Heldon was a French

electronic rock Electronic rock is a music genre that involves a combination of rock music and electronic music, featuring instruments typically found within both genres. It originates from the late 1960s, when rock bands began incorporating electronic instrum ...

band originally active between 1974 and 1978, and led by guitarist Richard Pinhas. Other members included synthesizer player Patrick Gauthier and drummer François Auger. The name of the band was taken from the 1972 novel ''

The Iron Dream ''The Iron Dream'' is a metafictional 1972 alternate history novel by American author Norman Spinrad. The book has a nested narrative that tells a story within a story. On the surface, the novel presents a post-apocalyptic adventure tale entitl ...

'' by

Norman Spinrad Norman Richard Spinrad (born September 15, 1940) is an American science fiction author, essayist, and critic. His fiction has won the Prix Apollo and been nominated for numerous awards, including the Hugo Award and multiple Nebula Awards. Pe ...

. Influenced by the work of

Robert Fripp Robert Fripp (born 16 May 1946) is a British musician, songwriter, record producer, and author, best known as the guitarist, founder and longest-lasting member of the progressive rock band King Crimson. He has worked extensively as a session ...

(and sometimes evoking

his work His or HIS may refer to: Computing * Hightech Information System, a Hong Kong graphics card company * Honeywell Information Systems * Hybrid intelligent system * Microsoft Host Integration Server Education * Hangzhou International School, in ...

with Brian Eno), the music of Heldon blended

electronic Electronic may refer to: *Electronics, the science of how to control electric energy in semiconductor * ''Electronics'' (magazine), a defunct American trade journal *Electronic storage, the storage of data using an electronic device *Electronic co ...

and

rock Rock most often refers to: * Rock (geology), a naturally occurring solid aggregate of minerals or mineraloids * Rock music, a genre of popular music Rock or Rocks may also refer to: Places United Kingdom * Rock, Caerphilly, a location in Wales ...

forms. The first releases under the name Schizo, and later Heldon, were self-produced and self-distributed.Richard Pinhas , Biography
AllMusic. Retrieved on 2014-04-24. Jim Dorsch from ''

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All Music Guide and AMG) is an American online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on musicians and bands. Initiated in 1991, the databa ...

'' would later describe Heldon’s seven albums as "groundbreaking." Pinhas had previously led the band Schizo and also released six albums under his own name. Pinhas has worked with numerous collaborators, including musicians of the band

Magma Magma () is the molten or semi-molten natural material from which all igneous rocks are formed. Magma is found beneath the surface of the Earth, and evidence of magmatism has also been discovered on other terrestrial planets and some natural sa ...

, and music journalist and multi-instrumentalist Hervé Picart. He was also was associated with philosophers such as Gilles Deleuze (of whom he was a student). and

Jean-François Lyotard Jean-François Lyotard (; ; ; 10 August 1924 – 21 April 1998) was a French philosopher, sociologist, and literary theorist. His interdisciplinary discourse spans such topics as epistemology and communication, the human body, modern art and ...

, as well as writers such as

and the essayist and novelist

Maurice Dantec Maurice Georges Dantec (; 13 June 1959 – 25 June 2016) was a French-born Canadian science fiction writer and musician. Biography Dantec was born in Grenoble, France, the son of a journalist and a seamstress. He grew up primarily in Ivry-sur-Se ...

. Pinhas completed his PhD in Philosophy from the

Paris-Sorbonne University Paris-Sorbonne University (also known as Paris IV; french: Université Paris-Sorbonne, Paris IV) was a public research university in Paris, France, active from 1971 to 2017. It was the main inheritor of the Faculty of Humanities of the Universit ...

in 1974, teaching for one year and beginning Heldon. The Pinhas/Heldon catalog was reissued on CD by the label Cuneiform, and later Bureau B.

