The Nomads are a Swedish garage punk band founded in 1981 by Hans Östlund, Nick Vahlberg, Joakim Tärnström, and Ed Johnson. Today, Östlund and Vahlberg are the only members left of the original line-up.
The band plays music influenced by the MC5, The Stooges, Roky Erickson, The Cramps, The Ramones, New York Dolls, and other early garage rock and punk bands. The Nomads have been an influential band in the Scandinavian garage rock and punk scenes, inspiring bands such as The Hives, Hellacopters, Gluecifer, and many others.
After releasing a number of records in the 1980s the band toured extensively and built a large fanbase without any significant rotation on either radio or television. During the years, touring and recording have decreased but The Nomads still play a number of shows every year in the Scandinavian region. In 2001 the band celebrated their 20th anniversary with a gig in Stockholm that included appearances by members from Bob Hund, Sator, The Flaming Sideburns, Robert Johnson and Punchdrunks, as well as members of the original line-up. At their gig at the Hultsfred festival the band once again took the opportunity to celebrate with guest appearances from Nick Royale, Chips Kiesbye, Handsome Dick Manitoba, Ross The Boss, Jello Biafra, Chris Bailey, Odd Ahlgren, and Wayne Kramer.
'20 Years Too Soon - A Tribute To The Nomads' was released in 2003 with bands like The Hellacopters, Electric Frankenstein, The Dictators, The Robots, Bob Hund, and Nitwitz contributing with their own version of their favorite Nomads songs. In 2008 The Nomads shared the stage with Roky Erickson at the Peace and Love festival in Sweden. [SOURCE: WIKIPEDIA]
One of the least known of the hardcore punk outfits tearing up the late-70s San Francisco music scene, No Alternative garnered a rabidly loyal local following during the band's too-brief history. Sadly, the band's lofty reputation among Bay area punks never extended far beyond the borders of California. No Alternative's relative obscurity wasn't due to any lack of chops; if anything, the band's fast-and-furious aural assault and socially conscious lyrics showed deeper artistic influences and more intelligence than many of No Alternative's contemporaries.
The music that earned No Alternative its reputation is a high-octane and highly flammable mix of British (think U.K. Subs or The Damned) and American punk (Johnny Thunders school) with a dash of roots rock thrown in for good measure. Fueled by the incendiary six-string work of singer/guitarist Johnny Genocide (Hugh Thomas Patterson) and a strong rhythm section in bassist Jeff Rees and drummer Greg Langston, No Alternative came across more like a Bay area version of X than another Sex Pistols-influenced hardcore act.
No Alternative imbued its material with more intellect and less rhetoric than many punk bands of the time. The band introduced young punks to Dalton Trumbo with the popular anti-war anthem "Johnny Got His Gun". No Alternative covered Johnny Cash almost a decade before Social Distortion, revisiting "Folsom Prison Blues" with a piss-and-vinegar reading that captures the songs original intent if not its sound.
No Alternative were an important part of a San Francisco punk rock scene, contemporaries of better-known artists like the Dead Kennedys and the Avengers and an obvious influence on bands like Rancid that would follow in their wake. [SOURCE: SOUNDCLICK]
Prior to Nirvana, alternative music was consigned to specialty sections of record stores, and major labels considered it to be, at the very most, a tax write-off. After the band's second album, 1991's 'Nevermind', nothing was ever quite the same, for better and for worse. Nirvana popularized punk, post-punk, and indie rock, unintentionally bringing them into the American mainstream like no other band to date. While their sound was equal parts Black Sabbath (as learned by fellow Washington underground rockers The Melvins) and Cheap Trick, Nirvana's aesthetics were strictly indie rock. They covered Vaselines songs, they revived new wave cuts by Devo, and leader Kurt Cobain relentlessly pushed his favorite bands -whether it was the art punk of The Raincoats or the country-fried hardcore of the Meat Puppets- as if his favorite records were always more important than his own music.
