by
Juno Daily
on 04.06.2025 at 13:06pm.
Last edited: 04.06.2025 at 17:51pm.
From house parties to the Roundhouse
The Openmind collective’s Telepathic Fish parties of the early 90s are to be honoured with a double vinyl compilation of some of its key sounds.
The seminal underground South London ambient party connected seminal labels like Ninja Tune, Warp, Leaf and Rising High/Blue Planet and paved the way for many of the developments in the electronic music world that followed.
Hosted by Chantal Passamonte (aka Mira Calix – RIP), David Vallade, Mario Aguera and Kevin Foakes (aka DJ Food) – collectively named Openmind – with help from Mixmaster Morris aka The Irresistible Force and Coldcut’s Matt Black, they started DJing and decorating house parties or squats with mind-blowing installations and wholly idiosyncratic design. Regular guests included Aphex Twin (pictured above with Dj Food at a party in Tunstall Road, Brixton), Andrea Parker and Tony Morley (The Leaf Label).
Within a year they were playing VIP after shows for the likes of Orbital and illegal New Year’s gatherings at the disused Roundhouse whilst guesting on Coldcut’s Solid Steel radio show on London’s KISS FM.
Whilst collaborations with legendary club nights such as Megatripolis saw them share bills with Autechre, Higher Intelligence Agency, Scanner and Global Communication, they also created their own ambient fanzine – Mindfood – to document the scene evolving around them. A 20-page history of their parties is included in the release, richly illustrated with personal photos, artwork and memorabilia from their adventures between 1992-95. The gatefold sleeve also features their Telepathic Fish logo, mirroring an original T-shirt design they sold in Ambient Soho, a record shop in Berwick Street that three of the four worked in at different times.
The selections featured here are all personal favourites that were played at the Telepathic Fish parties during the 90s. Picked and arranged by Mario, David and Kevin who combed their collections for key pieces they associate with the time and Chantal’s music tastes. Over a hundred tracks were selected, totalling nearly 11 hours of playing time, before being whittled down to the essentials by the trio, forming a snapshot of their world back in the day.
The album is set for release on Fundamental Frequencies on September 5
TRACKLISTING
Barbarella – Barbarella (The Irresistible Force Remix) 08:40
Spacetime Continuum – Fluresence 06:45
Nightmares On Wax – Nights Interlude
Insides – Skinned Clean
Global Communication – Incidental Harmony
Caustic Window – Cordialatron
Keiichi Suzuki – Satellite Serenade (Trans Asian Express Mix)
Tranquility Bass – Cantamilla (Bomb Pop)
Golden Girls – Kinetic (Morley’s Apollo Remix)
No-Man – Days In The Trees – Reich
Photo: Nancy Brown
