The Width of Shadows

[2026] Genre: Electronic, Drone, Ambient. Abstract whirlpools of multi-layered emotions move like shadows, flickering across the sonic darkness of time. The Width of Shadows is my first new album of solo electronic-ambient-drone music since 2015’s As Lonely As Dave Bowman: Monolith. Originally conceived as a collection of orphaned tracks, it evolved into a cohesive album painting a minimalist atmosphere of dark corners, hidden solitude, rippling cosmic waves of shadows, and time-altered transmissions of barren feelings. Listen at Spotify.

Nova Cat Purring Sounds

[2022 • 2023 • 2025] This is my collaboration with my kitty Nova Cat. She’s since passed away, but her purrs live on. While Nova doesn’t get a lot of streaming listeners, I notice in the data that the people who listen are playing the tracks over and over again. Lovely purrs for your sleep and relaxation. Some with my ambient music. Listen at Spotify or Apple Music.

Bastille Day (2022 Serpent Version)

[ARC265 • 2022 • Digital] Black Tape For A Blue Girl’s 2022 “Serpent” line-up releases ephemeral reconceptualizations of two songs from 2002’s The Scavenger Bride; driving the tracks deeper in a neoClassical darkwave direction. Songwriter/synthesist Sam joins with passionate baritone Jon DeRosa (Aarktica) and soulful cellist Henrik Meierkord.

A Chaos of Desire (2022 Serpent Version)

[ARC242 • 2022 • Digital] Accompanying the reissue of A chaos of desire, the current 3-piece “Serpent” line-up recorded neoclassical reinterpretations of two songs from the 1991 album. Vocalist Jon DeRosa and cellist Henrik Meierkord join the electronics of songwriter Sam Rosenthal.

The Cleft Serpent

  10-page lyric/photo booklet

[PRO388 • 2021 • CD, LP, MiniDisc, Cassette & Digital] NeoClassical darkwave with seductive mournful string, electronics & voice on 8 stories of loss, longing and doomed love. The Cleft Serpent is an elegant, heartfelt, and tragic torch song to humanity. A deeply personal tale cast on an almost cosmic scale, the album is a mature and fascinating musing on love, death and desire. The eight gothic neoclassical tracks evoke a sense of earthly entanglement, taking the listener through interconnected pieces charged with emotional honesty. A dark and beautiful work, it’s the 13th from Black Tape For A Blue Girl, and the first for vocalist Jon DeRosa and cellist Henrik Meierkord, joining the electronics of songwriter Sam Rosenthal.

The Cleft Serpent (instrumental and alternate mixes)

[PRO389 • 2021 • CD] A 16-track, 72-minute companion to THE CLEFT SERPENT. Features instrumental versions of the 8-track album remixed & reworked to highlight Henrik Meierkord’s cello and viola, exclusive instrumentals, three demos, and three alternate mixes with vocalist Jon DeRosa.

Eating Rose Petals
Aarktica & Black Tape For A Blue Girl

[ARC211 • 2020 • Digital Only] The first collaboration between synthesist Sam Rosenthal (aka Black Tape for a Blue Girl) and vocalist/multi-instrumentalist Jon DeRosa (aka Aarktica), merging their respective darkwave, dreamwave, ethereal styles into a floating cosmic requiem for deep reflection and introspective journeying. A tender and melancholically uplifting opus.

Tim, Where Are You Now?
Sam Rosenthal & Projekt Artists

[PRO377 • 2020 • CD Limited edition of 1000] The CD contains the first 13 tracks. Digital includes 8 bonus tracks. Sam collaborates with Projekt’s electronic artists to commemorate the centennial of Timothy Leary’s birth. An electronic space music/art rock collaboration, the album celebrates a pioneer of consciousness expansion using his own words (on 4 tracks) accompanied by international artists exploring those same realms via their music. Timothy Leary trip narrations from Alex Cox (director of Repo Man and Sid & Nancy), Reggie Watts (bandleader on CBS’ The Late Late Show with James Corden), Lee Ranaldo (of Sonic Youth) and others.