While Nirvana's ideology was indie rock and their melodies were pop, the sonic rush of their records and live shows merged post-industrial white noise with heavy metal grind. And that's what made the group an unprecedented multi-platinum sensation. Jane's Addiction and Soundgarden may have proven to the vast American heavy metal audience that alternative could rock, and the Pixies may have merged pop sensibilities with indie rock white noise, but Nirvana pulled it all together, creating a sound that was both fiery and melodic. Since Nirvana were rooted in the indie aesthetic but loved pop music, they fought their stardom while courting it, becoming some of the most notorious anti-rock stars in history. The result was a conscious attempt to shed their audience with the abrasive 'In Utero', which only partially fulfilled the band's goal. But by that point, the fate of the band and Kurt Cobain had been sealed. Suffering from drug addiction and manic depression, Cobain had become destructive and suicidal, though his management and label were able to hide the extent of his problems from the public until April 8, 1994, when he was found dead of a self-inflicted shotgun wound. Cobain may not have been able to weather Nirvana's success, but the band's legacy stands as one of the most influential in rock & roll history.
Kurt Cobain (vocals, guitar) met Chris Novoselic (born Krist Novoselic) (bass) in 1985 in Aberdeen, Washington, a small logging town 100 miles away from Seattle. While Novoselic came from a relatively stable background, Cobain's childhood had been thrown into turmoil when his parents divorced when he was eight. Following the divorce, he lived at the homes of various relatives, developing a love for The Beatles and then heavy metal in the process. Eventually, American hardcore punk worked its way into dominating his listening habits and he met the Melvins, an Olympia-based underground heavy punk band. Cobain began playing in punk bands like Fecal Matter, often with the Melvins' bassist, Dale Crover. Through the Melvins' leader, Buzz Osborne, Cobain met Novoselic, who also had an intense interest in punk, which meant that he, like Cobain, felt alienated from the macho, redneck population of Aberdeen. The duo decided to form a band called the Stiff Woodies, with Cobain on drums, Novoselic on bass, and a rotating cast of guitarists and vocalists. The group went through name changes as quickly as guitarists, before deciding that Cobain would play guitar and sing. Renamed Skid Row, the new trio featured drummer Aaron Burkhart, who left the band by the end of 1986 and was replaced by Chad Channing. By 1987, the band was called Nirvana.
Nirvana began playing parties in Olympia, gaining a cult following. During 1987, the band made ten demos with producer Jack Endino, who played the recordings to Jonathan Poneman, one of the founders of the Seattle-based indie label Sub Pop. Poneman signed Nirvana, and in December of 1988, the band released its first single, a cover of Shocking Blue's "Love Buzz." Sub Pop orchestrated an effective marketing scheme, which painted the band as backwoods, logging-town hicks, which irritated Cobain and Novoselic. While 'Love Buzz' was fairly well-received, the band's debut album, 'Bleach', was what got the ball rolling. Recorded for just over $600 and released in the spring of 1989, 'Bleach' slowly became a hit on college radio, due to the group's consistent touring. Though Jason Everman was credited as a second guitarist on the sleeve of 'Bleach', he didn't appear on the record; he only toured in support of the album before leaving the band at the end of the year to join Soundgarden and then Mindfunk. 'Bleach' sold 35,000 copies and Nirvana became favorites of college radio, the British weekly music press, and Sonic Youth, Mudhoney, and Dinosaur Jr., which was enough to attract the attention of major labels.
During the summer of 1990, Nirvana released 'Sliver / Dive', which was recorded with Mudhoney's Dan Peters on drums and produced by Butch Vig. The band also made a six-song demo with Vig, which was shopped to major labels, who soon began competing to sign the group. In August, they hit the road with Sonic Youth's 'Goo' tour (including Crover on drums). By the end of the summer, Dave Grohl, formerly of the D.C.-based hardcore band Scream, had become Nirvana's drummer and the band signed with DGC for $287,000. Nirvana recorded their second album with Vig, completing the record in June of 1991. 'Nevermind' was released in September, supported by a quick American tour. While DGC was expecting a moderately successful release, in the neighborhood of 100,000 copies, 'Nevermind' immediately became a smash hit, quickly selling out its initial shipment of 50,000 copies and creating a shortage across America. What helped the record become a success was "Smells Like Teen Spirit," a blistering four-chord rocker that was accompanied by a video that shot into heavy MTV rotation. By the beginning of 1992, "Smells Like Teen Spirit" had climbed into the American Top Ten and 'Nevermind' bumped Michael Jackson's much-touted comeback album 'Dangerous' off the top of the album charts; it reached the British Top Ten shortly afterward. By February, the album had been certified triple platinum.
