Richard Pinhas -

Richard Pinhas (born May 7, 1951) is a French guitarist, keyboardist, and composer who headed the experimental combo Heldon during the 1970s. Between 1977 and 1982, he released five solo albums on Cobra and Pulse.

Background

Richard Pinhas is a French guitarist, keyboardist, and composer who emerged in the early 1970s through the psych-rock group Schizo, then led Heldon across a seven-album run that began in 1974. He completed a philosophy doctorate at the Sorbonne in 1974, studied with Gilles Deleuze, and built Heldon as a self-directed vehicle after early interest from E.G. failed to produce a release.

The first Heldon lineup drew on Patrick Gauthier, Georges Grunblatt, and Alain Renaud, and the group’s 1974–76 records established Pinhas’s core language: looped guitar, sustained synthesizer motion, electronic repetition, and a harder rock backbone supplied by players such as François Auger, Didier Batard, and Jannick Top. After Électronique Guerilla, Allez Téia, It’s Always Rock and Roll, Agneta Nilsson, and Un Rêve Sans Conséquence Spéciale, Pinhas turned part of that language into a parallel solo line that ran from 1977 to 1982.

Rhizosphere

Richard Pinhas released his debut solo album, Rhizosphere, in April 1977 on Cobra.

The album strips the setup close to Pinhas alone and places guitar, electronics, and tape-based layering at the center. Most of side one works in shorter forms, with repeating figures, sustained tones, and abrupt shifts in density, while the title piece on side two expands into a long, continuous sequence with François Auger on drums. Deleuze supplied the liner note, which linked the record directly to Pinhas’s parallel work in philosophy.

Rhizosphere runs on sequenced synth motion, treated percussion, and a cold electronic surface that keeps side one in near-constant motion. “Rhizosphere Sequent” opens with a fast, dizzying pulse that gathers force by degrees, while “A Piece for Duncan” opens a quieter span of luminous keyboard echoes, soft bleeps, and floating space. “Claire P.” winds in a hypnotic blur, with swirling tones and a narrow repeated figure, then “Trapeze Interference” darkens the album through heavier chords and a more shadowed, intergalactic drift.

The sidelong title piece winds through a long field of heavily processed percussion, drum-led accents, and a rubbery modulating ostinato, while a sustained two-chord synth foundation shifts in slow waves beneath it. Warm, luminous tones blur across the surface and drift through dark, infinite space, giving the whole piece a neon haze and a restless, hovering pull.

A1. “Rhizosphere Sequent” (4:43)
A2. “A Piece for Duncan” (5:40)
A3. “Claire P.” (4:45)
A4. “Trapeze / Interference” (6:45)
B1. “Rhizosphere” (17:45)

Richard Pinhas recorded side one on two tracks at Heldon Studio in Paris between October 1976 and February 1977 and issued the album with production credited to Matière Crise. Phil Ross assisted on sound. Christine Gaussot designed the front cover. “Claire P.” carried a dedication to Philip Glass.

Chronolyse

Richard Pinhas released his second solo album, Chronolyse, in 1978 on Cobra.

Pinhas recorded Chronolyse as a solo work based on Dune, the 1965 science-fiction novel by American author Frank Herbert. The title sequence “Variations Sur le Thème de Bene Gesserit” refers to the Bene Gesserit, a secretive sisterhood in Herbert’s novel.

The album’s first half runs on Moog loops, echo-treated sequences, and cold, clean keyboard lines that shift the same core material through different tempos and densities: the faster variations pulse with a tight hypnotic drive, the slower ones thin the motion into cooler suspended patterns, and Variation V stands out by crossing slow and fast figures inside the same frame. “Duncan Idaho” gives the album one of its clearest contoured lines, opening with metallic sequencer tones before repeated figures change note, firmer rhythmic patterns join underneath, and a droning synth layer clouds the close.

“Paul Atreides” opens in a wide, low-lit space, then builds across bass, drums, guitar, and Mellotron into a heavier, more disturbed span, with sustained guitar cries, looser cymbal work, and later stretches of trippy electronic noise that deepen the tension without breaking the album’s cool, measured pace. Bassist Didier Batard and percussionist François Auger underpin the track.