     8-pages with original artwork & credits

Sunwashed evening fire
Sam Rosenthal / jarguna

[PRO375 • 2020 • CD Limited edition of 300] Sam Rosenthal (USA) and Jarguna (Italy) merge with the sunset on their first electronic/ambient collaboration, a work that lingers in the ephemeral dusk of dreams. An evocative blend of drones and synths color the margins without overwhelming the music’s essential fragility. Includes a guest appearance on track 3 from Erik Wollo’s Kosmische electric guitar riding atop Jarguna’s analog sequencer patterns.

the gesture of history
Sam Rosenthal w/ Nick Shadow & Steve Roach

[PRO368 / 2019] This CD/LP release was funded by 267 fans at Kickstarter. CD — 6-panel digipak. Limited edition of 500. LP — 140-gram gold vinyl or black vinyl ). 24pt jacket. Limited edition of 300.

Viola-based textural ambient drift. The Gesture of History draws upon introspective passages where the organic texture and emotions of the viola play out over an atmosphere of engulfing mournful beauty. Delicate strings float upon shimmering, forever changing expressionistic backgrounds of processed viola, synth, and harmonium – profoundly sensitive and deeply moving. The modernist ambient compositions balance on the precipice, looking back in moments of reflection and rumination, while delicately holding the future in our hands.

To touch the milky way

    6-page lyric/photo booklet

[PRO355 / 2018] This CD/LP release was funded by 255 fans at Kickstarter. CD — 4-panel digipak with 8 page art-photo booklet. Limited edition of 1000. LP — 140-gram split color vinyl (white & brown). 24pt jacket with 12″ lyric card. Limited edition of 300. Kickstarter Deluxe edition LP jacket with 5 12″ art cards.

Ethereal, evocative, powerful and melancholic, Black Tape For A Blue Girl’s 12th studio album To touch the milky way expands upon their sweeping Art Rock aesthetic. Utilizing multiple genres and instrumentations as elements to shape a larger conceptual work, the eclectic, modernist approach refreshes BlackTape’s pioneering musical sentiments while maintaining the unique originality of their sound. Captivating vocals from Danielle Herrera and Michael Plaster accent songwriter and bandleader Sam Rosenthal’s electro-acoustic atmospherics and foreboding, engaging lyricism. A contemplative twilight hangs over these seven tracks.

Above: deluxe LP edition with insert art cards
Below: LP and CD

Journey to Aktehi
Mark Seelig ~ Sam Rosenthal

[PRO346 / 2017] This 300 copy limited edition CD / 100 copy cassette was funded at Kickstarter. On the border between electronic spacemusic and organic indigenous music, this release is an exhilarating and ecstatic exploration of the subjective land of Aktehi. The primary ingredients in the hallucinogenic soundscapes are Seelig’s Bansuri flute and harmonic chanting. Rosenthal’s subtle electronics, processing and production creates space for the mind-expanding travel akin to an altered state of consciousness.

“This album is alarmingly beautiful and unreal. As if the musicians have been given notes by something we don’t see in the physical realm.” – Matt Rowe, MusicTap

    SAM ROSENTHAL SOLO ALBUM    

Isotope by Sam Rosenthal

[2017] Digital-only electronic album released in conjunction with Journey to Aktehi. A portion of the track “Isotope” serves as the backing texture for Black Tape For A Blue Girl’s “meditation on the skeleton” from These fleeting moments, and also within the extended version of “meditation…” on the Seelig~Rosenthal album.

blood on the snow

[PRO340 / 2017] This 200-unit limited edition maxi-CD was funded at Kickstarter. 4 all-new songs. Continuing the revival of Black tape for a blue girl’s classic 90s darkwave/ethereal sound. The Blood on the Snow maxi is a name-your-price download available at Bandcamp. Features the same band members as these fleeting moments: Oscar & Dani sing, Nick plays viola, Brian plays drums, Chase plays guitars & synths, Sam wrote the songs and plays guitar & electronics. Sam explains, “The lyrics are darker and bleaker than any of my previous releases; I sense the theme is futility, though perhaps more specifically it’s about dedication to lost & hopeless causes. The dark mood of the last year of American politics created a desolate and worried anxiety as I wrote these songs.”

