We LOVE this band, this song, this ALBUM! “Love Without Sound” was written mostly by Delia Derbyshire with David Vorhaus and Brian Hodgson under the group name White Noise. Derbyshire was only in the group a short time but her contribution to the songwriting on Love Without Sound and Firebird is very apparent. Most people think that is her singing, but it is not. She does contribute some of the maniacal laughing but the actual singing parts are done by Annie Bird and Val Shaw.
This song (and album as a whole) is so far ahead of its time it’s just insane. Derbyshire and Hodgson had previously been in the experimental music group “Unit Delta Plus” together and joined Vorhaus in forming White Noise after meeting at a conference Derbyshire was speaking at about Radiophonic Sounds.
In other horror news a brief excerpt from the track “The Black Mass: An Electric Storm in Hell” can be heard in the Hammer film Dracula AD 1972. Good company to keep.
Delia worked mainly in tape loops. loops that she recorded, cut and looped herself. Her sound sources varied wildly from electronic oscillators to woodblocks, to found sound. A true innovator in recording techniques still employed by some to this day. Delia was a pioneer in what the BBC termed “radiophonic sound”. an early precursor to what is now known as electronic music.
Delia; who is most famous for her soundtrack work on the BBC science-fiction classic Dr. Who, also recorded under the name Li De la Russe for her work on the rival ITV Network shows Timeslip and The Tomorrow People.
We love Delia Derbyshire so much, her contribution to electronic music is immense. We have included below is a short documentary about her. She stopped producing commercial music in the 70’s and she tragically died alcohol-related complications in 2001. After her death, her personal collection of recordings was given to the BBC for digitization and archiving.