BLAINE L. REININGER
ltm biography



TUXEDOMOON

Left-field American avant garde band Tuxedomoon formed in San Francisco in June 1977, initially around the creative nucleus of multi-instrumentalists Steven Brown and Blaine L. Reininger. The duo were subsequently joined by bassist Peter 'Principle' Dachert, and occasional vocalist Winston Tong.

After signing with the cryptic Ralph label, home to the Residents, the band recorded the seminal albums Half Mute (1980) and Desire (1981), before electing to relocate to Europe in order to pursue a more overtly avant-garde agenda.

Europe provided a creative but demanding environment for the group, who moved first to Rotterdam, then Brussels. From their hectic concert and recording schedule between March 1981 and April 1983, four important recordings emerged, beginning with the score for a Maurice Bejart ballet in March 1982, released as Divine. The album Suite En Sous-Sol followed shortly after, as well as a trio of classic singles for Les Disques du Crepuscule: Ninotchka, Time to Lose and The Cage. The most ambitious band project from 1982, an 'opera without words' called The Ghost Sonata, performed in Italy in July, remained unreleased until 1990.

Blaine L. Reininger elected to leave the band in April 1983, leaving Brown, Principle, Tong and imagist Bruce Geduldig to plot their next move. The album Holy Wars eventually emerged in 1985 in Crammed, followed by Ship of Fools (1986) and You (1987). This body of work was complemented by an ever-expanding catalogue of solo albums.

The core Tuxedomoon trio of Brown, Reininger and Principle reunited for a successful world tour in 1988, and have subsequently continued to perform and record both solo and as Tuxedomoon. Ten Years In One Night (Live) (1990), Cabin in the Sky (2004) and Bardo Hotel (2006) bring the story up to date.

SOLO

Born in Pueblo, Colorado, in 1953, Blaine L. Reininger was the first member of Tuxedomoon to record a solo album, with Broken Fingers appearing in 1982. After leaving the band early in 1983, Blaine collaborated with Sleepers guitarist and occasional TM member Michael Belfer on Night Air. Produced by Blaine with Gareth Jones, this masterful part-vocal, part-instrumental album proved a significant critical and commercial success on release on 1984.

After fruitful collaborations with Mikel Rouse and Vini Reilly of the Durutti Column (featured on the accomplished Instrumentals CD), Blaine released the powerful in-concert set Live in Brussels in 1986, followed by a string of further studio albums, including Byzantium, Book of Hours, Songs From the Rain Palace and The More I Learn the Less I Know. His film and theatre soundtracks include Radio Moscow, Manic Man and most recently Elektra.

Blaine also continues his long-standing duo work with Steven Brown, which has included several film, theatre and ballet soundtracks, as well as superlative piano/violin recitals of the kind preserved on the Live in Lisbon CD.

Currently Blaine Reininger resides in Athens, and pursues parallel careers as a solo artist, actor and Tuxedomoon member.

Photo by Stefan de Batselier

solo discography:
Broken Fingers (Crepuscule album, 1982) (CD on LTM)
Night Air (Crepuscule album, 1984) (CD on LTM)
Colorado Suite (Crammed mini album, 1984)
Paris In Autumn (Crepuscule mini album, 1985)
Live in Brussels (Crepuscule album, 1986) (CD on LTM)
Byzantium (Crepuscule album, 1987) (CD on LTM)
Book of Hours (Crepuscule album, 1989) (CD on LTM)
Songs From The Rain Palace (Crepuscule, 1990)
Live in Lisbon (with Steven Brown) (Crepuscule, 1990) (CD on LTM)
Instrumentals (Crepuscule album, 1991) (CD on LTM)
Croatian Variations (with Steven Brown) (Maso, 1991)
Radio Moscow OST (Polygram Greece album, 1995)
Kingdom of Dreams (with Falling Infinities) (Sony album, 1996)
Manic Man OST (Ankh album, 1996)
The More I Learn the Less I Know (FM album, 1999)
Night Air 2 (LTM album, 2004)
Elektra/Radio Moscow (LTM album, 2007)

Blaine L. Reininger Online:
http://www.mundoblaineo.com
http://www.joeboy.de

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