Madness

Along with The Specials, Madness were one of the leading bands of the ska revival of the late '70s and early '80s. As their career progressed, Madness branched away from their trademark "nutty sound" and incorporated large elements of Motown, soul, and British pop. Although the band managed one crossover American hit in 1983, they remained a British phenomenon, influencing several successive generations of musicians and becoming one of the most beloved groups the country produced during the '80s. 

 
The origins of Madness lie in a ska group known as The Invaders, which was formed by Mike Barson, Chris Foreman, and Lee Thompson in 1976. By 1978, the band had changed their name to Morris and the Minors and had added Graham "Suggs" McPherson, Mark Bedford, Chas Smash, and Dan Woodgate to the group. Later in 1978, they changed their name to Madness, in homage to one of their favorite Prince Buster songs. The following year, Madness released their debut single, a tribute to Prince Buster entitled "The Prince," on Two-Tone. The song was a surprise success, reaching the British Top 20. Following its success, the band signed a record contract with Stiff Records and released another Prince Buster song, "One Step Beyond," which climbed to number seven. 

 
Madness quickly recorded their debut album, also titled 'One Step Beyond', with producers Clive Langer and Alan Winstanley. Released toward the end of the year, the album peaked at number two in Britain and it stayed on the charts for well over a year. At the beginning of 1980, the band's third single, "My Girl," peaked at number three. For the next three years, the group had a virtually uninterrupted run of 13 Top Ten singles, during which time they were one of the most popular bands in Britain, rivaled only by The Jam in terms of widespread popularity. Where The Jam appealed to teenagers and young adults, Madness had a broad fan base, reaching from children to the elderly. Which didn't mean their music was diluted -they continued to expand their sound, both musically and lyrically. 

 

 

In the spring of 1980, Madness released the 'Work Rest and Play' EP, which reached number six on the strength of the EP's lead song, "Night Boat to Cairo." Also during the spring, 'One Step Beyond' was released in the United States, where it peaked at 128. Madness' second album, 'Absolutely', was released in the fall of 1980. The record peaked at number two on the British charts, but it stalled at number 146, in the U.S. Sire dropped the band after the commercial disappointment of 'Absolutely', leaving Madness without an American record contract for several years. 

 
Back in England, Madness continued to gain momentum, as the group began playing matinee shows on their tours so children under 16 years old could attend the concert. In the fall of 1981, the band released their third album, 'Seven', which peaked at number five. In January of 1982, Madness hit number four with a cover of Labi Siffre's "It Must Be Love." In March, their streak of Top Ten hits was interrupted when "Cardiac Arrest" stalled at number 14 on the charts, due to radio's reluctance to play the tune. The band bounced back a few months later with "House of Fun," their first number one single. That same month, the hits compilation, 'Complete Madness', reached number one. 

 
Madness returned in the late summer of 1982 with 'The Rise and Fall', their full-fledged shift to pop. Like their previous albums, it was a British hit, reaching the Top Ten, but it also contained the seeds of their brief American success with the Top Five British single "Our House." The single was released in America on the group's new label, Geffen, and it received heavy airplay from MTV. The music-video television network had previously played the videos for "House of Fun," "It Must Be Love," and "Cardiac Arrest" when the band's albums were unreleased in the United States, thereby setting the stage for "Our House" to become a massive hit. With "Our House," Madness had MTV exposure coincide with a record release for the first time, which sent the single into the American Top Ten in the summer of 1983. The success of the single brought the U.S. compilation album, 'Madness', to number 41. Madness managed one more American Top 40 hit that fall, when "It Must Be Love" peaked at number 33.  
 

At the end of 1983, Mike Barson -the band's key songwriter- left the group to settle down with his wife. Although Madness was able to stay near the top of the charts with their first post-Barson release, "Michael Caine," the band's fortunes began to decline over the course of 1984. Upon its release in the spring, 'Keep Moving' hit number six on the British charts; in America, the record reached number 109. In June, the group released its final single for Stiff Records, "One Better Day," which peaked at number 17. In the fall, Madness formed their own record label, Zarjazz. They released "Yesterday's Men," their first recording on Zarjazz, in September of 1985, nearly a year after the label's formation. The record peaked at number 18 and its parent album, 'Mad Not Mad', reached number 16 upon its October release. Their chart decline continued early in 1986, when their cover of Scritti Politti's "Sweetest Girl" peaked at number 35. For most of 1986, the group was quiet. In September, Madness announced they were disbanding. Two months later, their farewell single, "Waiting for the Ghost Train," was released, charting at number 18. 

 
After staying dormant for a year-and-a-half, the group reunited at the beginning of 1988 as a quartet called The Madness, releasing its comeback single, "I Pronounce You," in March. The Madness featured Chris Foreman, Lee Thompson, Chas Smash, and Suggs, and was augmented by the Specials' keyboardists Jerry Dammers and Steve Nieve, and Bruce Thomas (bass) of The Attractions. "I Pronounce You" reached number 44 on the U.K. charts and its accompanying album stiffed upon its spring release. The group disbanded for a second time that fall. 

 
In the summer of 1992, the original lineup of Madness reunited to perform two outdoor concerts at London's Finsbury Park. The group dubbed the event Madstock and released a recording of the shows on Go! Records. Madstock became an annual event for the next four years -every summer the band would reunite and headline an outdoor festival at Finsbury Park. Suggs launched a solo career in 1995 with 'The Lone Ranger', which performed respectably in the U.K. charts. In 1996, Madness played the final Madstock and announced they planned not to reunite for future concerts, but by 1998 they were back on the road, with a Los Angeles date recorded for release as 'Universal Madness' the following year. The group also reunited with original producers Clive Langer and Alan Winstanley to record their first new material in over a decade. The resulting 'Dangermen Sessions, Vol 1' was released in 2005, followed in 2009 by 'The Liberty of Norton Folgate', the group's tenth studio album. In 2011, Madness launched the annual "House of Fun Weeknder," a three-day festival curated by the band in which they performed alongside a wealth of like-minded artists. During 2012, the band took part in high-profile performances that celebrated the best of British culture. They played from the top of Buckingham Palace at the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee party and also appeared in the closing ceremony of the London Olympic Games. As 2012 drew to a close, Madness released a new album called 'Oui, Oui, Si, Si, Ja, Ja, Da, Da'. The group returned in 2016 with their 12th studio effort, 'Can't Touch Us Now'. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC] 

 

L7

Often lumped in with the Seattle scene of the early '90s, raucous punk rock band L7 emerged from the streets of Los Angeles in 1985. Owing as much to the hard-charging metal of Motörhead as the no-frills punk of Ramones and Frightwig, the band's sound was a collision of throat-shredding vocals, crunchy riffs, chugging rhythms, and a ferocious attitude that would influence a range of bands from Nirvana to The Distillers. After their first two releases, they made a break into the mainstream with 1992's Butch Vig-produced 'Bricks Are Heavy', which garnered L7 critical acclaim and a Top 10 single ("Pretend We're Dead"). At the end of the decade, following the release of their sixth effort, 'Slap-Happy', they entered an extended hiatus, returning two decades later with 2019's 'Scatter the Rats'. 

