Xmal Deutschland - Gift: The 4AD Years

The extraordinary impact Xmal Deutschland had upon British audiences in the early Eighties is difficult to convey forty years on. A spell was cast by the staccato rhythms, unmediated channels and mysterious (to us) language of their music, and by the vision and strength of the women involved.

Their breakthrough support slot with Cocteau Twins and first two albums with 4AD dazzled and dug deep, speaking in tones and temperatures unlike any band before or since. “And at some point, it seemed to people we just...disappeared”, muses singer Anja Huwe. “So this myth of Xmal Deutschland just got bigger and bigger over the years…”
 
Gift, which will fascinate newcomers just as it feeds the faithful, is brimming with presence. And if the word “gift” in German slyly relates to a kind of poison, nobody said this music was all sweetness and light, and if its radiance resonates, four decades later. Xmal Deutschland’s 4AD years were a bold and bewitching boomerang. The magic’s back.

Available as a Transparent Red 3xLP or a 2xCD set containing both studio albums (Fetisch & Tocsin) and EPs (Qual & Incubus Succubus II) that came out via 4AD from 1983-1984. Accompanied by a 24 page photo booklet with images from Kevin Cummins, Sheila Rock, Paul Slattery + more. This edition has been remastered at Abbey Road and the artwork has been designed by Timothy O’Donnell based on the originals by v23.

Available as:
2CD + photo booklet
3LP + 24 page booklet Transparent Red Vinyl

TRACKLIST:
Fetisch LP
A1. Qual
A2. Geheimnis 
A3. Young Man 
A4. In Der Nacht 
A5. Orient 
B1. Hand In Hand 
B2. Kaempfen
B3. Danthem
B4. Boomerang 
B5. Stummes Kind 
Tocsin LP
C1. Mondlicht
C2. Eiland
C3. Reigen
C4. Tag für Tag
D1. Augen-blick
D2. Begrab Mein Herz 
D3. Nachtschatten
D4. Xmas in Australia 
D5. Derwisch 
Incubus Succubus II EP 
E1. Incubus Succubus II 
E2. Vito 
Qual EP
F1. Qual - 12” Remix 
F2. Zeit
F3. Sehnsucht