Nirvana's success took the music industry by surprise, Nirvana included. It soon become apparent that the band wasn't quite sure how to handle its success. Around the time of 'Nevermind's release, the band was into baiting its audience -Cobain appeared on MTV's Headbangers Ball in drag, the group mocked the tradition of miming on the BBC's Top of the Pops by Novoselic constantly throwing his bass into the air and Cobain singing his live vocals in the style of Ian Curtis, and their traditional live destruction of instruments was immortalized on a Saturday Night Live performance that ended with Novoselic and Grohl sharing a kiss- but by the spring, questions had begun to arise about the band's stability. Cobain married Courtney Love, the leader of the indie rock/foxcore band Hole, in February of 1992, announcing that the couple was expecting a child in the fall. Shortly after the marriage, rumors that Cobain and Love were heavy heroin users began to circulate and the strength of the rumors only increased when Nirvana canceled several summer concerts and refused to mount a full-scale American tour during the summer. Cobain complained that he was suffering from chronic stomach troubles, which seemed to be confirmed when he was admitted to a Belfast hospital after a June concert. But heroin rumors continued to surface, especially in the form of a late-summer Vanity Fair article implying that Love was using during her pregnancy. Both Love and Cobain denied the article's allegations, and publicly harassed and threatened the article's author. Love delivered Frances Bean Cobain, a healthy baby girl, on August 18, 1992, but the couple soon battled with Los Angeles' children's services, who claimed they were unfit parents on the basis of the Vanity Fair article. The couple was granted custody of the child by the beginning of 1993.
Since Cobain was going through such well-documented personal problems, Nirvana were unable to record a follow-up to 'Nevermind' until the spring of 1993. In the meantime, DGC released the odds-and-ends compilation 'Incesticide' late in 1992; the album reached number 39 in the U.S. and number 14 U.K. As Nirvana prepared to make their third album, they released 'Oh, the Guilt' as a split single with The Jesus Lizard on Touch & Go Records. Choosing Steve Albini (Pixies, The Breeders, Big Black, The Jesus Lizard) as their producer, they recorded their third album, 'In Utero', in two weeks during the spring of 1993. Following its completion, controversy began to surround Nirvana again. Cobain suffered a heroin overdose on May 2, but the event was hidden from the press. The following month, Love called police to their Seattle home after Cobain locked himself in the bathroom, threatening suicide. Prior to debuting 'In Utero' material during the New Music Seminar at New York's Roseland Ballroom in July, Cobain had another covered-up overdose. By that time, reports began to circulate, including an article in Newsweek, that DGC was unhappy with the forthcoming album, and making accusations that the band deliberately made an uncommercial record. Both the band and the label denied such allegations. Deciding that Albini's production was too flat, Nirvana decided to remaster the album with R.E.M.'s producer, Scott Litt.
'In Utero' was released in September of 1993 to positive reviews and strong initial sales, debuting at the top of the U.S. and U.K. charts. Nirvana supported it with a fall American tour, hiring former Germs member Pat Smear as an auxiliary guitarist. While the album and the tour were both successful, sales weren't quite as strong as expected, with several shows not selling out until the week of the concert. As a result, the group agreed to play MTV's acoustic Unplugged show at the end of the year, and sales of 'In Utero' picked up after its December airing. After wrapping up the U.S. tour on January 8, 1994, with a show at Center Arena in Seattle, Nirvana embarked on a European tour in February. Following a concert in Munich on February 29, Cobain stayed in Rome to vacation with Love. On March 4, she awakened to find that Cobain had attempted suicide by overdosing on the tranquilizer Rohypnol and drinking champagne. While the attempt was initially reported as an accidental overdose, it was known within the Nirvana camp that the vocalist had left behind a suicide note.
Cobain returned to Seattle within a week of his hospitalization and his mental illness began to grow. On March 18, the police had to again talk the singer out of suicide after he locked himself in a room threatening to kill himself. Love and Nirvana's management organized an intervention program that resulted in Cobain's admission to the Exodus Recovery Center in L.A. on March 30, but he escaped from the clinic on April 1, returning to Seattle. His mother filed a missing persons report on April 4. The following day, Cobain shot himself in the head at his Seattle home. His body wasn't discovered until April 8, when an electrician contracted to install an alarm system at the Cobain house stumbled upon the body. After his death, Kurt Cobain was quickly anointed as a spokesman for Generation X, as well as a symbol of its tortured angst.
