catalogue raisonne - volume xi-definitive deluxe edition

• Format: Vinyl LP, album reissue, remastered, limited edition
• Edition: Abbey Road Master – The Definitive Edition
• 1,000 copies limited
• Mastering: Remastered at Abbey Road Studios from the original stereo master tape
• Packaging: Facsimile colour gatefold sleeve, 20-page 12-inch booklet, poster and printed outer art bag
• Design: Packaging intentionally aged, faded and distressed to reproduce the appearance of an original private pressing

Dark Round the Edges is the sole contemporary album by Northampton group Dark and one of the most celebrated privately pressed British rock records of the early 1970s. Recorded during the summer of 1972 and originally manufactured in only a tiny quantity, the album combines melodic progressive writing with heavy rhythms, extended improvisation and an abundance of distorted twin-guitar work.

The classic line-up featured Steve Giles on guitar and vocals, Martin Weaver on guitar, Ron Johnson on bass and Clive Thorneycroft on drums. With no keyboards in the group, Giles and Weaver create the album's dense musical character through interlocking riffs, harmonised passages, feedback and long fuzz-guitar solos.

“Darkside” opens the album with a gradual instrumental build before developing into a powerful mixture of heavy psychedelic rock and melodic vocal passages. The contrasting guitar tones give the performance a broad, almost orchestral quality, while the rhythm section maintains a loose but forceful momentum.

“Maypole” is one of the album's most immediately memorable compositions, balancing a gentler vocal melody with progressively heavier instrumental sections. “Live for Today” continues the combination of reflective songwriting and aggressive guitar, moving between compact song passages and expressive soloing.

The second side begins with the instrumental “RC8,” a tightly constructed piece that demonstrates the group's ability to move between melodic themes and spontaneous improvisation. “The Cat” develops through shifting rhythms and prominent twin-guitar interplay before “Zero Time” brings the album to an expansive conclusion.

Dark originally manufactured the record for friends, band members and prospective record companies. Steve Giles, who was also a keen photographer, personally created the first elaborate colour sleeves and booklets. The extremely small number produced eventually made surviving copies among the most sought-after artefacts of British private-press psychedelia.

This definitive Seelie Court edition was created as part of the band's extensive Catalogue Raisonné archive series. Remastered at Abbey Road Studios from the original stereo master tape, it recreates the exceptionally rare colour gatefold presentation and adds a large-format booklet, poster and specially printed outer bag.

Track listing:

Side A

1. Darkside
2. Maypole
3. Live for Today

Side B

1. RC8
2. The Cat
3. Zero Time