Projekt’s faux-soundtrack to the film Fifty Shades Darker is built around tracks from As one aflame laid bare by desire; and it opens with a 2011 live version of “Caught by a Stranger” with Valerie on vocals. Recorded in Bucharest. Download the album for free at Bandcamp.

these fleeting moments

[PRO331 / 2016] Deluxe limited CD & 2LP funded by our loyal supporters at Kickstarter. Picking up Blacktape’s classic 90s darkwave, ethereal sound; original vocalist Oscar returns on their 30th anniversary.

On their 30th anniversary, Black Tape For A Blue Girl returns to their evocative ethereal, neoclassical, gothic roots with an album exploring the existential predicaments of time’s passage, choices questioned, and loves lost. Original vocalist Oscar Herrera rejoins the band after a 17-year absence. His darkly dramatic vocals are complemented by Dani Herrera’s emotional and heartfelt voice, Nick Shadow’s visceral viola, Brian Viglione’s driving drums, and band-founder Sam Rosenthal’s pensive electronics and revelatory songwriting.

These Fleeting Moments, their 11th studio release, is 70 minutes of powerful, gorgeously yearning tracks born from the same place as their 90s classics Remnants of a Deeper Purity and A Chaos of Desire. “For this album,” Sam says, “I picked up threads of our 90s sound. I wrote those intense, passionate songs that Oscar delivers so wonderfully. Adding Nick’s breathtaking strings atop my synth-horn and electronic textures, and writing 25 minutes of instrumentals, really brings this album back to the essential Blacktape sound.”

The limitless single [MET01043] and the bike shop vinyl ep [PRO321] were released earlier in 2016, leading up to the release of These Fleeting Moments.

As Lonely As Dave Bowman: Monolith

[PROJEKT318 / 2015] A four track, 73-minute electronic solo release, released in a limited edition of 312. It was funded by fans like you, on Kickstarter. Unlike Sam’s work in Black Tape For A Blue Girl, Dave Bowman is full-on electronic music: droning space, wordless drift with long suspended passages. 75 were released in an über limited transluent almost-black plexibox:

The Kickstarter supporters received Monolith (addendum), a bonus 5-track, 37 minute companion album with bonus pieces [ARC129 2015]

The Collection

[ARCHIVE118 / 2014] A ten track digital-only “best of” to share with new and old fans of the band. Download for free at our Bandcamp page.

Sam Rosenthal: Rye

[2012] Black Tape For A Blue Girl (and Projekt) founder Sam Rosenthal takes a turn as an erotic novelist within the pages of Rye. ‘Look Inside’ Rye with a pdf, or at Amazon by clicking the book cover on the upper left of the page. • 8″ x 5.25″ perfect bound trade paperback book • 268 pages w/full color cover

Rye takes a sexual somersault through the complexities of desire in a penetrating portrayal of twenty-first century intimacy.

“I spent some time devouring Rye and really really enjoyed not only the story and the characters and the death snark, but also the way that Sam tackled the new thing about relationships. It’s the same as it ever was, and it’s not the same as it ever was. And that melds so beautifully in Rye. Thanks for the good read!” – Carol Queen, The Center for Sex and Culture, San Francisco

Matt is dating Rye, a willfully free androgynous school teacher. Attracted to Matt’s kinkiness and groundedness, Rye develops a taste for his masculinity and her submission. At a weekend SexxCamp retreat, Matt meets Rain, a charming and snarky twenty-something GenderQueer woman with both an attraction and aversion to sex. An unconventional three-way relationship develops, expanding their understanding of polyamory, identity, love and connection.