Discography of Richard Pinhas and Heldon

* Schizo : ''And The Little Girl/Paraphrénia Praecox'' (1972) (7") * Schizo : ''Le Voyageur/Torcol'' (1972) (7") * Heldon : ''Électronique Guerilla'' (1974) * Heldon : ''Allez Téia'' (1974) * Heldon : '' Third (It's Always Rock and Roll)'' (1975) * Heldon : ''Soutien à la RAF'' (7") (1975) * Heldon : ''Agneta Nilsson'' (1976) * Heldon : ''Perspective 1 bis complément/Perspective 4 bis'' (1976) (7") * Heldon : ''Un Rêve Sans Conséquence Spéciale'' (1976) * Richard Pinhas : ''Rhizosphère'' (1977) * T.H.X. : ''Telstar / Rhizosphère Suite'' (1978) (7") * Richard Dunn : ''Séquences/Modulations'' (1978) (7") * Richard Pinhas : ''Chronolyse'' (1978) * Ose : ''Adonia'' (1978) * Heldon : ''Interface'' (1977) * Heldon : ''Stand By'' (1979) * Richard Pinhas : ''Iceland'' (1980) * Richard Pinhas : ''East West'' (1980) * Richard Pinhas : ''L'Ethique'' (1982) * Richard Pinhas Heldon : ''Perspective'' (1983) * Richard Pinhas : ''DWW'' (1992) * Richard Pinhas & John Livengood : ''Cyborg Sally'' (1994) * Richard Pinhas & John Livengood : ''Single'' (1996) * Richard Pinhas : ''De l'Un et du Multiple'' (1997) * Schizotrope : ''Le Plan'' (1999) * Richard Pinhas &

Peter Frohmader Peter Frohmader (9 May 1958 – 2 May 2022) was a German electronic composer, musician and visual artist. He was also known by the pseudonym Nekropolis, a name under which he released several early works. Taking cues from Carl Orff, Magma, Gl ...

: '' Fossil Culture'' (1999) *

Pascal Comelade Pascal Paul Vincent Comelade (born 30 June 1955), is a French musician. Comelade was born in Montpellier, France. After living for several years in Barcelona, he made his first album, ''Fluence'', influenced by electronic music and by the grou ...

& Richard Pinhas : ''Oblique Sessions II'' (1999) * Schizotrope : ''The Life And Death Of Marie Zorn - North American Tour 1999'' (2000) * Schizotrope : ''III Le Pli'' (2001) * Heldon : ''Only Chaos is Real'' (2001) * Richard Pinhas : ''Event and Repetitions'' (2003) * Richard Pinhas : ''Tranzition'' (2004) * Richard Pinhas : ''Metatron'' (2006, 2CDs) * Richard Pinhas &

Merzbow is a Japanese noise project started in 1979 by , best known for a style of harsh, confrontational noise. Since 1980, Akita has released over 400 recordings and has collaborated with various artists. The name Merzbow comes from the German dada ...

: '' Keio Line'' (2008, 2CDs) * Richard Pinhas : ''Metal/Crystal'' (2010, 2CDs) with Merzbow &

Wolf Eyes __NOTOC__ Wolf Eyes is an American experimental music group from Detroit, Michigan, formed in 1996 by Nate Young. Currently a duo, Wolf Eyes are a prominent act within contemporary noise music. They have collaborated with a variety of artists from ...

* Råd Kjetil Senza Testa : ''Vinliden'' (2010, LP) with Richard Pinhas and RKST. * Richard Pinhas & Merzbow : ''Rhizome'' (2011) * Richard Pinhas & Merzbow : ''Paris 2008'' (2011, LP) * Richard Pinhas : ''Desolation Row'' (2013) ''The majority of recordings of Richard Pinhas and Heldon were pressed on CD by French label

Spalax ''Spalax'' is a genus of rodent in the family Spalacidae, subfamily '' Spalacinae'' (blind mole-rats). It is one of two extant genera in the subfamily Spalacinae, alongside ''Nannospalax''.' Species in this genus are found in eastern Europe ...

and American label

Cuneiform Records Cuneiform Records is a record label in Silver Spring, Maryland. Founded in 1984, the label releases an mixture of musical styles, all with a Rock in Opposition aesthetic, including progressive jazz, jazz fusion, the Canterbury scene, and elec ...

, featuring numerous bonus tracks.''

References

External links

Official Richard Pinhas website
{{Authority control French electronic music groups French experimental music groups French rock music groups Musical groups from Paris

Discography of Richard Pinhas and Heldon

References

Further reading

External links