From the Vault № 43: The ZKO Tape Era 1984–1986

In autumn 1984 Z'EV sent two cassettes to Frank Tovey in West Berlin. One of them was officially released as ZKO 005. The other — the one collectors have whispered about for years — was considered lost. Until this February, while systematically sorting Cosey's correspondence, a handwritten note surfaced: „W-Mic, B-side, do not destroy.“

What we can now say with certainty: the second tape exists, dates to no later than November 1984, and was recorded with a Walther studio microphone.

The provenance

The trail runs through three stations: Cosey's Pratteln archive, Genesis P.'s correspondence with Frank Tovey, and Z'EV's own recording log.

Frank's handwriting on the sleeve was unmistakable. It took three hours to line the dating up against the travel diary.

Part two next week: the B-side material itself.