so forgive me if memories have blissed again on specific gigs. To be frank, I had to look up which of their many albums they were promoting in 1990, the year this gig took place:
And here is what they sounded like:
Cassandra Complex – “Nightfall (Over EC)” (1990 – from the album ‘Cyberpunx’)
Cassandra Complex – “March” (1985 – their first single)
Cassandra Complex – “Moscow Idaho” (1985 – their second single)
They even released a new single last year, a cover of a Finnish artist, Suzi Sabotage. And I thought it would be fitting to give to you not the regular version, but the ‘No To Trump – Remix’ instead:
Cassandra Complex – “Nazi Goths Fuck Off” (2025, The No-To-Trump-Remix)
And here’s the support act, Sleeping Dogs Wake, from their debut album:
Sleeping Dogs Wake – “Understanding” (1989)
As I said, probably not everyone’s favourite genre this, certainly not mine – but still refreshing and quite nice to hear again. That said Cassandra Complex have always been a step ahead in comparison to the many rather boring EBM/Gothic/Industrial contenders … so listening to some of the tunes might be worthwhile for you!
Enjoy,
Dirk
THE NEW VINYL VILLAIN 