Tenderotics

[PROJEKT 288 / 2013] BlackTape’s Sam Rosenthal asked a diverse group of soundsculptors to try their hand at remixes. The directive was to use only the original performances recorded for the album — find a new heartbeat within the sources, find a new angle on these uniquely expressive songs. And they delivered! These tracks luxuriate in the vocals, letting Laurie’s passionate purr, Nicki’s cynical growl, and Athan’s croon shine above the ethereal & dark cabaret moods.

Remixers Steve Roach, Erik Wøllo, Android Lust, Unwoman, Steve Jones, Attrition, Valerie Gentile, and Sam Rosenthal approach the pieces with fresh ears, creating reinterpretations more electronic and edgy than the originals.

Forbidden Colours

[ARCHIVE72 / 2012] This mix of “Forbidden Colours” appears on the 2012 Projekt Holiday release, Ornamental. A lush cover of the theme from the 1985 David Bowie film, Merry Christmas, Mr. Lawrence (written by David Sylvian / Ryuichi Sakamoto). A haunting, neo-classical track in the vein of the Remnants of a Deeper Purity album. Note: the Bandcamp version has two extra tracks not at iTunes.

Sam Rosenthal: The Passage

[PROJEKT 265 / 2011] A foray into the realms of pure ambient from Black Tape For A Blue Girl founder/songwriter Sam Rosenthal. The two pieces on the hour-long album submerge the listener in a self-sustaining environment of warm electronics and minimal processings of deep, tender swells and an unresolved, yearning string theme courtesy of long-time Blacktape collaborator Vicki Richards. This is music which gently rotates around its own axis in a time-suspended haze.

Wallpaper / desktop image: (when the pop-up window opens, drag the image to your desktop. Don’t click on it, as that opens a new window) 2560 x 1440 | 1920 x 1200 | 1280 x 1024 Photo & Design by Sam Rosenthal

Knock Three Times (2010 live with Nicki Jaine)

[2010] Digital only. These recordings — from when Nicki Jaine & Athan Maroulis were the vocalists for BlackTape — features Nicki’s performance of “Knock Three Times” from the 2010 Steampunk World’s Fair. This is how I hear the song in my head whenever I think of it. This performance features Brian Viglione on percussion (he didn’t often play live with us). Also included on the ep is “Rotten Zurich Cafe” (with the spoken part of “In Dystopia” at the end) and “Halo Star.”

Knock Three Times Video on YouTube

10 Neurotics

[PROJEKT 229 & TRISOL374 / 2009] The 10th studio album looks at our sexuality, obsessions and self-destructive delusions within a rock/dark cabaret setting. All-new band features vocalists Athan Maroulis (ex-Spahn Ranch) and Laurie Reade (ex-Attrition) & Nicki Jaine; and Brian Viglione of The Dresden Dolls on Drums, guitar & bass. Deluxe digipak w/28-page NC-17 booklet.

Quadranotics [PROMO35 2009] 4 song maxi cd for radio, djs, etc.

the Pleasures Everlasting (ep)

[PROJEKT 223 / 2008] Digital-only release with Dead Can Dance & Sonic Youth cover songs.

Revue Noir: ANTHOLOGY ARCHIVE

[PROJEKT 213 2008] A Dark Cabaret collaboration from Sam and Nicki Jaine.

A Retrospective

[SHADOWPLAY RECORDS SPR32 / 2008] A Russian best of featuring Blacktape’s most popular songs, some reworked or remixed. The digital version includes a 2nd disc: the 1991 best of, A teardrop left behind (originally released on Hyperium Records)

As Lonely As Dave Bowman: POD

[PROJEKT 195 2007] | Electronic solo album by Sam. POD brings a new and chilling element to the ambient music genre known as drone. Inspired by the vast isolation of cold, dark space, the absence of human civilization, and the texture of pure sound, there is a curiosity and fascination with those forces that leads to discovery. As Lonely as Dave Bowman becomes a pioneer in the next stage of ambient drone.

