Tape Leaders is a richly illustrated A-Z compendium featuring over 100 composers active with tape and electronics in the analogue era. Containing information never previously uncovered, it shines a fresh light on many sound experimenters unacknowledged in the history of British electronic music. First published by Sound On Sound Magazine in 2016, this is the first time it’s been available outside their shop.
Tape Leaders is available as a hardback and the 224 pages are printed and bound on heavyweight 130gsm paper.
In the form of a richly illustrated compendium, Tape Leaders: A Compendium Of Early British Electronic Music Composers is an indispensable reference guide for anyone interested in electronic sound and its origins in the UK. For the first time, a book sets out information on practically everyone active with experimental electronics and tape recording across the country to reveal the untold stories and hidden history of early British electronic music.
With an individual entry for each composer, it covers everyone from famous names like William Burroughs, Brian Eno and Joe Meek to the ultra-obscure such as Roy Cooper, Donald Henshilwood and Edgar Vetter. There are sections for EMS and the BBC Radiophonic Workshop and amateurs, groups and ensembles that experimented with electronics, including The Beatles, Hawkwind and White Noise. Author Ian Helliwell draws on his experience and extensive research into electronic music. After six years and dozens of interviews, he has amassed information never before brought to light on this fascinating subject.
This hardback book is 22.7cm x 17.7cm, and the 224 pages are printed and bound on heavyweight 130gsm paper.
Quotes
“Until now, the Radiophonic Workshop has somewhat eclipsed other players in British early electronic music history. The extent of this is laid bare in the revelatory book Tape Leaders – a landmark survey by the composer, film-maker, instrument-builder and researcher Ian Helliwell, who has uncovered hitherto unacknowledged independent electronic music composers.” Fortean Times
“For anyone with an interest in the early years of electronic music, Ian Helliwell’s book takes the reader on an enthralling tour of the pioneering British contributors to this genre.” Sound On Sound
“The work of computer music pioneer Peter Zinovieff, home-build guru FC Judd, UFO-believer and Spitfire pilot Desmond Leslie, and Tristram Cary – have all been reissued. Ian Helliwell’s new book, Tape Leaders, A Compendium of Early British Electronic Music Composers, goes further. It reveals that these figures collectively represent the tip of a hitherto unimaginably vast iceberg submerged for decades. Profiling dozens of composers, amateur and professional, and augmented by a 15 track CD of electronic music… it truly is a portal into a lost world.” Shindig
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Shipping costs are calculated automatically at checkout. Simply add items to your cart and proceed to the checkout page, where you'll see the available shipping options and their prices. VAT at the applicable rate for your country will also be displayed at checkout.
European Union orders:
- Standard shipping is free on orders over €100. Express shipping is available on orders over €100, and free on orders over €400.
Poland orders:
- Standard shipping is free on orders over 250 PLN. Express shipping is free on orders over 500 PLN.
What about local taxes?
By default prices on the site include sales tax at 20%. The precise sales tax rate for your country will be calculated at checkout.
Do you ship to my country?
We ship to all EU member states from our warehouse in Warsaw, Poland. Add an item to your cart and enter your country and postcode to see the available shipping options and prices for your location. If you have any questions about shipping to your country, drop us an email at info@signalsounds.eu and we'll be happy to help.
Shipping methods
All EU orders are shipped via UPS. We offer two service levels:
- UPS Standard – our default shipping option. Delivery times vary by country (see estimated delivery times below).
- UPS Express Saver – next business day delivery to most EU destinations.
Each product page shows the estimated delivery time for your location, so you'll always know what to expect before you order.
Estimated delivery times (Standard shipping)
The times below are estimates in working days from dispatch, based on UPS Standard service. Express Saver delivers by the next business day to most destinations.
| Country | Estimated delivery (working days) |
|---|---|
| Austria | 2–3 |
| Belgium | 2 |
| Bulgaria | 4–5 |
| Croatia | 2–4 |
| Cyprus | 10 |
| Czechia | 2–3 |
| Denmark | 3 |
| Estonia | 2–3 |
| Finland | 3–5 |
| France | 2–4 |
| Germany | 2 |
| Greece | 5–7 |
| Hungary | 2–3 |
| Ireland | 4–6 |
| Italy | 3–5 |
| Latvia | 2–3 |
| Lithuania | 1–2 |
| Luxembourg | 2 |
| Malta | 5–7 |
| Netherlands | 2 |
| Poland | 1–2 |
| Portugal | 4–5 |
| Romania | 3–4 |
| Slovakia | 2–3 |
| Slovenia | 2–3 |
| Spain | 4 |
| Sweden | 3–5 |
These times are estimates and are not guaranteed. Delivery may occasionally take a little longer due to customs processing, local conditions, or carrier delays.
Dispatch times
Orders placed before 15:00 CET (Central European Time) on a working day are normally dispatched the same day. Orders placed after 15:00 CET, or on weekends and public holidays, will be dispatched on the next working day.
If you have an urgent order, please email us at info@signalsounds.eu before placing your order and we'll do our best to accommodate you.
Pre-orders
If a product is listed as a pre-order, it means we've ordered it from the supplier but it's not physically in stock yet. The product listing will include an estimated shipping date based on the best information we have from the supplier, but do bear in mind this is subject to change and is not a guaranteed date.
If you place an order containing a mixture of in-stock and pre-order items, we'll normally hold off on shipping anything until the pre-order item(s) have arrived, rather than splitting it into multiple shipments. If you need the in-stock items sooner, we'd recommend placing separate orders. As always, please get in touch at info@signalsounds.eu if you have questions.