 
The seeds for L7 (whose name was taken from a slang term in the '50s that meant someone who was a "square") were planted in 1985, when a pair of guitarist/singers, Suzi Gardner and Donita Sparks, decided to start a band. Over the next few years, the group extended their lineup to include bassist Jennifer Finch and drummer Dee Plakas, as their sound grew more and more metallic yet never lost the attack and simplicity of punk. In 1988, L7 were signed by the Epitaph label, which issued their self-titled debut the same year, and the group spent the better part of the next few years touring the world. The band issued 'Smell the Magic' for the Sub Pop label in 1991, and formed the Rock for Choice nonprofit organization the same year. Raising money and awareness for the pro-choice movement, the organization put on several benefit shows over the years, featuring such noted performers as Nirvana, Hole, Pearl Jam, and Neil Young, among others. 

 

 

With Nirvana bringing a punk spirit to the mainstream via grunge, bands such as L7 suddenly became in demand and the quartet was signed to Slash/Reprise, issuing their best-known album with the Butch Vig-produced 'Bricks Are Heavy' (which spawned their highest charting single, "Pretend We're Dead") in April 1992. While L7's follow-up, 1994's 'Hungry for Stink', failed to expand the group's following, they joined the 1994 installment of U.S. alt-rock festival Lollapalooza and made cameos in John Waters' cult film "Serial Mom", delivering "Gas Chamber" as the fictional band Camel Lips. Bassist Finch left the group shortly thereafter (eventually replaced by former Belly bassist Gail Greenwood), and the group issued such further releases as 1997's 'The Beauty Process: Triple Platinum', 1998's 'Live: Omaha to Osaka', and 1999's 'Slap-Happy', while the band was also the subject of a 1998 concert film made by former Nirvana bassist Krist Novoselic, also titled 'The Beauty Process'. In 2000, a 12-track retrospective collection was issued, 'Best of L7: The Slash Years', but for all intents and purposes the band were no longer touring and were widely believed to have ceased operations. Indeed, the following year saw L7 announce, via their website, that they would be going on "indefinite hiatus." 

 
The members continued to be musically active, however, with Sparks pursuing a solo career, with help from Plakas, under the moniker Donita Sparks & the Stellar Moments and Finch playing with the punk unit The Shocker. In 2014, Sparks, Gardner, Finch, and Plakas announced that the group would be reuniting. L7 played their first show in 18 years together at the Echo in Los Angeles on May 23, 2015, followed by an international tour. A crowd-funded documentary -'L7: Pretend We're Dead'- debuted in 2016, further fueling their comeback effort. Following the release of a pair of non-album singles, they issued their seventh set, 2019's 'Scatter the Rats'. Released via Joan Jett's Blackheart Records, the album included the singles "Burn Baby" and "Stadium West." [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC] 

 

The Sinyx

The Sinyx formed in the Summer of 1979 and played their first gig at the Focus Youth Centre in early 1980. The bands first line up consisted of Alien on Vocals, Paul Brunt on Guitar, Auntie on Bass and Vints on Drums. The bands name was based on the name of the ancient Greek movement of anti-societal rebels 'The Cynics'. They quickly attracted a fervent local following amongst the regions Punks and Skins, and began playing concerts further afield with groups sharing a similar outlook, including The Epileptics, Flux of Pink Indians, The Eratics and local band The Icons. 

A seven-song demo tape was recorded on the 01.03.80 at the Elephant Recording Studios, Wapping, with tracks drawn from their current set. Crass chose one of the tracks -"Mark of the Beast"- for inclusion on a compilation of Punk bands called 'Bullshit Detector Volume One' which was released that same year on their label. Also that year, a second demo was recorded by the band on the 06.09.80, but was never released. 

Following the release of 'Bullshit Detector Volume One', the band embarked upon a period of solid gigging, but all was not well in The Sinyx camp, and in late 1980, a reshuffle of the band personnel occurred. Alien continued singing, whilst Auntie switched to Drums, and new members Filf and John Edwards (both ex-Icons) joined on Guitar and Bass respectively. This line up quickly established a newer, slowed down and more intense sound and set about writing new material. The band often organised their own gigs and played many concerts in and around London and the South-East during this period, and later in 1981 the band went into Spectrum Studios in Southend and recorded four tracks for what would later be released as 'The Black Death EP' on the Reality Attack label. 

The record did well in the Indie / Punk charts and consolidated the Sinyx's growing position within Punk circles. Upon its release however, the band, repeating a familiar pattern, had another line up change. Alien remained on vocals, and Auntie, the other Sinyx co-founder, switched to Guitar. John Edwards moved on to Second Guitar, and new members Andy Whiting played Bass, and Steve Pegrum (of the Kronstadt Uprising) played Drums. With an intense period of rehearsing the old set and writing new numbers occupying the first couple of months of 1982, from March 1982 onwards the band set about gigging with a renewed fervour and their best sounding set to date. The band debuted the new line-up at the Forest Gate centre on 26.03.82, alongside The Mob and Rudimentary Peni. More concerts followed, a highlight of which was their performance at the Centro Iberico, in West London with The Mob on 01.08.82.

However, after a concert at the Moonlight club in West Hampstead, London, with Rudimentary Peni and Riot/Clone on the 11.09.82, founder member Alien left the band, feeling that they had achieved all they set out to do, with Drummer Steve Pegrum leaving not long after also. The band did continue on with other members until 1985 (namely Vocalist Mark Bristow whom had sung briefly with The Sinyx before, as well as The Sickies, and Donald Frame on Drums whom had played with Anorexic Dread) and played a few concerts, but essentially this marked the death-knell of the band and the end of The Sinyx. 

