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  what albums have banco de gaia recorded?

one great thing about banco de gaia is that a new album is released about every year or so. given their high quality this is pleasing to fans who are used to waiting 3-4 years for more commercial artists like enigma and deep forest.

medium (1991)   

released in cassette format only, medium was banco de gaia's first release. it is no longer available and has never been released on cd. banco de gaia describes it as being a bit raw and unproduced in areas.

some samples on here have appeared in later works. the track data inadequete appears on the live at glastonbury album.

freeform flutes and fading tibetans (1992)   

also released in cassette format only, freeform flutes and fading tibetans is banco de gaia's second release. with stronger tracks and production this album had a number of tracks appear on compilations, including desert wind (which eventually became a single), lai lah, and soufie. It is no longer available and has not been released on cd due to sampling issues.

deep live (nov 20 1992)   

banco de gaia's first live offering comes from club dog at the george robey in london from december 1992. it contains tracks from the first two albums plus the tracks here today and hard head. deep live was released in cassette only. it is no longer available and has not been released on cd.

maya (feb 1994)   

after three cassette-only releases on a minor label, maya marked the start of banco de gaia's commercial career. popular on the indie charts in the u.k. it contains a number of tracks that banco de gaia plays live, and a favourite track of his, marfich arabi. The singles desert wind and heliopolis: the city of the sun mixes were released from this album. 

the album can be bought at cd now or amazon in u.s. dollars, and amazon in u.k. pounds.

last train to lhasa (jul 20 1995)   

the second major release from banco de gaia, last train to lhasa, stands today as his most popular. with stronger production this double CD focussed on issues to do with tibet. It also spawned the singles kincajou, a much dancier effort than people came to expect from Banco de Gaia, and last train to lhasa. the album was also released for a limited amount of time in the u.k. as a triple cd. the extra cd contained bonus mixes. 

the album can be bought at cd now or amazon in u.s. dollars, and amazon in u.k. pounds.

live at glastonbury (jul 29 1996)   

banco de gaia's second live album, live at glastonbury, primarily takes material from maya and last train to lhasa. recorded in 1995 it also offers data inadequete from his first album, medium. this is attractive to many people since this album is rare and no longer available.

the release of live at glastonbury was marred by legalities over one track that marks was fond of. in the end it was not included. describing this legal action marks stated "the singer was fine about it, as were the record company, but it turned out that the original recording had been made by a production company... he bunged the price up by a couple of grand and suddenly it was no longer financially feasible to do it. if i'd been allowed to  talk to him direct, then quite possibly we could have come to an agreement, but a whole series of managers and lawyers was involved. the way it all worked out was pretty unsatisfactory.".

the album can currently only be bought at banco de gaia's official site.

big men cry (jul 18 1997)   

a possible change in musical direction is hinted at in big men cry. it is described by banco de gaia as "a more pensive and mellow album overall than previously, this one sits at the other end of the banco spectrum to live at glastonbury, although it is certainly not groove-free". through the use of more live instrumentation, banco de gaia offered a diverse album. to many people's surprise drunk as a monk got the attention of a dj, remixed, and became popular in the nightclubs.

the album can currently only be bought at banco de gaia's official site.

the magical sounds of banco de gaia (may 17 1999)   

with a longer than usual gap in between albums, the magical sounds of banco de gaia shows a return to the expected sounds of maya and, to a lesser extent, last train to lhasa. marks describes it as "more like maya than any of the others...the vibe of it, the energy - i actually reach 135 bpm i think. that's a record [for me]." using toby marks' analogy from big men cry, it is a return right back to the live at glastonbury end of the banco spectrum! the album also marks the start of banco de gaia's own record label, gecko. one single was spawned from this album: i love baby cheesy, which was only released in the u.s. and parts of europe. the track glove puppet re-appears with vocals on igizeh.

the album can be bought at cd now or amazon in u.s. dollars, and amazon in u.k. pounds.

igizeh (sep 25 2000)   

making up for the gap between earlier albums comes igizeh a year after the magical sounds of banco de gaia. reminiscent of big men cry in that it has a diverse range of tracks and greater use of live instrumentation, the album was particular recorded in egypt. it is also the first banco de gaia album to feature female vocals, and to include a track previously released (glove puppet). the singles obsidian and how much reality can you take? were released from this album. the track glove puppet appeared in instrumental form on the magical sounds of banco de gaia.

the album can be bought at cd now or amazon in u.s. dollars, and amazon in u.k. pounds.

10 years (sep 16 2002)   

banco de gaia's first 'best of' release, 10 years, celebrates 10 years of their music over 2 cds. compiled and mixed it blends a mixture of known and easily found music with some more rare and hard to find tracks. no new material is presented. it was first released in a limited edition cardboard slipcase in the u.k..

the album can be bought at cd now or amazon in u.s. dollars, and amazon in u.k pounds.