HALO STAR

[PROJEKT 158 2004] Our 9th studio album, includes “Knock Three Times.” A mix of ethereal tracks with tracks with a bit more rock approach, featuring vocalists Elysabeth Grant & Bret Helm. The digital version includes a 2nd disc of bonus tracks! 30-tracks in total!

	The Scarecrow Single [PROJEKT 161 2004] These tracks are included on the deluxe digital edition.
	Tarnished Single [PROJEKT 155 2004] These tracks are included on the deluxe digital edition.

With a million tear-stained memories (2CD)

[PROJEKT 145 2003] Limited edition retrospective released in Germany on Trisol Records and in the U.S. on Projekt. One cd of vocal songs / once cd of instrumentals.

the scavenger bride

2022 first time on vinyl, on Greece’s The Circle Music label. Brand new mastering by George Emmanuel (Pentagram Studio), with oversized 4-page booklet. Limited edition of 250 per color on Gold & White marbled or Blue & Black Marbled vinyl.

[PROJEKT 130 2002] Our 8th studio album. “Like Dead Can Dance, black tape for a blue girl dramatically flirts with symphonic decay.” – The Philadelphia City Paper. A lovingly crafted concept album set in 1913 Prague; guest appearances from members of Unto Ashes, Audra, Judith, & Spahn Ranch enliven the thirteen bewitching tracks. Inspired in part by the writings of Franz Kafka and the artwork of Marcel Duchamp, lyricist/songwriter Sam Rosenthal designed the extensively illustrated 24 page booklet of photos, lyrics and stories to enhance his metaphoric tale of a bride and her suitors.

2022: 20th anniversary remastered vinyl edition on Greece’s The Circle Music label. New mastering by George Emmanuel (Pentagram Studio). Two editions of 250 each: Marbled Gold w/White, and Marbled Blue w/Black.

black tape for a blue girl [PROMO16 2002] 5 track promotional CD, sampler out-of-print. Free download:

As one aflame laid bare by desire (2025 remaster)

2LP vinyl, 3CD & Minidisc

    38-page pdf interview fanzine

[PROJEKT 86 1999] Our 7th album. Fan comments from Facebook: Felecia T, “This one is still my absolute favorite.” Anthony B, “Listened to this just yesterday! Classic!” Isakiros M, “I love this album, thanks Sam Rosenthal.” Jonathan B, “My intro to btfabg in 1998. Such a great album.” J Daniel V, “This is beautiful!!!” Daniel S, “One of my favorite albums. Not just of yours, but pretty much all that I have listened to. It’s a beautiful piece of art, Sam.”

“As one aflame laid bare by desire proves that melancholy waters run deep. Perhaps not as gloomy, and certainly not as maudlin and angry, as some previous releases, angst as art is still the source of fuel for Rosenthal and crew’s perpetual dark flame. In fact, the art aspect is intensified as Sam laces threads from dadaist Marcel Duchamp’s artworks and literature into Black tape’s gauzey fabric. Think modern Gothic chamber music with some ambient/electronic overtones.” -spiderbytes.com

Read aflame An in-depth interview about this release by Dave Aftandilian. The digital version includes 2 bonus tracks

2024 remaster edition:

Live at the Middle East, Boston, July 21 1998 Back when the band was only 12 years into our nearly-40-year career — in the summer of 1998 — we staged our only tour with vocalist Julianna Towns (vocals/guitar), Lisa Feuer (flute/backing vocals), and founder Sam Rosenthal (synths/vocals). This recently unearthed recording captures emotional and intense performances ranging from the searing “For you will burn your wings upon the sun” to the ethereal wave of “Given” & “Seireenien lumoama.” Watch the entire show on video at youTube

As One Aflame Single [PROJEKT 84 1999] 4 tracks, two not on the album. Included on the digital edition.

remnants of a deeper purity

[PROJEKT 1996] Achingly beautiful neo-classical, ethereal, darkwave with long deep tones, intense vocals and rich cello and violin arrangements. Twenty-nine years since its release, Remnants is the timeless work of poets of the broken spirit; it explores the contours of the human soul in a flawless alchemical fusion of sad and majestic heartbreaking beauty. Mesmerizing & melancholy.