Auntie formed Sonic Violence with Andy Whiting (Whom also contained Murray Blake ex-Kronstadt Uprising). Alien formed The Provisional Southend Poetry Group with local colleague Ian Fry, before moving into writing. Vints went on to play in The Nihilist Corps and K-Mosaic, Filf went on to play in The Kronstadt Uprising, John Edwards played Bass in Allegiance To No One / The Cat Jugglers, and Steve Pegrum continued with The Kronstadt Uprising before forming The Ghosts of Lovers and The Hearts of Darkness. Paul Brunt is currently MIA. [SOUTHEND PUNK ROCK HISTORY] 

Amebix

Amebix, now recognized as one of the most influential heavy bands ever, was born in England during the summer of 1978. Originally trolling their minds and coming up with the thought provoking moniker The Band With No Name, the group of dirty, broke punks recorded a trashy six-song demo and managed to sell a meager four copies of it. Opting for the name Amebix, the band released a track from the demo called "University Challenged" on the first edition of the obscure compilation series 'Bullshit Detector'. 

 
Life was chaotic from start to finish for Amebix, because they were really living the lifestyle that their lyrics and image portrayed. Guitar player Stig writes on the gatefold of the posthumous album of live and studio recordings 'The Power Remains' that "none of us signed off the dole in all the years we were together." Living in squats (abandoned buildings) and other unstable accommodations, eating out of the garbage, scamming and hacking out a living by any means possible, it's amazing that the band were able to amass equipment and practice on a somewhat regular enough basis to last for nine full years. However, through all of the strife and chaos, the band were astoundingly prolific, recording enough material (including bootlegs and posthumous releases) for seven full-length albums, two 7" records, two compilation tracks, and the previously mentioned Band With No Name demo in that period of time.

 
Prior to 1983, the band's lineup changed quite a bit. In one humorous incident, shortly after the release of the 'Bullshit Detector' compilation, the band added a fellow named Martin to their roster in the drummer role. One of the fringe benefits of Martin's being in the band was that he invited the whole group to come live with him in a manor house in Dartmoor. Unfortunately, the owners of the house (Martin's parents, who were away at the time) weren't aware that Martin had extended this kind offer to the band. Upon returning home, the horrified parents booted Amebix into the street and sent Martin away to an institution to be "corrected." 

 

 

The Baron and Stig, the core of the band, added synthesizer player Norman to the mix and moved to Bristol in 1981. By 1983 they had acquired a stable drummer named Virus, who left the band Disorder to join Amebix. 1983 saw the release of the 'Who's the Enemy' EP, the 'Winter' 7", and the first LP 'No Sanctuary' on Spiderleg Records. Norman appeared as the synth player on the two 7" records, but was replaced by a fill-in player on the full-length album. After a brief tour, the band returned to England and in 1984 signed on a new synthesizer player named George. With George filling the synthesizer position for the remainder of the band's existence, the band hit the road again for a short tour, and upon their return kicked Virus out of the drummer's chair. 

 
The final band lineup was secured in 1985 when drummer Spider joined the group. After disputes with Spiderleg, the band had gotten a deal with Dead Kennedys singer Jello Biafra's label Alternative Tentacles just prior to the drummer Spider's arrival on the scene. 'Arise' hit the stores with the Alternative Tentacles imprint in 1985. Alternative Tentacles didn't mesh with the band either, and they left the label after the release of 'Arise'. In 1987, the masterpiece album 'Monolith' was released just months prior to the breakup of the band. 

 
During and since the actual life of Amebix, a number of bootlegs and retrospective have come to the surface. Although both the official and unofficial albums are completely obscure among the mainstream culture, Amebix have been tremendously influential in the hardcore, crust punk, and metal underground scenes. Artists as divergent as Sepultura, Neurosis, and Deviated Instinct pay homage to these original masters of the blending of metal, punk rock squatter lifestyle and political fury into a droning, pounding, ballistic crunch. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC] 

 

Clockwork Criminals

Hailing from the South Coast of England from a fairly large town called Hastings, the band started off life called Charlie and the Criminals. They notched up a few gigs under this name before opting for the Clockwork Criminals. Despite the 'Young and Bold' EP coming out in 82 it was recorded in 1980. They played along side most of the other local bands that were around on the same gig circuit like Smeggy and the Cheesybits, The Teenbeats, The Piranhas and just about all the other top South Coast bands. Sadly the band only released one single but also had another track featured on a compilation album called 'Bullshit Detector' that was released on the Crass label. The vocalist and guitarist went on to form Flowers of the Past who gigged a lot in 1982 doing the whole "State of the Nation" tour with Vice Squad and releasing a single called 'The Fuhrer' on Memorial Records. [SOURCE: BORED TEENAGERS]

Alternative

Alternative, Scottish anarcho punks, first surfaced with the poppiest (and by far best) cut on 1981's execrable 'Bullshit Detector'. “Change It’, lifted from their demo, was a pretty crap song, but it had a tune and the whole LP was so miserable that even this innocuous ditty sounded good. So, having released their first recording via Crass, they spent the rest of their career being compared to them. By the time of the 'In Nomine Patri' EP, they had a second guitarist -Dougie McHale (Actives)- and Wilf Surman had been replaced by Gordon 'Gogs' Smith. With the addition of another vocalist (Linda 'Linger' Rotherham) they then shared a split cassette with Dirt and Reality Control ('Live 23.10.82 The Bunker'), and underwent more lineup changes. The new band released 'If They Treat You Like Shit - Act Like Manure', an LP which is considered an anarcho punk classic. They split in 1986 after recording more demos with yet more personnel revisions. [SOURCE: PUNKY GIBBON]

Andy T

Andy T. was known for being one of the few anarchist solo artists that was also a poet. Andrew Thorley took the idea of punk that 'anyone can do it' and carried on as a solo performer, regardless of what people thought of him. However, he had a bit of history musically before he was called Andy T. In 1977, he formed Reputations In Jeopardy with him doing vocals, Chris on bass, Siobhan on guitar, Jane on drums and later on Chris 'The Joiner' on second guitar. As time went by, the girls left and they had John Maher from The Buzzcocks play the drums. This was the line-up that recorded the track "Girls Love Popstars" in the first 'Bullshit Detector' album. By that time, Andy T decided to continue on his own, so two more of the tracks were of him alone. A fourth tracks was also Andy T. as Fuck the CIA. 

