A box-release covering The Band of Holy Joy's cassette released artistic output from 1983 to 1986, split on 3 records. Band Of Holy Joy were formed in the summer of 1983 when Johny and Max found a synthesizer in the cellar of the squatted New Cross Gate house they were living in. They started messing about on this synth and started writing songs on it. The songs however were very messy and the discovery of an old plastic harmonium in a local junk shop only added to the chaos. They brought in Brett Turnbull to bring a sense of order to the noise they were creating. Brett brought along Martine Thoquenne with him and the noise in the cellar started becoming very interesting indeed. A person who is much forgotten but quite instrumental in what went on was George Lovell. John Jenkins, a photographer who was around the house, was persuaded to trade his camera for a mouth organ, tambourine and various other instruments. The Band of Holy Joy, a completed entity, started to create strange sounds and songs began to emerge. Cultural interests at this time were 8 and 35mm film, Bertol Brecht stage play and the electronic disco sounds that could be heard and bought uptown. Subjects that fired their imaginations were media scare stories, prescription medications, institutional living, big cities, bad glamor and self-preservation in vulnerable situations. There was an affinity and shared living space with the constructivist outfit Test Dept who took Band Of Holy Joy out on tour with them resulting in very early performances in Manchester, Sheffield and Retford. When they returned to London they entered the studio and began to record and assemble tracks to go alongside the porta studio recordings, cut ups, and collages they were creating at home. They also played with Einsturzende Neubauten around this time. The band was interested in the emerging cassette culture of the day. The first cassette was Favourite Fairytales For Juvenile Delinquents which was released in 1983 More Favourite Fairytales was recorded on a four track portastudio which was released in 1984. The band would often make and play their own instruments as well as make their own films. A special post-punk pre-acid house, a creatively perfect time to be young and full of noise, word and image in London.