The 77-minute album is Blacktape’s breakthrough masterpiece: exquisite and stunning. Wrapped up in the emotions of betrayal and salvation, searching for the deeper fragments — somewhere between sadness and hope — Sam’s words and harmonies weave a soft, opaque veil over a world where feeling is foremost, emotions on the surface, the heart laid bare.

     12-page lyric/photo booklet

Read a 1997 article by Brian Reesman

	Remnants of a deeper purity (ep) [PROJEKT 84 1996]
	with my sorrows [AMPLEXUS 10 1997] Limited edition 3″ cd and 10″ vinyl on Italy’s Amplexus label. Tracks included on the deluxe digital edition.
	across a thousand blades PROMO03 1997] Full-length promotional retrospective CD.

remnants of a deeper purity (vinyl 2LP edition)

[PROJEKT301 1996 / 2014] Remastered from the original DAT masters, Remnants of a deeper purity gets a deluxe 2LP release. Swirled red and black 140 gram vinyl, 8-page 11-inch square booklet. (The first edition was limited to 300 and included a CD of the 77-minute album in a paper sleeve. The 2nd edition includes a download code for the album).

a1 redefine pure faith
a2 fin de siécle
a3 with my sorrows
b1 for you will burn your wings upon the sun
c1 wings tattered, fallen
c2 fitful
c3 remnants of a deeper purity
d1 again, to drift (for veronika)
d2 i have no more answers

2LP Hand Poured Orange Rust Swirl (2025 repressing)

★ 4th colored vinyl edition ★ 2025 vinyl 2LP re-release in beautiful hand-poured edition. Each one unique. ★ Orange Rust Swirl, 140 gram ★ Limited to 500 ★ 4-page insert w/lyrics & candid photos ★ sticker ★

this lush garden within

[PROJEKT 38 1993] Our 5th album. An elegy to the goddess . . . “unable to kneel down and save you or pray to the cruel god who defiles you.” A cry for truth and a more nurturing existence. Lucian’s voice carries us beautifully through the feminine side, while Oscar’s passionate vocals evoke the suffering of our carnal life, all guided by Sam Rosenthal’s sensual, exotic gothic-ambient undertones.

A review from The Empty Quarter (UK):
Back again with yet another dramatic release, perfection in a gilded cage… Release after release it’s the same, pure emotionally dripping volumes of an almost religious beauty… They ooze class. Black Tape for a blue girl can be judged from differing view points, be it basic emotionally charged poetic license or cerebral statements, however you perceive them the ultimate analysis is they create a spellbinding masterpiece every time they enter a studio.

     5-page lyric/photo booklet

the first pain to linger

[PROJEKT 63 1996] A 96 page book with maxi-cd. The book is out-of-print. Download or purchase just the maxi-cd:

terrace of memories (2024 remaster)

[PRO414 • 2024 / original PRO34 • 1992] Sam Rosenthal ambient collaboration with VidnaObmana. An organic ambient album of longing and gentle melancholic minimalism. Sam Rosenthal (Black Tape For A Blue Girl’s founder/synthesist based in Los Angeles) and Dirk Serries (then recording under the moniker VidnaObmana in Belgium) created the album the old fashioned way: sending tapes across the world in the mail. The somber, slowly drifting and looping music tips the listener off to its source through a passage of text on the sleeve concerning a lost love. Swelling in deep waves, the five grey unhurried pieces suggest memories of more pleasant times lost forever in the cold, lifeless present. The tracks are appropriately mournful, with a slow grace, as they drift through a world of memories, an endless stream of succulent and stirring reflections. Lose yourself in its green and grey charms.

A chaos of desire (2022 remaster)

2LP vinyl, 2CD & Minidisc

     88-page memorabilia fanzine with interviews from the era, new conversations, and original handwritten lyrics.