 

Now Andy had met Crass and they became interested enough in his style to help him release a single on Crass Records. During the end of 1982, Andy T. released his 'Weary of the Flesh' single on Crass Records and it didn't make it to the charts, but that wasn't the point. There is also a picture inside the sleeve revealing three people wearing animal masks slaughtering each other (Phil Free, Steve Ignorant and Annie Anxiety). Andy managed to then play several gigs with bands such as Crass, The System, Dirt and Flux Of Pink Indians, and often times those bands drummers would back up Andy while he recited his poetry (he also had these tapes that would play weird sounds). There was talk of an L.P. coming out after the single, but it was never finished because sometime around 1983, Andy gave up performing after becoming overwhelmed with idiots in the scene, his kids and working. However, Andy T. began performing recently and still continues to gig today. [SOURCE: LISTEN AND UNDERSTAND] 

Zona Industriale

Zona Industriale was a post-industrial music and power electronics duo from Cosenza formed in 1983 by Michele Pingitore and Pino Iannelli. That year they released their first album entitled 'IZ'. The album, which involved a compositional reassembly of sounds recorded from life, was comprised of radio speeches interspersed with radio frequencies, recordings taken from everyday life such as hairdryers, train stations and crackling doors and wood, as well as samples taken from special effects discs, translating into music the sounds of routine and boredom of everyday life, and totally excluding the usual musical instruments. In 1985 they published 'Neutral' for ADN. In 1986 they released 'Away' for the Dutch BloedvlagProdukt which can be considered their last cassette. The sound of the group was initially very industrial and noisy; from 'Sequences' onwards it became more evanescent and dilated, towards rarefied sounds with ambient implications providing more and more tempered scale instruments. [SOURCE: WIKIPED IA]

XX Century Zorro

Miss Sox (Fabio Zigante) formed XX Century Zorro around 1981, after leaving The Great Complotto scene of Pordenone. Created using tapes, recorders and minimal instruments and verging on a lo-fi, avant-garde (dada) oriented new wave, their first and only LP is 1983's 'La Volpe du XX Siécle'. The vinyl was recorded through a sound system called Monster System that Miss Sox himself patented. [SOURCE: RATE YOUR MUSIC]

Wax Heroes

Wax Heroes, from Treviso, Italy, managed to capture the sound of transition between punk and post-punk. The songs were based on guitars with a coarse grain reminiscent of the Crisis of Douglas P. and Tony Wakeford, while the atmosphere -thanks to a powerful and enveloping bass- echoed those of the inescapable Joy Division. The guys were good at building melodies and pressing rhythms, but they were above all able to write pieces of impact, some of which are anthemic ("Sorrow Remains", "Dog's Day", "Win By Losing") Another small but precious piece of the Italian post-punk mosaic. [SOURCE: ONDA ROCK] 

Vito Ricci

An artist who has been called "a composer of moody and elegant scores" by the Village Voice, "sensual and driving" by Other Stages and "elegant and snappy" by the New York Times, Vito Ricci has been on the leading edge of the downtown music scene since 1979. 

 

During his thirty-year-plus career, Mr. Ricci has scored over fifty productions including concert music, theater, dance, performance, film and video. His collaborative works include partnerships with Bob Holman, Martin Goldray, Rashied Ali, Flux Quartet, Jacob Burkhardt, Lise Vachon, and The Woster Group. Performances of his works have been produced at The Skyball Theater, The Public Theater, Greenwich Music House, Cooper Union, Roulette, The Knitting Factory, St. Marks Church, The Performing Garage, the Walker Arts Center and the Southern Theater, both in Minneapolis, and the Sedgwick Cultural Center in Philadelphia. 

 

Mr. Ricci has been the recipient of grants from ASCAP, Meet The Composer, The National Endowment For The Arts and Queens Council on the Arts. He has studied with Ursula Mamlok, Eleanor Cory and Ornette Coleman, and has released CDs of solo piano music, electronic works, song cycles, improvisations and string quartets. 

 

Recent accomplishments include a 6 month residency at the Bowery Poetry Club. Having a two hour radio show by Gandalf on WJFF devoted to his music. Composing the music for and producing the "The Awesome Whatever" a CD by poet Bob Holman. Scoring 4 movies: "Arid Lands", a documentary by Josh Wallaert and Grant Aake, "Murdered" by Terry Ross, "Days Gone By" by John Zhao, "Herbron Holiday" by Jacob Burkhard. Recording a CD of his string quartets 'I Don't Know Who I Am' by the Flux Quartet. Producing Lise Vachon's CD 'Vocalise', scoring "Philosophies" for the Complexions Contemporary Ballet which went on to tour the world, and the premiering of the "Cicada Journal" with Steve Dalachinsky at Roulette. An electronic chamber opera, "HELP", was commissioned by the Queens Council on the Arts. 

 

Vito Ricci's leading edge instinct and creativity have made him a vital and prolific composer of illuminating and compelling works. Infused with poignancy and honesty, his music has the power to linger in the listener's memory. [SOURCE: DISCOGS]

The Underlings

Who are The Underlings? No one else but The S-Haters. After a change of drummer, the band decided to change the name as well as they felt it wasn't appropriate for the music they made. But the sound is not quite different as The S-Haters records on Midnight Music, it tangles between goth rock & post punk music. 'Fatal Purpose' is the sole full length of The Underlings. Before this one, there's the 'That Little Girl' 12". The band split up for good after the album but a 12" called 'Centurion' was released as the epitaph of the band. [SOURCE: LAST.FM] 

Lush

 

Meshing dreamy, effects-drenched guitars with airy, catchy melodies, Lush were one of the most prominent shoegaze/dream pop bands of the early '90s. Led by guitarists Miki Berenyi and Emma Anderson, the British band gained a cult following within the British and American undergrounds with its first EPs, yet the group never quite attained the critical respect given to its peers My Bloody Valentine and Ride. Even so, Lush lasted longer than any other of their contemporaries (with the exception of The Boo Radleys), developing sharp pop skills as their career progressed. By the time of their final album, 1996's 'Lovelife', they had converted themselves into a power pop band with dream pop overtones, which resulted in the greatest chart success of their career. That success was dealt a blow when drummer Chris Acland committed suicide in the fall of 1996, effectively bringing the band to an end.

Miki Berenyi, Emma Anderson, Chris Acland, Steve Rippon (bass), and Meriel Barham (guitar) formed Lush in 1988 in London, England. Prior to the group's formation, school friends Berenyi and Anderson had collaborated on a fanzine together and played in a number of other bands individually. Anderson, who had been working as a DHSS clerical assistant, had played bass with The Rover Girls, while Berenyi had been a member of the I-Goat Fuhrer Five and The Lillies. Berenyi's then-boyfriend, Acland, had previously played with several other groups as well, including Panik, Infection, and A Touch of Hysteria. Barham left Lush soon after the band's formation to form The Pale Saints, and the remaining members began playing around London, quickly earning a number of fans, including Robin Guthrie of the Cocteau Twins. Guthrie helped the band secure a contract with 4AD, and they released their acclaimed debut EP, 'Scar', in 1989. Lush supported the EP with opening tours for Loop and The Darling Buds, and by 1990, they had graduated to headlining tours of their own. 