Novoselic and Grohl planned to release a double-disc live album at the end of 1994, but sorting through the tapes proved to be too painful, so 'MTV Unplugged in New York' appeared in its place. The album debuted at the top of the British and American charts, as a home video comprised of live performances and interviews from the band's 'Nevermind' era, titled 'Live! Tonight! Sold Out!', was issued at the same time (the project began prior to Cobain's passing and was completed by surviving bandmembers). In 1996, 'MTV Unplugged in New York's electric counterpart, 'From the Muddy Banks of the Wishkah', was released, debuting at the top of the U.S. charts. Following Cobain's death, Grohl formed The Foo Fighters (early rumors that Novoselic would also be a member of the band ultimately proved to be false), releasing their self-titled debut album in 1995, followed by 'The Colour and the Shape' in 1997 and 'There Is Nothing Left to Lose' in 1999. Novoselic formed the trio Sweet 75, releasing their debut in the spring of 1997, and also appeared along with former Dead Kennedys frontman Jello Biafra and former Soundgarden guitarist Kim Thayil on the 2000 live set 'Live from the Battle in Seattle' under the name the No W.T.O. Combo.
By the late '90s, Novoselic began research for a proposed box set of previously unreleased songs from throughout Nirvana's career. The project was supposed to surface in the fall of 2001 (to coincide with the tenth anniversary release of 'Nevermind'), but legal issues delayed its release. Finally, the Nirvana LLC partnership -which included Grohl and Novoselic plus Courtney Love, who manages Cobain's estate- came to an agreement and the album-length compilation 'Nirvana' was released in October of 2002. Although that release included only one unreleased song, the long-awaited box set, titled 'With the Lights Out', appeared in late 2004, including three discs of rare and unreleased material plus a live DVD that featured material filmed as early as 1988. The band's 1992 set at the Reading Festival was released in 2009 as 'Live at Reading'. The same year, Sub Pop began a Nirvana studio album reissue campaign with 'Bleach'; special 20th-anniversary editions of 'Nevermind' and 'In Utero' followed in 2011 and 2013, respectively. In 2014, Nirvana was inducted into the Rock & Roll Hall of Fame by R.E.M.'s Michael Stipe. Cobain's place in the induction performance was taken by several vocalists, including Joan Jett and Kim Gordon. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]
Pulling the harsh sounds of industrial rock into the mainstream, Trent Reznor and his band Nine Inch Nails became the face of industrial music in the '90s with "Head Like a Hole," "Closer," and "Hurt" becoming hits and 'The Downward Spiral' (1994) and 'The Fragile' (1999) topping the charts. Nominated for over a dozen Grammys, NIN won Best Metal Performance awards in 1992 and 1996 for two tracks -"Wish" and "Happiness in Slavery"- from their metallic EP 'Broken'. Extending into the 2000s, Reznor maintained his chart success, even as the band's style shifted to incorporate atmospheric electronic elements influenced by his Oscar-winning film scores. In 2016, after decades as the only official member of the band, he welcomed English producer Atticus Ross -his longtime film scoring partner and bandmate in side project How to Destroy Angels-- as NIN's official second member.
Michael Trent Reznor was born May 17, 1965, in New Castle, Pennsylvania and raised in Mercer, a small town outside Pittsburgh. His parents divorced when he was six and he was raised by his maternal grandparents. As a child, Reznor had already developed a keen interest in music. He learned to play piano, tenor sax, and tuba, playing in his school's jazz and marching bands while also acting in high-school productions of "Jesus Christ Superstar" and "The Music Man". Outside of the classical sphere, his biggest rock influence was Kiss, whose theatricality and live shows would later inform NIN's acclaimed stage production. While studying music and computer engineering at local Allegheny College, he was a fleeting member of new wave outfit Option 30, contributing vocals and keyboards before parting ways with the band when he dropped out of school to pursue music full-time. He packed up and moved to Cleveland, Ohio with his friend Chris Vrenna, who later became a founding member of the first incarnation of NIN.
While in Cleveland, Reznor was drawn to new wave and the industrial sounds of Ministry and Skinny Puppy. He gigged around town for a few years, playing in cover band The Urge before joining The Innocent as their keyboardist. The latter band released a single full-length, 1985's 'Livin' in the Street' (Red Label Records), before Reznor quit. He soon hooked up with synth pop group Exotic Birds, contributing keys, programming, and backing vocals, while also recruiting Vrenna on drums. Despite their brief run together, Reznor appeared with the band in the 1987 Michael J. Fox/Joan Jett film "Light of Day" as a fictional band dubbed The Problems. His final roles in the local keyboardist circuit were with pop outfit Slam Bamboo -they issued a single 'White Lies/Cry Like a Baby' in 1988- and new wavers Lucky Pierre, whose vocalist Kevin McMahon would later form Prick, one of the first signees to Reznor's future record label, Nothing Records.
