Heldon

French band

Heldon

Origin| France
Genres|

* Electronic rock[1]
* experimental rock[2]
* progressive[3]

Years active| 1974–1978, 2001
Labels|

* Cuneiform
* Bureau B

Past members| Richard Pinhas
Patrick Gauthier
François Auger
Didier Batard
Georges Grunblatt
Philibert Rossi
Jannick Top
Michel Ettori

Heldon was a French electronic rock band originally active between 1974 and 1978, and led by guitarist Richard Pinhas.[4] Other members included synthesizer player Patrick Gauthier and drummer François Auger.[5] The name of the band was taken from the 1972 novel The Iron Dream by Norman Spinrad.[6]

Influenced by the work of Robert Fripp (and sometimes evoking his work with Brian Eno), the music of Heldon blended electronic and rock forms.[4] The first releases under the name Schizo, and later Heldon, were self-produced and self-distributed.[7] Jim Dorsch from AllMusic would later describe Heldon's seven albums as "groundbreaking."[4]

Pinhas had previously led the band Schizo and also released six albums under his own name.[7] Pinhas has worked with numerous collaborators, including musicians of the band Magma, and music journalist and multi-instrumentalist Hervé Picart.[8] He was also associated with philosophers such as Gilles Deleuze (of whom he was a student).[9] and Jean-François Lyotard,[2] as well as writers such as Norman Spinrad and the essayist and novelist Maurice Dantec.[7] Pinhas completed his PhD in Philosophy from the Paris-Sorbonne University in 1974, teaching for one year and beginning Heldon.[2]

The Pinhas/Heldon catalog was reissued on CD by the label Cuneiform, and later Bureau B.[4]

## Discography of Richard Pinhas and Heldon

[edit]

* 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 (1979)
* 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: Fossil Culture (1999)
* Pascal Comelade & 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 : Keio Line (2008, 2CDs)
* Richard Pinhas : Metal/Crystal (2010, 2CDs) with Merzbow & Wolf Eyes
* 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)[10][11]

The majority of recordings of Richard Pinhas and Heldon were pressed on CD by French label Spalax and American label Cuneiform Records, featuring numerous bonus tracks.

## References

[edit]

1. ^ Walcroft, Justin. "The Way Forward: An Interview With Electronic Music Pioneer Richard Pinhas". SR-Mag. Retrieved 14 August 2019.
2. ^ a b c Mitchell, Tony (9 November 2015). "Richard Pinhas: Electronique Guerilla – A Profile by Tony Mitchell". Cyclic Defrost. Retrieved 14 August 2019.
3. ^ "Album Reviews". The Stranger. Retrieved 14 August 2019.
4. ^ a b c d Dorsch, Jim. "Biography". AllMusic. Retrieved 14 August 2019.
5. ^ "HELDON". Prog Archives. Retrieved 7 November 2015.
6. ^ Keenan, David (October 28, 2015). "Reality Is For People Who Can't Handle Science Fiction: Gallic Futurism in the French Underground 1969-1985". Red Bull Music Academy. Retrieved 7 November 2015.
7. ^ a b c Richard Pinhas | Biography. AllMusic. Retrieved on 2014-04-24.
8. ^ "Ose". Discogs.
9. ^ Masters, Mark (2014-05-29). "Richard Pinhas on lessons learned during a lifetime making experimental music". The Washington Post. Retrieved 2014-05-31.
10. ^ Richard Pinhas | Discography. AllMusic. Retrieved on 2014-04-24.
11. ^ "Heldon Discography". Discogs. Retrieved 7 November 2015.

## Further reading

[edit]

* Chronolyse review
* Rhizosphère review
* Iceland review
* East West review

## External links

[edit]

* Official Richard Pinhas website
* Richard Pinhas/Heldon chez Cuneiform Records

Authority control databases

International|

* ISNI
* VIAF

National|

* United States
* France
* BnF data

Artists|

* MusicBrainz

Other|

* IdRef