 

 

Throughout 1990, the band's reputation in the British music press began to grow as they released the acclaimed EPs 'Mad Love' and 'Sweetness and Light', played high-profile gigs like the Glastonbury Festival, and became favorites of the music weeklies' gossip columns. 'Gala', an album compiling their three EPs, became the band's first American release at the end of 1990. Lush spent most of 1991 recording their debut album, releasing the 'Black Spring' EP in the spring. Rippon left the band during the sessions, and was replaced by Philip King, a former picture researcher for NME and a previous member of Felt, Servants, and Biff Bang Pow. Lush finally released their delayed debut album, 'Spooky', in the spring of 1992. While the album sold well, reaching the British Top Ten and topping the U.K. indie charts, it was criticized in the press for Guthrie's heavy-handed production. The band supported the album in America by appearing on the second Lollapalooza tour, but their dream pop wasn't well-received by an audience hungry for metal. Lush released their second album, 'Split', in the summer of 1994 to mixed reviews. 'Split' was lost in the twin waves of Brit-pop and American post-grunge, even though the band's songwriting was more pop-oriented than ever. 

 
After regrouping during 1995, Lush returned in early 1996 with 'Lovelife', an album that showcased a debt to the pop-single ideals of Brit-pop. The musical changeover paid off as "Single Girl" and "Ladykiller" became their two biggest hit singles, and the album became a British Top 20 hit; in America, it was their highest-charting album, even if it just scraped the charts at 189. Lush had completed their supporting tours and summer festival appearances when Chris Acland unexpectedly hanged himself in his parents' house on October 17, 1996. Devastated by his death, the remaining members of Lush went into a long period of mourning. The trio disbanded in February 1998. 

 
From 1998 through 2007, Anderson was one-half of Sing-Sing, who recorded for Alan McGee's Poptones, Simon Raymonde's Bella Union, and their own Aerial Records, among other labels. King performed with The Jesus and Mary Chain and The Fallen Leaves. In 2015, Berenyi, Anderson, and King announced their re-formation and quickly released a comprehensive box set of the complete 4AD recordings titled 'Chorus'. Joined by Justin Welch of Elastica on drums, Lush recorded new tracks with Ladytron's Daniel Hunt co-producing and scheduled U.K. dates and a short U.S. tour for 2016. That new EP, 'Blind Spot', was released in April on their own Edamame label. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]

 

The Lurkers

The Lurkers were part of the first wave of British punk bands to emerge in the mid-'70s, playing tough, meat-and-potatoes rock & roll with plenty of attitude and a jaundiced eye toward the world around them. Unlike many of the bands on the early U.K. scene, The Lurkers were not especially interested in social or political matters, but their regular-guy attitude, unpretentious sound, and shout-along choruses -as evidenced on early singles like "Shadow," "Ain't Got a Clue," and "Just Thirteen"- anticipated the sound of second-wave U.K. punks such as the U.K. Subs and The Exploited. They were important figures in the early days of the British scene, while going on to a second run in the late '80s that would make them mainstays on the punk circuit at home and abroad. As the band moved into the 2000s, their style had barely changed -while 2008's 'Fried Brains' showed a bit more of a metal edge in the guitars, the approach remained into-the-wind 1977-style punk, and proudly so. In 2010, an offshoot line-up of the band emerged, also known as God's Lonely Men and The Lurkers GLM, that offered a darker, heavier spin on the band's classic themes on albums like 2012's 'Chemical Landslide' and 2016's 'The Future's Calling'. 

 
The first line-up of The Lurkers came together in 1976 in the West London community of Uxbridge. Featuring Pete "Plug" Edwards on lead vocals, Pete Stride on guitar, Nigel Moore on bass, and Pete "Manic Esso" Haynes on drums, the band made their stage debut in December of that year as the opening act at a Screaming Lord Sutch show, where they performed for an audience of ten. Shortly after that first gig, Moore left the band, and Arturo Bassick took over on bass. The Lurkers earned their stripes as a live act, sharing stages with the likes of The Jam, Slaughter and the Dogs, and Eater, as well as performing regularly at the Roxy, one of London's first venues for punk. As word about The Lurkers spread, they signed a record contract with the fledgling independent label Beggars Banquet, and 'Shadow b/w Love Story' would become the imprint's first release in July 1977. Influential BBC disc jockey John Peel gave the single frequent airplay, and at the end of 1977, when Peel released his "Festive Fifty" list of the year's best songs, "Shadow" was in the number 11 spot, while "Love Story" came in at 31. Between October 1977 and January 1979, Peel would feature live-in-the-studio sets from the group four times. 

 

 

The second Lurkers single, 'Freak Show b/w Mass Media Believer', was released in October 1977, and by the time it was released, Arturo Bassick had left the band to form his own group, Pinpoint. Kym Bradshaw, formerly of The Saints, briefly sat in on bass before Nigel Moore returned to the group in time to cut their third single, 'Ain't Got a Clue b/w Ooh Ooh I Love You', which hit stores in May 1978, rising to number 45 on the U.K. pop charts. Their first full-length album, 'Fulham Fallout', followed one month later, and April 1979 brought their second LP, 'God's Lonely Men'. It was preceded by the single 'Just Thirteen b/w Countdown', which Mojo Magazine declared one of the best punk singles of all time in a 2001 feature. Another Lurkers tune, "I'm on Heat," would appear on the popular 1979 punk/new wave compilation '20 of a Different Kind', and in November 1979, they would drop a three-song single, 'New Guitar in Town b/w Pick Me Up and Little Ol' Wine Drinker Me'. 'God's Lonely Men' to be a commercial disappointment, and The Lurkers were soon at odds with Beggars Banquet as the label was devoting most of its promotional efforts to new signing Gary Numan. Frustrated, The Lurkers broke up in 1980. 