During these stints, Reznor continued to work on his own material while employed as an assistant engineer and handyman at Cleveland's Right Track studio. When the shop closed for the day, owner Bart Koster allowed Reznor to use the facilities for free. The seeds from these early recording sessions -on which he played keyboards, drums, guitars, and samplers himself- would grow into Nine Inch Nails' first demo, 'Purest Feeling'. After making NIN's live debut as tour openers for Skinny Puppy, Reznor shopped the demo tape around the U.S., landing a deal with indie label TVT Records. Reznor quickly returned to the studio to polish existing 'Purest Feeling' tracks and record some new songs. The result, 1989's 'Pretty Hate Machine', presented a dark, synth-soaked vision of industrial that was also hook-heavy and accessible. Combined with a lyrical focus on sex, self-loathing, betrayal, angst, and religion, these attributes would become hallmarks of Reznor's early-era material. 'Pretty Hate Machine' only peaked at number 75 on the Billboard 200, but a burgeoning cult following helped maintain its chart presence and sales. Buoyed by radio and MTV airplay for singles "Down in It" and "Head Like a Hole," it became the first independent release to receive platinum certification to date.
Promotion of 'Pretty Hate Machine' kept the band (then primarily composed of Reznor, Richard Patrick, Chris Vrenna, and various drummers/keyboardists) on the road for years, spreading NIN's fan base across genre lines by not only opening for Skinny Puppy, but also alternative/goth acts The Jesus and Mary Chain and Peter Murphy of Bauhaus. Their American reach expanded in 1991 when they joined inaugural Lollapalooza tour, playing alongside Siouxsie and the Banshees, Living Colour, Violent Femmes, Rollins Band, Lords of Acid, Jane's Addiction, and more. Days after the conclusion of Lollapalooza, NIN shipped off to Europe, opening a pair of shows for Guns N' Roses and penetrating the German industrial market.
When NIN returned to the U.S., Reznor became embroiled in a lengthy legal feud with TVT, which was eager to pump out another, similar-sounding hit album, constricting his creativity in the process. In secret, he signed a new deal with Interscope Records and created the vanity label Nothing Records. The band relocated to a new studio in Los Angeles and began recording a batch of aggressive songs inspired by punk and metal. With production by Flood and drumming by Martin Atkins and Vrenna, the 'Broken' EP landed in September 1992, peaking inside the Top Ten on the Billboard 200. In addition to the Grammy-winning single "Wish," the effort also included covers of Adam and the Ants' "(You're So) Physical" and Reznor's collaboration with Pigface, "Suck." Reznor enhanced his reputation as a provocateur with a widely banned music video for "Happiness in Slavery," which depicted S&M performance artist Bob Flanagan being torn apart by a machine. There was also a near-mythical, long-form clip for 'Broken' that was never officially released commercially due to its graphic content (a torture victim is dismembered while viewing NIN videos). Bootleg versions became a prized fan commodity and a remastered version found its way onto the Internet in 2006. The 'Broken' era came to a close with NIN's first remix EP, 'Fixed'.
Still based in the Los Angeles studio dubbed Le Pig -coincidentally built in the same house where actress Sharon Tate was murdered by Charles Manson's followers in 1969- Reznor began work on the highly anticipated follow-up to 'Pretty Hate Machine'. A concept album centered on the protagonist's titular descent into self-destruction, 'The Downward Spiral' arrived in March 1994 and debuted at number two. Widely considered to be Reznor's masterwork, 'The Downward Spiral' is often cited as one of the most important albums of the '90s, presenting a bleak, nihilistic version of NIN that would nonetheless break the band into the mainstream. Hit single "Closer" was a staple on both MTV and radio, despite its graphic music video and lyrical content, while "Hurt" became a live fixture for NIN, receiving a second life in 2003 through Johnny Cash's stripped-down cover version.
