Experimental Products
| Company type | Music group |
|---|---|
| Industry | Electronic music |
| Founded | 1982 |
| Founder | Mark Wilde, Michael Gross |
| Headquarters | Philadelphia , United States |
| Products | Music albums and EPs |
Experimental Products was a Philadelphia-based electronic ensemble established in 1982 by Mark Wilde and Michael Gross.
Career
In 1982, Experimental Products independently created and released their only full-length album, Prototype. Their discography also includes two EPs: Glowing in the Dark (1984) and Experiment! (1987). The track "Glowing in the Dark" achieved notable success in dance clubs, reaching number 12 in the Midwest and standing out as the sole independent act featured on the RockPool 100 chart in 1985.
The band’s output is recognized as a seminal example of synth music, with Prototype becoming one of the most sought-after minimal synth records, commanding prices exceeding $500 among collectors in the early 2000s. A scarce flexi-disc of "Work the Beat" was distributed through Philadelphia's Terminal music scene publication, overseen by their initial manager, Steve Fritz.
During the era surrounding Glowing in the Dark, Mike Simmons joined Experimental Products as a live keyboardist, contributing compositions performed during concerts but never formally recorded.
An unofficial video for "Glowing in the Dark," filmed at the Kennel Club, has garnered over 350,000 views on YouTube. Additional visual material includes live recordings from a City Gardens performance and a video project featuring Wilde, Gross, and Bill Mutschler on electric trumpet delivering an early rendition of "Work the Beat."
Visual artist Bill Mutschler designed intricate live slide presentations and directed the video "All We Can Not See We Call Invisible," which earned a bronze medal at the 1985 International Film and TV Festival in New York. He left the group around 1986 after receiving an invitation from Al Jourgenson to join a Ministry supergroup tour that ultimately did not come to fruition.
After co-founder Mark Wilde passed away from pneumonia in 1987, Michael Gross continued with new collaborators, drawing sold-out crowds at Philadelphia’s Pulsations nightclub, which held 2,000 attendees during occasional live shows. No new recordings were produced following Wilde’s death; however, Vinyl On Demand released two compilations and reissued Prototype as a double LP with bonus tracks in 2008, incorporating live and rehearsal recordings provided by Mutschler.
In 1990, Gross and Mutschler formed Experimental Cafe, a brief collaboration performing at Philadelphia venues that blended fresh instrumental compositions with early Macintosh-generated video effects.
During the early 2000s, "Glowing in the Dark" experienced reissues and remixes associated with DJ Hell in Germany.
Michael Gross died in 2016 after moving to Washington state. The final lead vocalist named Michael continues to perform solo concerts along the East Coast while assembling a touring band.
Mutschler produced Patrick Moraz's live PM in Princeton video/DVD and CD (1995), later reissued by VoicePrint UK and available on iTunes. Since 2005, he has recorded under Northern Lights eXperience (NL-X), releasing albums such as Atmosphere (2012), which Moraz praised for its innovation. NL-X’s album Fields was launched on major streaming services in December 2019. His fourth CD, titled soundtracks, was released in August 2021. Plans are underway for a fifth album featuring refreshed versions of "Love Changes" and "Aviation," potentially produced alongside Experimental Products’ final lead singer.
Discography
- Prototype full-length album (1982)
- Glowing in the Dark extended play
- Experiment extended play
- The track Glowing in the Dark included on DJ Hell's compilation CD Hellboys (2007), distributed by International Deejay Gigolo Records, based in Berlin, Germany.