 
The Lurkers didn't stay out of action for long, and in 1982, guitarist Pete Stride put the band back together, with Stride and original members Nigel Moore and Manic Esso Haynes joined by a new vocalist, Marc Fincham, who also played keyboards. This edition of The Lurkers cut four singles for the independent Clay Records label between 1982 and 1984, and the material was later collected on the LP 'This Dirty Town'. By the end of 1984, The Lurkers had once again called it a day, but fate stepped in when former bassist Arturo Bassick met the members of the popular German punk band Die Toten Hosen in 1987. Bassick learned that Die Toten Hosen were serious Lurkers fans, enough so that they were willing to bankroll a new album from the group. Bassick brought The Lurkers back together, with himself on lead vocals, Pete Stride on guitar, and Nigel Moore on bass. For their first reunion show, Manic Esso played drums, and when they released their reunion album, 1988's 'Wild Times Again', he was the credited percussionist, but Dan Tozer played on much of the album and became their steady drummer. The band toured regularly, with Die Toten Hosen frequently hiring them as their opening act for European tours, and they continued to record, delivering 'King of the Mountain' in 1989 and 'Powerjive' in 1990. Bassick would also assist Die Toten Hosen with their 1992 album 'Learning English: Lesson One', which saw them covering their favorite U.K. punk tunes, with members of the original bands sitting in; Bassick would also sing lead on a cover of Pinpoint's "Richmond." In 1993, Nigel Moore left the group, and Pete Stride followed the following year. 

 
While the loss of Moore and Stride left Bassick as the only original member left in The Lurkers, he soldiered on, performing with a rotating line-up of bandmates (though Dave Kemp was usually his guitar foil) and periodically recording, releasing 1997's 'Take Me Back to Babylon', 2003's '26 Years', and 2008's 'Fried Brains'. Bassick was also a touring member of 999 during this era, in addition to working with his country-punk side project The Blazing Saddles and playing solo as Big Art Peters. Meanwhile, longtime bandmates Pete Stride, Manic Esso, and Nigel Moore returned to duty in the 2010s, initially performing under the name God's Lonely Men. Under that moniker, they issued an album, 'Chemical Landslide', in 2012, adopting a heavier and darker variation on the sound they created with The Lurkers. In 2016, they revised the billing to The Lurkers GLM, and brought out the album 'The Future's Calling'. The group then streamlined the name to simply The Lurkers and began working with vocalist Danie Centric. This edition of The Lurkers released a single through Damaged Goods in 2019, 'Electrical Guitar b/w That Was Julia'. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC] 

 

Lounge Lizards

Initially conceived as entertainment for a downtown New York art community (which, at the time, was knee-deep in no wave), the Lounge Lizards spent more than a decade with various lineups playing so-called fake jazz with pop and avant-garde rock tendencies. The band's initial incarnation was led by saxophonist John Lurie, with brother Evan on piano, Arto Lindsay on guitar, Steve Piccolo on bass, and ex-Feelies Anton Fier on drums; this lineup appeared only on the band's acclaimed, all-instrumental, self-titled 1981 debut. Lindsay and Fier left shortly thereafter, each embarking on a lengthy series of projects, and the Luries recorded 'Live From the Drunken Boat' in 1983 with a different and less compelling lineup. In 1985, during a hiatus in which Evan Lurie recorded his first solo piano album, the collection 'Live 79/81' was released; the group also recorded with producer Teo Macero and The London Philharmonic. The Lounge Lizards regrouped in 1986 with both Lurie brothers, saxophonist Roy Nathanson, trombonist Curtis Fowlkes, guitarist Marc Ribot, bassist Erik Sanko, and drummer Dougie Bowne. This lineup recorded 'Big Heart Live in Tokyo' (1986) and the studio LP 'No Pain for Cakes' (1987), the latter of which featured the group's first vocal number. The following year's 'Voice of Chunk' was initially sold only through the mail. John Lurie has also done scoring work for several Jim Jarmusch films, including "Stranger Than Paradise" (1986), "Down By Law" (1988), and "Mystery Train" (1989). [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC] 

 

Träneninvasion

Träneninvasion was a 1980 short-lived NDW and synthpop project by Holger Hiller of Palais Schaumburg and Michael Kemner of Deutsch-Amerikanische Freundschaft. On the B-side of their only release you can hear Uli Putsch of S.Y.P.H. on drums. Their only single 'Sentimental' was released on Peter Hein's label Welt-Rekord. The B-side 'Herzmuskel' was released before by Holger Hiller, under his name, as a single on Ata Tak. [SOURCE: INDIEPEDIA.DE] 

Snatches Of Pink

Snatches of Pink were a Chapel Hill, NC, trio, consisting of drummer Sara Romweber (ex-Let's Active), singer Andy McMillan, and guitarist Michael Rank. Unlike other North Carolina bands of the time, Snatches of Pink took a rough and ragged approach that while often inspired, failed to make much impact. In 1987, they released their debut, 'Send in the Clowns', followed by 'Dead Men' in 1989 and 'Bent with Pray' in 1992. The band regrouped in 2003, releasing 'Hyena' with Rank being the only holdover from the original lineup. In 2005, they released 'Stag' and returned with 'Love Is Dead' in 2007. A brain tumor claimed the life of Sara Romweber in March 2019. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC] 

 

Rhythm & Noise

 

Rhythm & Noise is a group of musical "artlaws" whose primordial sonic onslaught fused industrial percussion, vocal gestures, din, ambience, and vibration into an apocalyptic or serene sensorium. During the seventies and eighties, Rhythm & Noise's early audience abduction and "mobilization" events eventually evolved into Sound Traffic Controller's audio-cinematic presentations. 

 
The experimental, largely unstructured sounds on 'Contents Under Notice' fall roughly under the umbrella of the band’s name, but just barely. One side consists of various-length sonic mood pieces (“Lull,” “Vagues,” “Looms,” etc.); the other is filled with “Monomenon,” a long hypothetical score of indescribable audio goings-on. It incorporates industrial sounds, other audio vérité, synthesizers, tape manipulations and god knows what else. In its raucous, multi-layered complexity, the piece asymptotically approaches sheer white noise din. Maybe this is what Martians with insomnia listen to.