'The Downward Spiral' was anything but for the band, launching them further into the public consciousness and prompting an industry push for soundalikes Gravity Kills, Stabbing Westward, and Filter on rock radio. NIN promoted the effort with the "Self Destruct Tour", which featured Vrenna on drums, James Woolley on keyboards, Robin Finck on guitar, and Danny Lohner on bass. Already a formidable concert presence, NIN's reputation grew with chaotic performances that often ended in destroyed equipment and serious injuries. That intense commitment to their live show reached into American living rooms in the summer of 1994 with their show-stealing, mud-covered set from Woodstock '94, which won them another Grammy for the live recording of "Happiness in Slavery." After the release of the remix album 'Further Down the Spiral', NIN continued to tour, supported by then-newcomers Marilyn Manson, before joining major influence David Bowie on the co-headlining "Dissonance Tour".
During this period, Reznor took his first step into the world of film, assembling the soundtrack to Oliver Stone's controversial movie "Natural Born Killers", which included the previously unreleased NIN song "Burn," as well as edits of "Something I Can Never Have" and "A Warm Place." Another track, a cover of Joy Division's "Dead Souls," was featured on the soundtrack for "The Crow". Reznor also contributed vocals to Tori Amos' "Past the Mission" from her album 'Under the Pink'.
After the conclusion of the 'Spiral' era, NIN entered a period of hibernation. Although Reznor remained active -producing Marilyn Manson's breakthrough sophomore effort, 'Antichrist Superstar', and contributing the NIN single "The Perfect Drug" to the Reznor-produced soundtrack to David Lynch's "Lost Highway"- a growing case of writer's block, struggles with drug and alcohol addiction, and public pressure put a hold on album number three. Encamped at the newly constructed Nothing Studios in New Orleans, a reclusive Reznor spent five years crafting that follow-up, which arrived in 1999.
Influenced by the passing of Reznor's maternal grandmother, the deterioration of his friendship with Manson, and his increasing addictions, the conceptual double-disc opus 'The Fragile' debuted at the top of the charts and was certified double platinum within months. Meticulously produced by Reznor and Alan Moulder, the album included singles "We're in This Together," "The Day the World Went Away," "Into the Void," and "Starfuckers, Inc." The remix LP 'Things Falling Apart' featured interpretations of 'Fragile' tracks, as well as the unreleased "10 Miles High" and Gary Numan cover "Cars." On the supporting "Fragility" tour, the NIN lineup featured Reznor, Finck, and Lohner, as well as newcomers Charlie Clouser on keyboards and Jerome Dillon on drums. That trek spawned a tour documentary titled "And All That Could Have Been", which was accompanied by a live recording and limited-edition EP, 'Still', which featured stripped-down versions of NIN deep cuts, as well as previously unreleased recordings from the era.
Toward the end of 'The Fragile' years, Reznor entered rehab after an unexpected overdose in London, putting NIN on hold until they returned in 2005. Sober and refocused, Reznor inaugurated this new chapter with an equally hungry release, fourth LP 'With Teeth'.
Unlike prior albums, 'With Teeth' traded gloom, frustration, and pain for outward aggression, matured emotions, and Reznor's first attempts at sociopolitical commentary, also marking a turning point for NIN that informed the vocal delivery, production, and collaborative spirit of the band into the next decade. In addition to production by Reznor and Moulder, the taut set featured programming by Atticus Ross and live percussion by Dave Grohl. In addition to being the band's second straight number one, 'With Teeth' also included a trio of chart-topping singles: "The Hand That Feeds," "Only," and "Every Day Is Exactly the Same." A lengthy tour -featuring the lineup of Reznor, bassist Jeordie White (aka Marilyn Manson's Twiggy Ramirez), keyboardist Alessandro Cortini, guitarist Aaron North, and drummers Josh Freese/Jerome Dillon- accompanied the release, documented on 2007's "Beside You in Time".
While the first decade of NIN's existence was marked by mystery and long periods of silence between major releases, the reinvigorated outfit began churning out material in earnest after 'With Teeth'. In early 2007, a multimedia promotional effort was rolled out to earnest fans who deciphered clues found on T-shirts, websites, and strategically placed USB drives placed hidden throughout Europe. Part of a high-concept alternate reality game, they revealed a fictional story of a future dystopian America and a burgeoning resistance movement, all of which was inspired by George W. Bush's presidency and the post-9/11 Iraq invasion. This overtly political concept was at the core of 'Year Zero', which arrived in April on Interscope Records. Delving deeper into digital soundscapes, Reznor was once again joined by Ross, who was promoted from assistant to producer (a position he would hold until becoming an official member of NIN a decade later). The promotional tour took the band through Europe, Australia, the U.S., and Asia, notable for featuring NIN's first stop in mainland China at the Beijing Pop Festival that September. While a television show and movie were planned to accompany the 'Year Zero' story, those never came to fruition. The album cycle closed with 'Year Zero Remixed', which featured reinterpretations by Ladytron, Bill Laswell, The Faint, and rapper Saul Williams, whose third effort, 2007's 'The Inevitable Rise and Liberation of NiggyTardust!', was produced by Reznor.