[PROJEKT400 1991 / 2022] Remastered from the original DAT tapes by Martin Bowes of Attrition.
2CD — 6-panel digipak with 6-page insert. 9 bonus tracks on 2nd disc. Limited edition of 500.
LP — Limited first edition of 500. 140-gram. LP1: gold w/ black splatter, LP2: grimace purple & black marble. With b&w lyric card.

There’s a new shine upon Chaos’ dark beauty. On its 31st anniversary remaster, the ethereal gothic ambience of our 1991 fourth album swims in a sea of memory, a heart filled with pain and despondent hope. These 12 existential tales inhabit a chaotic realm of reflection, fear and desire set upon dense electronics confronting pained emotions. Oscar Herrera’s intense, searing vocals and Julianna Town’s sensitive siren song are strongly complemented by Vicki Richards’ sinewy violin. Throughout it all, songwriter and band leader Sam Rosenthal stirs up a brooding undertone of electronics, expressing the stages of desire and despair.

Ashes in the brittle air (2020 remaster)

2CD & LP & MD

     31-page memorabilia fanzine with interviews from the era, and new conversations.

[PROJEKT376 1989 / 2019] Remastered from the original 1/4” tapes.
2CD — 2CD in 6-panel digipak with 16-page lyric/photo booklet. 21 tracks on 2nd disc. Limited edition of 500.
LP — Limited first edition of 300. 140-gram smoky translucent vinyl, with b&;w lyric card.
LP — Limited 2nd edition of 300. 140-gram Gold in Ultra Clear vinyl, with b&w lyric insert. Released March 2022.

Ashes in the brittle air was the first BlackTape released on CD; the improved sonic quality of the medium over the previous two LPs really benefited the music. With this expanded rerelease, my mastering guy went back and worked from the original quarter-inch mixdown tapes. In 1989, I thought the original sounded great, but this new mastering sounds amazing! There is so much subtle detail now, everything feels warmer and more present. I really love it! I added six completed tracks (on the second disc) from that era — something special for the album’s fans. There’s no way I can go back in time and write more pieces in this exact style. These tracks are completed songs I never released for artist-angst reasons; they make a wonderful addition to the album. Also included are a bunch of demos and early mixes to round out the 21 bonus tracks.

Oscar sizzles with dramatic and passionate vocals. Sue-Kenny Smith’s voice brings a softer, sensitive & spontaneous English-folk quality to the album. Mixing Sue with my electronics and ambience — and Oscar’s vocals — created a diverse collection of songs that arrived at just the right moment. There wasn’t really anyone else in America doing this ethereal style.

ashes in the brittle air (original edition)

[PROJEKT 26 1989] Bursting forth like a lucid dream, this release unearths powerful connections to deeper truths. Sue-Kenny’s folk approach and Oscar’s intense voice guide the way through Sam’s tales of existential personal introspection. “One of the most caring musical treasures to come along in quite some time. Don’t pass up the chance to experience it.” – JUST MUSIC. “This is hurting, romantic lament. Herrera’s vocals suddenly ram me with image-brimming, griping vacancy of the precariously desperate soul hangingbeneath hope by a frayed thread.” – ALTERNATIVE PRESS. “We’re talking deep European existential despair here, the fevered outpouring of a tortured soul.” – OPTION.

mesmerized by the sirens (2023 stereo mix)

2CD & LP & MD

     5-page lyric/photo booklet

[PROJEKT408 1987 / 2023] Remixed from the original 1/2” 8-track master tapes.
2CD — 2CD in 6-panel digipak, 2nd disc with 10 bonus tracks. Limited edition of 500.
LP — Limited first edition of 500 in two color variations: Seafoam blue/white (Aside/Bside) & Oxblood red/orange (Aside/Bside)

“Sadly nostalgic of your loneliest days, gently disturbing music that sends your mind adrift on an ocean of reflection.” — Bside Magazine