 
The troubling anti-new age ambience on 'Chasms Accord' could serve as the soundtrack to any number of offbeat films. Cut up into 13 segments with wonderful titles like “Lingering Fingers,” “Bent Metal Forest” and “Delve,” the LP -which acknowledges the assistance of Z’ev, Diamanda Galas and others- is high on drama and low on intentional ugliness, making it a vivid and apropos match for the stress of modern life. [SOURCE: TROUSER PRESS] 

 

Plasticland

Plasticland's acid-drenched neo-psychedelic sound bore some resemblance to L.A.'s concurrent paisley underground scene, but instead of drawing their chief inspiration from The Velvet Underground, the Milwaukee quartet had a greater affinity for vintage garage rock and British freakbeat mind-benders like Syd Barrett-era Pink Floyd and The Pretty Things. Formed in 1980 out of the ashes of prog rockers Arousing Polaris, Plasticland included vocalist/guitarist/organist Glenn Rehse, guitarist Dan Mullen, bassist John Frankovic, and drummer Vic Demechei, who debuted that summer with the "Mink Dress" single on Scadillac. Several more singles and EPs followed, including 1982's 'Pop! Op Drops' (whose material later became part of the band's first album); there were also several personnel shifts, as Demechei was replaced first by Bob DuBlon, then Rob McCuen. (Several tracks with the Violent Femmes' Brian Ritchie on guitar were also recorded during this era.) 

 
Plasticland's first full-length, 'Color Appreciation', was issued on the French Lolita label in 1984; a year later, it was re-released in America by Pink Dust with two different tracks, titled simply 'Plasticland'. The follow-up, 'Wonder Wonderful Wonderland', was released before the end of 1985, and featured Mellotron and bouzouki, among other vintage psychedelic accouterments. By the time of 1987's 'Salon', Demechei had returned to the fold. Plasticland subsequently resurfaced on the Midnight label with a pair of live albums: 1989's 'You Need a Fairy Godmother' (featuring onetime Pink Fairies/Pretty Things drummer Twink) and 1990's 'Confetti'. In the late '80s, a German fan commissioned an album, 'Dapper Snappings', for his Repulsion label. The album was eventually released in 1994. Some of the band's early recordings were collected on 'Mink Dress & Other Cats', while a career-spanning collection, 'Make Yourself a Happening Machine', was issued in 2006. An expanded and remastered version of the American debut album, with liner notes by Glenn Rehse, was released in 2014. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC] 

 

Omega Tribe

 

Omega Tribe are an English anarcho-punk band, formed in Barnet, London in 1981. With the roles of Hugh Vivian on guitar and vocals, Daryl Hardcastle on bass, Pete Fender on guitar and Pete Shepherd on drums, their first EP, 'Angry Songs', was produced by Penny Rimbaud and Pete Fender for Crass Records in 1982. Their subsequent LP, 'No Love Lost', (released by Corpus Christi Records, 1983) won the hearts of many hardened anarchos and secured their place in anarcho-punk history. 

 

A far more melodic style, encouraged by producer and new guitarist Pete Fender (from Rubella Ballet), created a highly influential template that many other bands were to build on. They released a cassette only live release on BBP tapes in 1984. In 1984 Sonny Flint joined on drums, and they took on a sax and flute player Jane Keay. Pete Shepherd the original drummer switched to playing percussion. Pete Fender departed early in 1984. Line-up changes were fairly frequent after this period and a 12" EP, '(It's a) Hard Life/Young John', was finally released in 1985 that showed a complete change of direction. By 1986, after the departure of vocalist and founder-member Hugh, the band was known simply as The Tribe. The band continued to maintain a presence on the UK live circuit for a further year or so but recording opportunity evaded them. Sonny Flint departed in 1987 and the band split in 1988. 

 

Omega Tribe reformed briefly to play guest spot at Vi Subversa's 60th Birthday Bash at London's Astoria 2 in June 1995. A short incognito tour under the name of Charlie showed promise, but the band's members had other interests and the project was short-lived. A compilation CD, 'Make Tea Not War', was released in 2000 on Rugger Bugger Records and a cut-down vinyl LP version was also pressed. Both albums quickly sold out. In August 2016, Daryl Hardcastle, Hugh Vivian and Sonny Flint reunited and performed a limited number of dates between December 2016 and March 2017, including Vi Day at the 2017 AWOD Festival. At the end of March 2017, Sonny Flint left the band. [SOURCE: WIKIPEDIA] 

 

Negativland

As much a radical arts organization as a band, Negativland have made a major impact on not only the world of experimental music, but popular culture and mass media as a whole. Similar to composer John Oswald's concept of plunderphonics, Negativland coined the term "culture jamming" to describe their particular brand of subversive media manipulation. Assembling much of their work out of found and re-appropriated material, particularly easily recognizable sounds and images from advertisements and other mainstream media, the group create dense, semi-musical collages which provide surreal commentary on topics ranging from religion to celebrity culture to intellectual property issues. The group's biting sense of humor has always been one of its most crucial assets, and they've received more widespread attention for their hoaxes and media stunts than their actual music, most notably the uproar caused when the band put out a press release falsely linking a song from 1987's 'Escape from Noise' to a real-life murder, or the lengthy debacle following 1991's infamous U2 single. Undaunted by legal troubles, the band have remained tireless advocates for the reform of copyright laws, and they worked with Creative Commons in order to develop the Creative Commons Sampling License in 2004. Negativland have had an incalculable influence on remix and mash-up culture, and by the 2010s, the era of social media, memes, and "fake news," the group's culture jamming techniques had become commonplace, making their work as alarmingly prescient as ever. They continued to explore themes related to media, data, and technology on the interconnected releases 'True False' (2019) and 'The World Will Decide' (2020). 

Formed in the San Francisco area, Negativland originally revolved around the talents of Mark Hosler and Richard Lyons, multi-instrumentalists with an ear for tape manipulation of all sorts. Their inspired stroke of genius was to recruit David Wills, more famously known as The Weatherman in later years, to make up the original trio. Wills, a cable TV repairman by trade, was just as obsessed with home recording and experimentation as the other two, and his wry, drawling vocals became the core trademark for many of Negativland's most notorious releases. Working with a few guests such as Peter Dayton on guitar, the trio released their debut self-titled release in 1980, notable as much for its packaging (each album featured individually wallpapered covers) as for its fragmented songs and textures. Apparently, the still-teenaged Hosler wanted it completed, in part, so he could feel he had accomplished something by the time he graduated from high school, a reasonable enough goal. Released in 1981, 'Points' featured the same general lineup, with new and notable guest performer Ian Allen, credited with tape processing on one track. However, an even more important bond was made that year, the recruitment of Don Joyce. Joyce had started a free-form radio show, "Over the Edge", on the Bay Area's KPFA station that also explored fried humor and social commentary much like Negativland itself. As a result, Hosler and company appeared one day on the show shortly after it began, and since then, "Over the Edge" has become the regular sonic testing ground for most of the band's releases, still running strong after over 30 years. 

