RECOIL is the project of Alan Wilder, formerly of DEPECHE MODE. Alan Wilder's years in the music industry have seen him go from studio assistant to session keyboard player, but it was his fourteen years as a member of DEPECHE MODE where he really honed his skills. With his attention to detail in the studio, Wilder pushed the boundaries even within the restrictive climate of commercial pop. As an antidote to the demands of the Mode, the studio project RECOIL was born in the mid-eighties. "A Strange Hour" was presented during 2010 and 2011 in 52 cities across the world as part of the "Selected Events" tour to celebrate 25 years of this project. This is a full HD production of one of those shows with 5.1 surround sound and stereo audio mixed by Alan Wilder and Paul Kendall.
Says Alan: "The idea to take RECOIL out on the road evolved during the release of 'Selected' in 2010. The events were not so much a 'live' band but more an art installation featuring stripped-down, edited sections from many RECOIL remixes and alternative versions. For the presentations, I managed to gather together filmmakers from as far as Russia, via the Czech Republic and Hungary, all the way to Argentina. One of the most memorable moments of the entire tour came about, strangely enough, through adversity. Who can forget 'Eyjafjallajökull' and the major headaches and logistical nightmares it caused? Back in April 2010, the Icelandic mountain awoke, spewing its contents into the stratosphere and reaping havoc on the very same day RECOIL was due to fly from London to Budapest. After an eternal struggle via airports, train stations, traffic jams, manic phone calls and confusion all round, twelve hours after leaving home my team and I found ourselves back on our own doorstep having got precisely zero kilometers towards the Hungarian capital. The last resort and only option was to drive (in my own car) through the channel tunnel and no less than seven countries from West Sussex to Diesel club, Budapest - a journey of some 21 hours non stop. Word got around (while others were cancelling shows left, right and centre) that, against all the odds, we were on our way - and when we arrived with about one hour to spare, what greeted us was one of the most vociferous and appreciative crowds on the whole tour. To cut a long story short, we wanted to come back, not least to finally see a little of this beautiful city, but most of all to play once again to the warm Hungarian public. The second Budapest presentation, and last of 2010, was held in the beautiful newly-renovated Szikra venue. To celebrate this end of year special show we decided to install an extra large fully professional cinema screen and projector. The screen measured a giant 8 x 5 meters and covered the entire stage area. The performance was filmed using the latest high-definition technology in order to capture the event in its full glory. For this (with the help of the local promoters), the team from Umatik was recruited, headed up by director Attila ('Atus') Herkó, and in a similar way to the stage projections, we worked remotely on the editing - I gave feedback to rough edits which Atus sent to me whilst Paul Kendall and I simultaneously worked on the surround sound mix, and everything was refined from there. I think you will agree Attila's film is stunning and offers a captivating and exhilarating document of 'A Strange Hour'."