More than a reissue, it’s a restoration! This new mix of Black Tape For A Blue Girl’s ethereal, evocative and existential 1987 second album flows upon its haunting thread, revealing the heart of its lush dreamscape atmospheres. Sue-Kenny Smith’s lovely British vocals float upon Sam Rosenthal’s electronic and organic darkwave, tempting within their lush mystery. Oscar Herrera’s passionate, powerful voice propels the majority of the tracks with “the sawdust scatter” capturing a late-80s goth rock aura. Rosenthal’s precise new mix — sourced from the original half-inch 8-track tapes — highlights an album even more enchanting than when first released.

before the buildings fell

[PROJEKT 24 1986] Electronic solo album by Sam, record simultaneously with The Rope. CD back in print in a digipak edition.

The Rope 25 (2CD 25th Anniversary Remastered Edition)

[PROJEKT 20 2012] On the band’s debut . . . Sam Rosenthal’s subtle electronics and introspective lyrics establish black tape for a blue girl’s stature beyond the realm of the normal “gothic” sound. Creating a timeless blend of Oscar’s emotional vocals intertwined with warm ambient soundscapes.

The deluxe reissue includes the original album remastered, with a 2nd disc of artists interpreting the songs off The Rope including Black Tape For A Blue Girl’s own re-recording, “Memory, Uncaring Friend (2011)”

Deluxe Disc Two
1 black tape for a blue girl: memory, uncaring friend (2011)
2 All My Faith Lost…: the rope
3 Mirabilis: the floor was hard but home
4 Erik Wøllo: within these walls
5 Forrest Fang: hide in yourself
6 Dirk Serries: lingering (vintage mix)
7 Dirk Serries: blurred (lo-fi mix)
8 Walter Holland: seven days till sunrise
9 Kho Hat Hasa: the holy terrors
10 Rajna: end
11 Attrition: memory, uncaring friend
12 Lux Interna: we return

In March of 1987, the massive-circulation magazine STAR HITS reviewed The Rope in a dual review with Love & Rockets’ Express. Click for readable copy:

Sam Rosenthal: Secret Flight [cassette]

PRO12 June 4-14 1985 | 60 min | Music for the movie inside your head. Growing & Progressing.

Sam Rosenthal: The April Rain [cassette]

PRO11 April 8 1985 | 45 min | An ambient diversion. Lay back in the April Rain and snooze.

Sam Rosenthal: Cinemusik

PRO10 1985 | 30 min | Early video art / experimentation from Sam. I cannot actually recall if I ever made any of these. It might have just been listed in the catalog, in hopes that somebody would order a copy. : )

Sam Rosenthal: Statique Ballet [cassette]

PRO8 1985 April | 45 min | Leftover/work drafts of music that missed Tanzmusic.

Sam Rosenthal: An Hour of Ambience [cassette]

PRO7 April 1985 | 60 min | Live ethereal music for a three-screen video installation. Recorded live at Broward Community College. This cassette was the evening set from 1 March 1985 | Patron-exclusive unmastered digital of both sets at Bandcamp

Sam Rosenthal: Tanzmusic [Vinyl LP] PRO6 March 1985 | Electro-Pop-Ambient-Moodscapes. Visions for a modern world. As far as I can remember, I made 250 copies. I glued a piece of card to the front and to the back of a blank LP jacket. In fact, I’m pretty sure I remember using “spray mount” (on my parents front porch.) to affix them all. I mixed the LP at the house of a friend who went by the name “ONY” — but his 2-track only had small reels, so I brought the “master” to the plant on three small reels, rather than two large reels. This was really confusing to them (as I completely understand, now) and it delayed the release for a while! A copy recently sold for $80 on eBay!

Sam Rosenthal: The Old Lake [cassette]

PRO5 1984 December | 45 min | All-ambient diversion tape.

Sam Rosenthal: Diving Into Cool Waters [cassette]

PRO3 July 27 1984 | 90 minutes of electronic mood-music.

Sam Rosenthal: Round Trip [cassette]

PRO2 February 23 1984 | 45 min | Electro-Ambient debut. | Available at Bandcamp