A1. “Variations I Sur Le Thème Des Bene Gesserit” (2:20)
A2. “Variations II Sur Le Thème Des Bene Gesserit” (2:10)
A3. “Variations III Sur Le Thème Des Bene Gesserit” (1:35)
A4. “Variations IV Sur Le Thème Des Bene Gesserit” (1:43)
A5. “Variations V Sur Le Thème Des Bene Gesserit” (1:35)
A6. “Variations VI Sur Le Thème Des Bene Gesserit” (2:04)
A7. “Variations VII Sur Le Thème Des Bene Gesserit” (4:31)
A8. “Duncan Idaho” (8:15)
B1. “Paul Atreïdes” (29:39)

Richard Pinhas recorded side one live on Revox machine at Heldon Studio. Side two took shape between January and June 1976 at Heldon Studio and Studio Davout, after which Aquarium handled the mix. Pinhas produced the album with Trapeze Lasers. Patrick Jelin designed the cover.

Iceland

Richard Pinhas released his third solo album, Iceland, in 1979 on Polydor and Ramses. It was his first solo album after Heldon’s breakup.

The record pares the sound down again and turns toward longer, colder instrumental passages. Three sections of “Iceland” occupy much of side one, while “The Last Kings of Thule” and “Greenland” stretch the same atmosphere across side two. The pieces rely on guitar echoes, analog synthesizer wash, and slow-moving structural pivots, with François Auger and Jean-Philippe Goude entering only on “Greenland.”

Iceland moves through long synth pulses, heavy chordal swells, and sparse guitar intrusions that keep the whole album suspended in cold, open distance. The three-part title piece sets that frame with massive sustained chords, a simple hypnotic beat, and later voice-like tones that hover through the mix, while Part 3 thins the surface into near-silence before slow waves of sound return and recede.

“The Last Kings of Thule” shifts into a harder, more percussive track, with a repeated synth figure locked to a hammering pulse as guitar lines cut across the top in angular bursts, and Part 2 pushes that same motion further with sharper lead work before the pattern carries on alone. “Greenland” opens the album’s brightest stretch through sweeping electronics, a steady beat, and a clear repeated synth line that gives the piece more warmth and lift than the surrounding material. On CD editions, “Wintermusic” extends the closing atmosphere into a long drone built from near-static tones that change only by degrees.

A1. “Iceland (Part 1)” (1:05)
A2. “Iceland (Part 2)” (9:35)
A3. “The Last Kings of Thule (Part 1)” (2:25)
A4. “Iceland (Part 3)” (7:36)

B1. “Indicatif Radio” (1:00)
B2. “The Last Kings of Thule (Part 2)” (5:30)
B3. “Short Transition” (0:35)
B4. “Greenland” (8:56)

Richard Pinhas recorded Iceland in 1979 at Heldon Studios and Ramses Studios in Paris. Roger Roche remixed most of the album at Davout with Christian assisting, while Pinhas remixed the “Iceland” pieces at Ramses. Patrick Jelin and Laser Trapeze handled the cover design, assisted by Xavier Moehr. “Greenland” carried a dedication to F. Scott Fitzgerald.

East West

Richard Pinhas released his fourth solo album, East West, in 1980 on Pulse.

This album contains short city-titled pieces with a large cast. Pinhas controls the electronic and guitar center while multiple players—Patrick Gauthier, Georges Grunblatt, Didier Batard, François Auger, Steve Shehan, Dominique E., Norman Spinrad—enter key tracks. “Houston 69” frames the album in two parts, while the David Bowie composition “Sense of Doubt” stands as the lone outside piece.

East West splits between hard rhythmic pressure and slower, suspended pieces. “Houston 69” opens with a heavy pulse, sequencer barrage, and processed Norman Spinrad vocal, while Pinhas lays sharp guitar lines across the top and François Auger’s drumming gives the track a harder physical push than most of the album. “Sense of Doubt” drops into a shambling programmed beat with rough-textured rhythm detail, and “Kyoto Number 3” keeps the motion taut through sequenced synth patterns and sustained guitar lines.