10 years remixed (apr 14 2003)   

only released locally in the u.k., 10 years remixed, offers totally new remixes of many banco de gaia tracks. it includes remixes by eat static, asian dub foundaiton, transglobal underground, dreadzone, and higher intelligence agency. many tracks that didn't make it only this album can be found on banco de gaia's official site.

the album can be bought at amazon in the u.k. pounds.

  what singles have banco de gaia recorded?

desert wind (nov 19 1993)   

banco de gaia's first ever single, desert wind, offers the track of the same name from his second album plus a remix of two tracks from maya - gamelah and shanti. banco de gaia is quite fond of the shanti remix.

the single can currently only be bought at banco de gaia's official site.

heliopolis: the city of the sun mixes (oct 03 1994)   

popular on the album maya, heliopolis is actually "the city of the sun", a city of ancient egypt and the center of sun worship during the pre-christian egyptian civilisation. thus the reference in the single title. the single contains three remixes of the track, most involving Andy Guthrie who co-produced the original version with toby marks. the single is intended towards djs and also contains the album version.

the single can currently only be bought at banco de gaia's official site.

last train to lhasa (apr 10 1995)   

released from the album of the same name, last train to lhasa contains a radio edit and the album version. of most attraction will be the extended ambient mix in which banco de gaia used a 3/4 sample in a 4/4 track!

the single can currently only be bought at banco de gaia's official site.

kincajou (1995)   

the first "two singles from one album" award goes to kincajou. already an upbeat track, its remixes were clearly aimed for the dancefloor, with remixes by oliver lieb and speedy j. 

vinyl of this single can currently only be bought at banco de gaia's official site.

drunk as a monk (1998)   

a u.s. dj vinyl-only release (ie. not a commercial public release) drunk as a monk came as the result of the track suddenly becoming popular in nightclubs, thanks to a remix by rabbit in the moon. the remix also made its way onto many popular compilations.

i love baby cheesy (may 18 1999)   

only released in the united states and parts of Europe i love baby cheesy contains remixes by banco de gaia and the dub pistols.

the single can be bought at amazon in u.k. pounds.

obisidan (nov 13 2000)   

the first single to incorporate live vocals, obsidian utilised some popular remixers of the time in fluke and the light vs pfn. the latter remix made its way onto many compilations, partly carried by jennifer folker's appealing vocals.

the single can be bought at cd now (also in vinyl) or amazon in u.s. dollars, and amazon in u.k. pounds.

how much reality can you take? (jul 30 2001)   

a limited vinyl-only release how much reality can you take? utilised remixers juttla and jack dangers (from meat beat manifesto), along with a banco de gaia remix.

  what music videos have banco de gaia recorded?

the only known music videos done at this time are for soufie from freeform flutes and fading tibetans; last train to lhasa from the album of the same name; i love baby cheesy from the magical sounds of banco de gaia; and obsidian from igizeh.

soufie   

details of this music video are not currently known. it appears on a video compilation called future shock.

last train to lhasa   

details of this music video are not currently known, but are believed to focus on tibet.

i love baby cheesy   

details of this music video are not currently known.

obisidan   

this music video primarily focuses on toby in san francisco as one of those buskers who dress themselves up with body paint & fancy costumes, then stand perfectly still until sometime drops money into a hat or bucket. at this point the busker moves for a limited period of time and then stands still again. its funny to watch, and toby looks like he had fun making it.

  where can i buy banco de gaia releases?

if you're looking for newer singles, albums, and videos the internet can be a good source. in the u.s. cd now and amazon offer good value & service. in the u.k. amazon is also a good choice. if you're looking for older singles, albums, and videos my best recommendation is to use the auction site ebay, or go to your local second hand stores and look. go back regularly because you never know what might appear. i personally have found many rare and promotional items in my local second hand stores and ebay, including things that were never released in my country. for this reason i cannot recommend them highly enough.

note: using the links above help support this site through commission earnt on any purchases you make from retail stores, or by joining ebay. they have not, however, been chosen only for that reason!

  what else can i buy of banco de gaia's?

if the music is just not enough for you a range of t-shirts are available from banco de gaia's official site.

  what live gigs have banco de gaia done?

over the years banco de gaia has done a number of live sets at places such as the glastonbury festival, womad, and whirl-y-gig. in 1995 the guardian, a u.k. paper, commented on the glastonbury festival statting that "there was one act - and above all, perhaps, one single moment - which somehow epitomises the reason why one feels glastonbury could last another quarter-century yet... the packed crowd in and beyond 'a' marquee on the avalon field burst suddenly into a semi-devotional chant at a climatic moment during the set of the weekend: that by banco de gaia, classified as ambient house music."

there are too many live gigs for me to know about, let alone list here. if someone has such a list please pass it on!

  what dj sets have banco de gaia done?

as with live sets, toby of banco de gaia has also done a good number of dj sets, especially over recent years and especially in the u.s. he is not necessarily a fan though, stating in 1998 that "i'm not a dj. to be honest, i find it a bit unsatisfying. maybe after doing it for a few weeks i'll have changed my mind.". given that he's still dj'ing today, it seems it may still hold some interest.

if someone has such a list of all dj dates toby has done, please pass it on! 

  what tracks have banco de gaia remixed?

to date banco de gaia have remixed around a dozen tracks by other artists. some have appeared on singles, and others exclusively on compilations. they are below.

karsh kale's single can be bought at cd now (also in vinyl) or amazon in u.s. dollars, and amazon in u.k. pounds.

© copyright 1998-2003 gavin stok. all rights reserved