The next official Negativland album was the group's unquestionable breakthrough. 1983's 'A Big 10-8 Place', was created by the core of Hosler, Allen, and Wills, with Lyons and Joyce as guests, along with a new face, Chris Grigg. Synthesizing the band's love of aural theater and the subversion of expected pop and rock approaches, it was at once a hilarious and quietly harrowing vivisection of suburbia, winning the band new fans and a growing reputation. Allen formerly departed after that point, while Joyce and Grigg became full-fledged members. The ensuing five-piece lineup -Grigg, Hosler, Joyce, Lyons, and Wills- kept up their various explorations on the air and in the studio, not to mention irregular but creative and well-received live performances and occasional dabbling in video work. Their reputation grew to the point where they were formally signed to Greg Ginn's legendary punk label SST, a decision that would have unexpected consequences some time later. 

 

The band saw out the '80s with two major releases on SST, not counting a variety of tape-only efforts showcasing some of the best Over the Edge sessions. Issued in 1987, 'Escape from Noise' took the scope of 'A Big 10-8 Place' to even wider levels, touching on everything from how many time zones Russia covers to a rendition of "Over the Rainbow" sung by a little girl plagued with hiccups. Maintaining Negativland's blend of wit and darker themes, it might have simply remained a cult classic were it not for the appearance of the throbbing, creepy "Christianity Is Stupid" and, a few months after the album's release, a mass murder in Minnesota committed by a teenager against his family. Having tour plans fall through at around the same time, Negativland decided to distribute a fake press release hinting that the killer had in fact been arguing with his parents over "Christianity Is Stupid," which resulted in a slew of publicity and confusion over what the truth of the situation was. Some condemned the group's actions as tasteless exploitation, but Negativland preferred to think of it as an examination of media assumptions, and the whole affair became the backbone of 1989's 'Helter Stupid'. 

As if the storm of controversy over "Christianity Is Stupid" wasn't hectic enough, what the band did next was nearly enough to do themselves in permanently. With barely any advance publicity -but all too suspiciously timed to appear just before U2's long-awaited 1991 album 'Achtung Baby'- Negativland (with Lyons taking a temporary break) let a two-song single slip out in the summer of that year called 'U2'. The contents turned out to be two radically different versions of the Irish band's anthem "I Still Haven't Found What I'm Looking For," using and chopping up the original beyond recognition, as well as splicing in bits from a notorious underground tape featuring legendary American DJ Casey Kasem obscenely ranting about nearly everything. 

What happened over the next few months is still the subject of legal threats on all sides: First, U2's label crashed down hard on the release, forcing it to be withdrawn after only a few days of being in the stores (all of which occurred without the knowledge of U2's members themselves, by all accounts). Kasem found out what happened as well and threw his own lawyers into the fray. Things got even more hairy for the band when SST suddenly turned on the group, with Ginn seeking to recoup his financial losses via the bandmembers (even as a follow-up EP, 'Guns', slipped out). The ensuing barrage of claims and counterclaims, documented first in the band's 1992 CD/book 'The Letter U and the Numeral 2', and then in even more detail three years later in an expanded release called 'Fair Use', found Negativland beset by legal and monetary woes that almost sank them. At the same time, what had been a joke and a dare soon became a new focus for the bandmembers, who inadvertently made a name for themselves as crusaders for both artistic integrity and a freer interpretation of copyright law in opposition to corporate control. 

 

This fresh direction, though one which grew naturally out of Negativland's previous work, helped reinvigorate the group, which reactivated the Seeland label with the release of 'Free' in 1993. Accompanying tours found the band delivering both older hits (if you will) and extended meditations on the whole 'U2' saga (a notable though unofficial release, 'Negativconcertland', presented a typical show over its two discs). Perhaps most notable of all was Wills' live work -for any number of rumored personal reasons, he refused to tour, so the band did the next best thing and simply videotaped his parts for playback. 

After further extricating themselves as much as they could from the matter, as well as completely severing all links with Ginn and SST, Negativland kept on keeping on. Joyce's Over the Edge show continued as always, with an increasing number of old and new shows edited for presentation as formal releases, though 1996 brought the departure of Grigg from the band. Negativland's next formal release in 1997 looked to be another red-flag-to-the-bull effort, though whether out of foolhardiness or calculation is unknown. Regardless, 'Dispepsi', featuring the guest contributions of newest member Peter Conheim, didn't bring down the wrath of Pepsi-Cola on the band's head, even though the cover art was clearly a riff on the company's distinctive logo, while the content explored the very concept of advertising and its potentially destructive nature. 1998 featured a follow-up EP, 'Happy Heroes', and the following year saw the appearance of a full collaborative single with British radical stalwarts (and longtime Negativland fans) Chumbawamba, 'The ABCs of Anarchism'. 

The turn of the millennium ushered in a new, if generally lower-key, era to Negativland, with the group's most notable later work being a well-received tour, "True/False 2000", featuring much newer material as well as an old standby or two, not to mention some amazingly nutty between-set skits and films (and, as always, Wills only turning up on video). In 2001, the band released a sort-of bootleg, 'These Guys Are from England and Who Gives a Shit', revisiting the whole 'U2' blow-up with numerous alternate versions (and the originals) of Negativland's most (in)famous effort. The following year saw the release of 'Death Sentences of the Polished and Structurally Weak', and in 2005 the band issued 'No Business' and celebrated its 25th anniversary by curating an art exhibit in New York City called "Negativlandland", which contained artwork inspired by the band's music, as well as Negativland music videos and original art created specifically for the event. Three years later, 'Thigmotactic', a full-fledged venture into songwriting, was released on Seeland. In 2014, Negativland and Seeland released one of their most ambitious projects, 'It's All in Your Head', a concept piece about the practice of religion and why people place their faith in a supreme being. The album was packaged in a specially repurposed King James Bible. Former member Ian Allen died from complications related to heart-valve replacement surgery in January 2015 at the age of 56. In July of that same year, Don Joyce died of heart failure; he was 71 years old. Another death in the Negativland family occurred on April 19, 2016, when Richard Lyons passed away due to complications of nodular melanoma on his 57th birthday. In October of that year, Negativland released 'The Chopping Channel', the ninth volume of CDs culled from Over the Edge broadcasts. Recorded before Joyce's death, he appears prominently on the album, and early pre-orders from the band's website were shipped out with audio carts he used during the broadcasts, as well as small samples of his cremated remains. 'True False', the first of two interconnected studio albums, was released in October of 2019, examining themes such as social media's effect on our mental health and perception of reality. 'The World Will Decide', a surrealist exploration of smart technology and security, followed a year later. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]