NEO

Digitally remastered by Vic Anesini from the original Aura Records masters. Ian North is one of music’s unheralded innovators. Continually ahead of the curve, his first band, Milk n’ Cookies, fused glam, glitter, garage, British Invasion, and bubblegum in the early/mid-’70s, predating both punk and power pop. At the dawn of the ‘80s, North bought a drum machine, a cheap synth, and set up a bedroom studio to record the cult classic My Girlfriend’s Dead album, preceding the emergence of electropop stars like Depeche Mode. By 1983, he was pioneering electronica. In between, Ian North founded NEO. 1979’s NEO album, released on the legendary indie Aura Records (Nico, Big Star and Alex Chilton, Annette Peacock) marries serrated post-punk guitars with Ian’s provocative lyrics. Over the course of the album, North sings in the first person as a perverted murderer, JFK’s assassin, and an atomic bomber on an album that begins and ends with death. Yet North’s innate sense of melody, his brilliantly literary lyricism, and outstanding musicianship and production result in an album that bristles with energy and life. North suddenly and unexpectedly passed away in 2021 but the reformed Milk n’ Cookies has recently played shows with spiritual descendants The Lemon Twigs as his songs continue to reach new audiences. This first-ever reissue of NEO shines a light on another of Ian North’s greatest achievements.