Product Overview
Tape Leaders is a richly illustrated A-Z compendium featuring over 100 composers active with tape and electronics in the analogue era. Containing information never previously uncovered, it shines a fresh light on many sound experimenters unacknowledged in the history of British electronic music. First published by Sound On Sound Magazine in 2016, this is the first time it’s been available outside their shop.
Tape Leaders is available as a hardback and the 224 pages are printed and bound on heavyweight 130gsm paper.
In the form of a richly illustrated compendium, Tape Leaders: A Compendium Of Early British Electronic Music Composers is an indispensable reference guide for anyone interested in electronic sound and its origins in the UK. For the first time, a book sets out information on practically everyone active with experimental electronics and tape recording across the country to reveal the untold stories and hidden history of early British electronic music.
With an individual entry for each composer, it covers everyone from famous names like William Burroughs, Brian Eno and Joe Meek to the ultra-obscure such as Roy Cooper, Donald Henshilwood and Edgar Vetter. There are sections for EMS and the BBC Radiophonic Workshop and amateurs, groups and ensembles that experimented with electronics, including The Beatles, Hawkwind and White Noise. Author Ian Helliwell draws on his experience and extensive research into electronic music. After six years and dozens of interviews, he has amassed information never before brought to light on this fascinating subject.
This hardback book is 22.7cm x 17.7cm, and the 224 pages are printed and bound on heavyweight 130gsm paper.
Quotes
“Until now, the Radiophonic Workshop has somewhat eclipsed other players in British early electronic music history. The extent of this is laid bare in the revelatory book Tape Leaders – a landmark survey by the composer, film-maker, instrument-builder and researcher Ian Helliwell, who has uncovered hitherto unacknowledged independent electronic music composers.” Fortean Times
“For anyone with an interest in the early years of electronic music, Ian Helliwell’s book takes the reader on an enthralling tour of the pioneering British contributors to this genre.” Sound On Sound
“The work of computer music pioneer Peter Zinovieff, home-build guru FC Judd, UFO-believer and Spitfire pilot Desmond Leslie, and Tristram Cary – have all been reissued. Ian Helliwell’s new book, Tape Leaders, A Compendium of Early British Electronic Music Composers, goes further. It reveals that these figures collectively represent the tip of a hitherto unimaginably vast iceberg submerged for decades. Profiling dozens of composers, amateur and professional, and augmented by a 15 track CD of electronic music… it truly is a portal into a lost world.” Shindig
Technical Specs
Shipping Details
How much is my shipping?
Shipping costs are calculated automatically at checkout. Simply add items to your cart and proceed to the checkout page, where you'll see the available shipping options and their prices. VAT at the applicable rate for your country will also be displayed at checkout.
European Union orders:
- Standard shipping is free on orders over €100. Express shipping is available on orders over €100, and free on orders over €400.
Poland orders:
- Standard shipping is free on orders over 250 PLN. Express shipping is free on orders over 500 PLN.
What about local taxes?
By default prices on the site include sales tax at 20%. The precise sales tax rate for your country will be calculated at checkout.
Do you ship to my country?
We ship to all EU member states from our warehouse in Warsaw, Poland. Add an item to your cart and enter your country and postcode to see the available shipping options and prices for your location. If you have any questions about shipping to your country, drop us an email at info@signalsounds.eu and we'll be happy to help.
Shipping methods
All EU orders are shipped via UPS. We offer two service levels:
- UPS Standard – our default shipping option. Delivery times vary by country (see estimated delivery times below).
- UPS Express Saver – next business day delivery to most EU destinations.
Each product page shows the estimated delivery time for your location, so you'll always know what to expect before you order.
Estimated delivery times (Standard shipping)
The times below are estimates in working days from dispatch, based on UPS Standard service. Express Saver delivers by the next business day to most destinations.
| Country | Estimated delivery (working days) |
|---|---|
| Austria | 2–3 |
| Belgium | 2 |
| Bulgaria | 4–5 |
| Croatia | 2–4 |
| Cyprus | 10 |
| Czechia | 2–3 |
| Denmark | 3 |
| Estonia | 2–3 |
| Finland | 3–5 |
| France | 2–4 |
| Germany | 2 |
| Greece | 5–7 |
| Hungary | 2–3 |
| Ireland | 4–6 |
| Italy | 3–5 |
| Latvia | 2–3 |
| Lithuania | 1–2 |
| Luxembourg | 2 |
| Malta | 5–7 |
| Netherlands | 2 |
| Poland | 1–2 |
| Portugal | 4–5 |
| Romania | 3–4 |
| Slovakia | 2–3 |
| Slovenia | 2–3 |
| Spain | 4 |
| Sweden | 3–5 |
These times are estimates and are not guaranteed. Delivery may occasionally take a little longer due to customs processing, local conditions, or carrier delays.
Dispatch times
Orders placed before 15:00 CET (Central European Time) on a working day are normally dispatched the same day. Orders placed after 15:00 CET, or on weekends and public holidays, will be dispatched on the next working day.
If you have an urgent order, please email us at info@signalsounds.eu before placing your order and we'll do our best to accommodate you.
Pre-orders
If a product is listed as a pre-order, it means we've ordered it from the supplier but it's not physically in stock yet. The product listing will include an estimated shipping date based on the best information we have from the supplier, but do bear in mind this is subject to change and is not a guaranteed date.
If you place an order containing a mixture of in-stock and pre-order items, we'll normally hold off on shipping anything until the pre-order item(s) have arrived, rather than splitting it into multiple shipments. If you need the in-stock items sooner, we'd recommend placing separate orders. As always, please get in touch at info@signalsounds.eu if you have questions.