During this prolific period, NIN also released the four-part ambient instrumental album 'Ghosts I-IV' -released on Reznor's new label, The Null Corporation- as well as the surprise album 'The Slip'. Both 2008 efforts were available for free in their digital formats. While 'The Slip' charted outside the Top Ten on the Billboard 200 and the single "Discipline" became another rock chart hit, 'Ghosts' was nominated for a pair of Grammy Awards (and the track "34 Ghosts IV" would crash the mainstream in an interesting way in 2019). Continuing the direct-to-fans approach, NIN later provided live footage from their accompanying "Lights in the Sky" tour to online fans, who stitched the pieces together to create a documentary dubbed "Another Version of the Truth".
The next year, NIN embarked on another trek, the forebodingly dubbed "Wave Goodbye" tour. When the journey concluded, the band entered an official extended hiatus, during which time Reznor and Ross focused on film scores for director David Fincher (2010's Oscar-winning "The Social Network", 2011's "The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo", and 2014's "Gone Girl"). The pair also formed a side project with Reznor's wife, Mariqueen Maandig, called How to Destroy Angels. Essentially NIN with a female vocalist, the outfit released a pair of EPs in 2010 and 2012, as well as a full-length album in 2013. Months after the conclusion of their first tour, NIN returned with their eighth album.
The Grammy-nominated 'Hesitation Marks' (Columbia/The Null Corporation) was issued in August 2013. Produced by Reznor, Ross, and Moulder, it debuted at number three on the charts and included the Top Ten single "Came Back Haunted" as well as "Copy of A" and "Everything." Guest collaborators on the album included Pino Palladino, Lindsey Buckingham, and Adrian Belew. The ensuing "Tension Arena" tour featured backup vocalists Lisa Fischer and Sharlotte Gibson alongside another revamped lineup that included Reznor, Finck, Cortini, Palladino, drummer Ilan Rubin, and guitarist Josh Eustis. NIN extended the 'Hesitation Marks' cycle into 2014 with a co-headlining tour with fellow '90s mainstays Soundgarden. That same year, NIN were nominated for induction into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame.
The following year, NIN began the rollout of remastered reissues of past albums. 'The Fragile' appeared in instrumental form exclusively on a streaming platform, with an accompanying collection of instrumental, alternate, and unreleased songs collected as 'The Fragile: Deviations 1'. After the completion of scores for "Before the Flood" and "Patriots Day", Reznor announced a multi-year project that resulted in a NIN EP/short album trilogy, which started with late 2016's 'Not the Actual Events'. A return to the abrasive industrial of the band's earlier days, the five-song set featured the brooding track "She's Gone Away" and special guests Mariqueen Maandig, Dave Grohl, and Dave Navarro. Also, after decades of NIN liner notes reading "Nine Inch Nails is Trent Reznor," it was announced that Ross had become a permanent member of the band.
In the summer of 2017, the second installment of the series arrived. 'Add Violence' debuted in the Top 20 and spawned the radio hit "Less Than," which climbed the Mainstream Rock and Alternative Songs charts. A year later, the trilogy ended with 'Bad Witch', which was officially issued as the band's ninth album. Notable for lead single "God Break Down the Door" -featuring jazz saxophone and Reznor singing with a Bowie-esque croon- 'Bad Witch' also included vocals from The Cult's Ian Astbury and Mariqueen Maandig on "Shit Mirror." In support of the effort, NIN embarked on a 2018 tour dubbed "Cold and Black and Infinite", which reunited Reznor with The Jesus and Mary Chain after opening for them almost three decades prior.
In 2019, NIN experienced a pop culture resurgence, reaching a fresh audience through some unlikely sources. In addition to a savvy pairing with Captain Marvel -which saw the titular superhero donning a vintage NIN shirt throughout much of the film- the band returned to the charts through a clever cover (a pop makeover of "Head Like a Hole" called "On a Roll," which was performed by fictional pop star Ashley O, depicted by Miley Cyrus) and a strategic sample (Lil Nas X's use of "34 Ghosts IV" in his record-breaking hit single "Old Town Road"). To close the year, Reznor and Ross crafted a trio of very NIN-esque scores for the HBO series "Watchmen".
