Etherworld started as a small mail-order outlet working from an apartment building in the Japantown neighborhood of San Francisco. In 1995 they released their first CD (EtW 001), "At Stockholm" by Genesis P-Orridge and White Stains, a re-release of the 1990 Swedish version of the same name. Etherworld also became an importer of electronic, goth, industrial, and avant-garde music from the UK at this time, carrying bands such as Current 93, Nurse With Wound, and Death in June from World Serpent. Other notable labels included Warp Records and Beyond.
In 1996, Etherworld opened a small retail shop in the Tenderloin district of SF on Sutter street and began selling music, toys, and games directly to the public; greatly expanded their range of record labels including, Pete Namlook's Fax label, Jonah Sharp's Reflective Records, em:t Recordings, Asphodel, Musica Maxima Magnetica, and more.
Books
Thee Psychick Bible — Thee Apocryphal Scriptures of Genesis P-Orridge & Thee Third Mind of Psychick TV; compiled and edited by J.A. Rapoza; published as Alecto Enterprises, 1994 (ISBN: 978-0964113602)
Esoterrorist II by Genesis P-Orridge; published by MediaKaos & Alecto Enterprises, 1995 (ISBN: None assigned). This was a short-run re-binding of unused galleys from the original Esoterrorist (1989) edited and compiled by Tom Banger with a new cover and back cover blurb written in a cut-up method style by GPO, Timothy Leary, Joseph Matheny, and Joe Rapoza
Compact Discs
At Stockholm — Genesis P-Orridge & White Stains (EtW 001). This is a US re-issue of the Swedish release of the same name, which contains alluring vocals by Genesis Breyer P-Orridge's and beautiful ambient music composed by Carl Abrahamsson and Thomas Tibert with assistance from Alaura P-Orridge and Pär Aronsson. The CD booklet contains all the lyrics to the spoken word content and appropriate credits. This CD is out of print but Etherworld does have more discs in storage that are begging for new artwork and packaging.
Electric Salad — MERZBOW (EtW 002). This is one of Masami Akita's most devastating onslaughts of pure, solid, unadulterated grinding and pulsating noise you will ever hear. The production on this disc is so insanely loud that you can still hear it faintly on your speakers when the volume is set to zero. I'm not joking. BE CAREFUL. Listening with headphones is NOT recommended.
Urban Myth 2 — Chris Meloche (EtW 003). This is part two of ambient musician, Chris Meloche's release Recurring Dreams of Urban Myth from Pete Namlook's FAX Label of the same name that was released in 1994 (PS 08/54). The entire composition is over 6 hours in length and this disc includes the one hour and twelve minutes where the FAX release ends.
Mothman EP — Mothman (EtW 004). This triphop-style EP by Wynne Martin and was produced and manufactured by him for distribution by Etherworld. Unfortunately, due to several boxes that went missing during a move, the majority of these discs are lost. It's haunting beats, rhythms, and vocals are a treat to the ears and soul. If you're able to find a copy for sale, snatch it up quick!
About Etherworld
The hibernation has ended.
The origins of the Etherworld have been obscured for too long.
Etherworld has exited the dark matter and is now visible in the night sky. What you find here will kickstart your journey. Enter with an open mind to reveal the secrets within. For, this is the way of deep learning and infinite understanding.
Miscellaneous Paraphernalia: 1990–1992
Etherworld started as Alecto Enterprises, a small mail-order catalog offering cassettes, LPs, CDs, and t-shirts of obscure musical genres, including Industrial, Post Punk, and Goth. Labels carried included Wax Trax, Cargo, SST, Rough Trade, and Staalplaat/Soleilmoon. Owner Joe Rapoza also worked part-time at Hungry Ear Records on the Hawaiian island of O'ahu. One of his duties included purchasing records from independent labels and various importers. His musical appreciation expanded greatly as and he eventually locked onto an esoteric and prolific British "rock" group known as Psychic TV.
In 1990, Joe ordered a copy of the UK release of Psychic TV's "Towards thee Infinite Beat" (Catalog number: TOPY 049). Although Wax Trax in Chicago had the rights to distribute that PTV album in the US, the UK version had an expanded booklet, which included something more valuable than just the lyrics and liner notes. One day while reading it—and much to his surprise—Joe noticed a UK phone number. The direct number to Temple Records.
As Joe collected more and more PTV albums he realized their liner notes were filled with esoteric, novel, and occult-like content. For every new album he bought, he'd enjoy the liner notes as much as the music. One day an amazing thought popped into his head: "If these words were compiled into a book, they'd be much easier to read and enjoy." And that's the day it came to him, there needed to be a bible. A Psychic Bible. A book that pulled together all of the PTV liner notes, ideas, rituals, and magickal energies of each album. It would be the single source of knowledge. This seed—of creating Thee Psychick Bible—would soon manifest a few years later when Joe moved to San Francisco in May 1993.
After his psychic revelation, Joe decided to call the number to Temple Records in the UK and ask for the band's permission to produce the book. Once he calculated the time difference between Hawaii and England, he made his first long distance call to speak with Genesis. He called on several occasions, always getting the answering machine. He called at different hours, but no one ever picked up the phone. He left 2 or 3 messages over the course of a few weeks, always sure to leave his return number. But no one ever returned his call.
How to build a (psychic) bible: 1993–1994
In early May 1993, Joe moved to San Francisco. When he arrived, the economy was in shambles and he had difficulty finding a job. Eventually, as desperation sank in, he took his first job as a video clerk at Blockbuster on Church and Market. He had his sights set on a job at Reckless Records on upper Haight street. Although he had extensive record store experience, they weren't currently hiring. Reckless Records' manager at the time, Andy F, told Joe that he'd be the first to call if someone decided to quit. Joe called weekly to check their hiring status but the answer was still the same—"we're not hiring right now." After a few more weeks had passed, Joe finally got a call back from Andy—he got hired!
Landing the job at Reckless was life-changing, because soon he'd find an artifact on Haight street that would help manifest the very first Psychick Bible. (to be continued)...
New Releases
We're working on several new books at the moment but aren't ready to divulge titles, authors, or release dates at this time. Feel free to write to us if you're super-curious as we may be able to drop a few hints from time to time. See our contact info below. Thanks!
Contact
For general inquiries, please email info AT etherworld DOT com
