Palo Alto was formed Paris in 1989 by Jacques Barbéri, Denis Frajerman, Philippe Masson and Philippe Perreaudin. The group too inspiration from Tuxedomoon, Art Zoyd, The Legendary Pink Dots, Coil, The Residents, Can and Cabaret Voltaire. Science fiction in all its forms is a leitmotiv in the group's work.

In 1990 Palo Alto released their debut cassette tape, "Le Clos", on Old Europa Cafe. At the time their music was definitely written rather than improvised, consisting mainly of instrumentals with a stress on melody. Two years later, "Extrême Ponction" was released as a cassette on the T.T.I.C.C. Contingent. This double CD collects those two tapes with the addition of "Excroissance", a cassette single from 1993.

All material was remastered by Norscq in 2024. Presented in a 6-panel ecopak.