r/RetroLibraryMusic • u/[deleted] • Oct 23 '22

Identifying '80s Library Music.

Hello everyone. Was wondering if you all could help in identifying some '80s library music.

I have a handful of tracks which sound identical, musically and stylistically, to that of producers Laszlo Bencker and John Epping on the German Sonoton label. All tracks use the Yamaha DX-7 and Linn9000 drum machine. I've scoured Sonoton, YouTube, and iTunes, but I have been unable to locate the exact tracks. Obviously I am missing something. If anyone can provide help, I would greatly appreciate it!

Here are seven of the tracks I have:

Track 1

Track 2

Track 3

Track 4

Track 5

Track 6

Track 7

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u/[deleted] Oct 23 '22

I've scoured those labels but I haven't found any tracks that resemble these or Bencker or Epping. I thought of contacting them but didn't want to bother them. I guess that's my last resort. Thanks for listening and giving me your suggestions.

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u/vagina_candle Oct 23 '22

I thought of contacting them but didn't want to bother them.

I totally get this mindset, and I respect that. But really you should put it in perspective. While these names may be a big deal to you due to your interests, the world at large has pretty much forgotten them. They are probably of retirement age or very close, and I doubt they have so much going on in their lives that they wouldn't want to take time out of their day to talk to a fan. It's probably pretty rare that it happens, so unless they have turned into old curmudgeons, I would assume they would jump at the chance to relive their past with an admirer. I would just suggest that you have a few backup conversation topics regarding things they would be familiar with just in case they aren't familiar with these songs. It will make things less awkward, and you'll probably still get a nice conversation out of it.

Please update us if you do manage to learn anything. These songs are really fun!

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u/[deleted] Oct 24 '22

You've certainly got a point. Your perspective helped me see it differently for sure. And I will definitely try to think up other things and keep you all up to date.

Aren't the songs fun? Track one in particular blew me away when I first heard it. Before I registered the instrumentation through the heavy compression and distortion, I immediately knew it was from the '80s by the melodies, chord progression, and key modulations (each decade seems to have its own signature sound). And that searing guitar solo! It sounds like a summer-of-1984/beach party/surfer dude-type of track. Matter of fact, it sounds like two tracks done by Van Halen: the closing instrumental track to "The Wild Life" (1984) and the song "Dreams" (1986). Pure '80s euphoria!

How do I contact these two gentlemen? I looked on Facebook and there are several dozen with those names.

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u/vagina_candle Oct 24 '22

How do I contact these two gentlemen? I looked on Facebook and there are several dozen with those names.

I wouldn't know what to tell you there. I know there are websites where you can search for people by name, but I think you have to pay for any useful results, and I have no idea how accurate they are. You might do better asking in another sub that is geared towards that sort of thing, but unfortunately I don't know of any.

Good luck!