“La Ville sans nom” and “Ruitor” lower the temperature with slow sequences, held tones, and longer guitar traces, then “West Side” snaps the record into a brisker, more direct song form through its energetic beat, vocal refrain, and clearer contoured line. “Paris: Beautiful May” returns to a slower drift, with lilting synth figures, liquid percussive accents, and sustained guitar, while “The Whale Dance” reduces the surface to a short, quieter interlude before “Houston 69 Part 2” closes with a faster, more urgent reprise of the opening attack.

A1. “Houston 69: ‘The Crash Landing’ (Part 1)” (5:38) — Norman Spinrad, Pinhas
A2. “London: ‘Sense of Doubt’” (2:47) — originated on side two of “Heroes,” the second of two 1977 Bowie albums recorded in Berlin.
A3. “Kyoto: ‘Kyoto Number 3’” (3:00) — Pinhas
A4. “XXXXX: ‘La Ville Sans Nom’” (4:04) — Pinhas
A5. “Home: ‘Ruitor’” (3:55) — Pinhas

B1. “New York: ‘West Side’” (3:37) — OGI, Pinhas
B2. “Paris: ‘Beautiful May’” (7:18) — d Pinhas
B3. “Keflavik: ‘The Whale Dance’” (3:03) — Pinhas
B4. “Houston 69: ‘Houston 69’ (Part 2)” (4:30) — Norman Spinrad, Pinhas

Richard Pinhas recorded East West between February and April 1980, except “Houston 69,” which took shape between June 1979 and May 1980, and “The Whale Dance,” which dates from 1979. The sessions used Davout, Ramses, Synthe Production, and Heldon Studio. Roger Roche mixed the album with Olivier Py and Pinhas assisting, and Olivier Py co-produced it with Pinhas. Philippe Druillet designed the cover, and the LP came with a full-color insert.

L’Éthique

Richard Pinhas released his fifth solo album, L’Éthique, in March 1982 on Pulse.

L’Éthique cuts between clipped electronic pulse and harder ensemble attack. The title pieces tie the album together through sequenced beats, bass, percussion, and guitar, then open into spoken samples, echo, and thinner space. “Dedicated to K.C.” opens with guitar, drums, and bass, then drives into angular counterpoint, dissonant chord pressure, and a three-part rise that briefly levels off before the next surge.

“Melodic Simple Transition” keeps an uptempo beat inside a cleaner synth frame, while “Belfast” builds from rhythmic electronic figures into a denser track where drums and bass harden the pulse and guitar cuts across the top. “The Western Wail (Part 1)” pushes the busiest pace, with rapid synth lines, drums, percussion, and guitar packed into a tight forward rush before the rhythm drops into freer drum patterns and scattered guitar detail; Part 2 closes in a more luminous, synth-led register. “Southbound” ends at full force through relentless drumming, dense low-end support, and sustained guitar pressure.

A1. “L’Éthique (Part 1)” (6:21)
A2. “Dedicated to K.C.” (6:51)
A3. “Melodic Simple Transition” (4:10)
A4. “Belfast” (4:56)

B1. “L’Éthique (Part 2)” (4:05)
B2. “The Western Wail (Part 1)” (7:45)
B3. “L’Éthique (Part 3)” (4:29)
B4. “The Western Wail (Part 2)” (4:29)
B5. “L’Éthique (Part 4)” (1:45)

Richard Pinhas recorded L’Éthique at Ramses Studio in June, July, and October 1981 with producer Olivier Lamit and Pinhas. Jean-Louis Rizet engineered the album with Laurent Perron assisting. Patrick Jelin handled the front cover, and Divine supplied the graphics. The title work was dedicated to Erik Bruker, while “The Western Wail” was dedicated to Rosa Frenkel.

After L’Éthique, Pinhas stepped away from solo releases for a decade. This first solo cycle left five albums that ran in parallel with the last phase of Heldon and then continued beyond the band’s breakup, carrying his core interests in electronic repetition, guitar sustain, science-fiction imagery, and Deleuze-linked conceptual framing into a more solitary format.

Discography: