Crippled Intellect Productions

Crippled Intellect Productions, better known as C.I.P., is a record label for experimental music based in Chicago, IL, and run by the sound artist Blake Edwards. Edwards performs and records under the name Vertonen, and is a member of Anatomy of Habit, Startless, Burrow, and sseepage. The label is known for discovering and supporting artists who are relatively unknown, or who are just starting in their careers. It also publishes work by the artists who inspired Edwards, such as Z'EV, The Hafler Trio, and Crawl Unit.

C.I.P. began in 1988 as a chapbook press in order to self-publish art and poetry by Blake Edwards. Seven chapbook titles were produced between 1988 and 1991. Editions were kept very small, and never went above 40. In December 1996, The publication side of C.I.P. was revived as Incremental Press (with crippled intellect press as an imprint) with the purchase of an ISBN number and the publication of loquedeeshes, by Sherman Johnson.

In the Fall of 1992, C.I.P. began publishing 7" records by Blake Edwards' solo project, Vertonen. The first releases still had ties to poetry, with spoken words and small booklets of text inserted into the sleeves.

In 1998, C.I.P. published its first CDs, taking a major step away from the label's initial self-publishing focus. Marked by a high production quality and professional look, C.I.P. reissued on CD a rare cassette by uns, an alter ego of the percussionist Z'EV, with an accompanying booklet containing extensive liner notes by the artist. This was followed by a CD titled "Everyone Gets What They Deserve" by Crawl Unit, as the sound artist Joe Colley was then known. With the label now firmly established, C.I.P. began taking risks by producing new titles by artists from deep underground, including a musique concrete group from Connecticut called Brutum Fulmen, Nuisance Beacon, and a long-lived yet under-documented artist from San Francisco, Skozey Fetisch.

The label did continue to publish work by Edwards, who received grants from the City of Chicago Arts Council. These albums including Edwards' strongest work to date: Return of the Interrobang (a title which suggests his interest in language); the drone album Orchid Collider (with cover art by Jason Talbot); and a live album called Stations.

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