At the start of the 2020s, as the world was in the grip of a global pandemic, NIN revived their 'Ghosts' series with the sequels 'Ghosts V: Together' and 'Ghosts VI: Locusts', nearly two-dozen additions to the series inspired by the need for connection in an uncertain time. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]
Macgregor punks, the Young Identities were the first wave of Brisbane bands directly influenced by the notorious Leftovers. Forming in 1978 with a deep DIY aesthetic, released to monumental 7" singles on the Shake/Savage label. Two years on became they became Kicks and dissolved with a lone single and a couple of split cassette EPs before they too imploded in mid 1982. [SOURCE: LAST.FM]
Guitarist / vocalist Peter Astor and drummer Dave Morgan formed the jangly Weather Prophets directly after their previous band, The Loft, split in 1985. Astor had been planning his defection from The Loft for some time and was anxious to start anew with more control.
The duo had Alan McGee, a friend and major backer of Astor's and the head of their label, Creation, play bass for the first two songs. After that, Astor made a point to find other members for the band who had no role in the indie scene (the singer often slagged the scene in interviews, claiming it had a false sense of superiority due to lack of success). He called in David Greenwood Goulding to play bass, a friend who was clueless about The Loft, let alone the current music scene. Morgan brought in Oisin Little to play rhythm guitar, rounding out the lineup. McGee ended up managing, and an instant interest in the group was apparent, thanks in no small part that The Loft appeared to be on the brink of greater things when they imploded.
However, the Creation stable began to receive a fair amount of negative criticism around this time for their outward ambitions and a sense of direction (or lack thereof) that aimed toward drugginess and traditional rocker attitudes (and, well, the donning of leather pants). Regardless of its reception, The Weather Prophets' debut single, 'Almost Prayed', was an instant classic for the label, a song that married The Velvet Underground with Creedence Clearwater Revival. Going with the American slant, the band had Lenny Kaye produce the follow-up single, 'Naked as the Day You Were Born'. Most fans of the debut soured on it.
McGee signed a deal with WEA to begin Elevation, a subsidiary for which he would act as the only employee, delivering bands and doing the A&R work. This fit into the plans of McGee and Astor perfectly; The Weather Prophets became one of the Elevation bands, and it would help them attain the stadium gigs and the rapturous sales that were desired. However, 'Mayflower' was released during a period that wasn't advantageous for the group; it didn't help that both band and label boss regarded it as a failure. WEA agreed and dropped the band. McGee shopped them around to several labels and ultimately the band returned to Creation. 1988's 'Judges, Juries & Horsemen' was completed on a tight budget (after the departure of Little), a budget that paled in comparison to The House of Love's debut for the label.
Fed up with being in the wrong musical climate (dance music would soon engulf the U.K.), fed up with the lack of money involved in keeping the band operating, and fed up with not achieving their potential, The Weather Prophets decided to quit after attempting to record a follow-up single to their final LP. The sock drawer 'Temperance Hotel' compilation was released later that year (1989). Astor went the solo route and later formed The Wisdom of Harry. Goulding and Morgan joined The Rockingbirds. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]
As the leader of the seminal pub rockers Brinsley Schwarz, a producer, and a solo artist, Nick Lowe held considerable influence over the development of punk rock. With the Brinsleys, Lowe began a back-to-basics movement that flowered into punk rock in the late '70s. As the house producer for Stiff, he recorded many seminal records by the likes of The Damned, Elvis Costello, and The Pretenders. His rough, ragged production style earned him the nickname "Basher" and also established the amateurish, D.I.Y. aesthetics of punk. Despite his massive influence on punk rock, Lowe was never really a punk rocker. He was concerned with bringing back the tradition of the three-minute pop single and hard-driving rock & roll, but he subverted his melodic songcraft with a nasty sense of humor. His early solo singles and albums, 'Jesus of Cool' and 'Labour of Lust', overflowed with hooks, bizarre jokes, and an infectious energy that made them some of the most acclaimed pop records of the new wave era. As new wave began to fade away in the early '80s, Lowe began to explore roots rock, eventually becoming a full-fledged country-rocker in the '90s. While he never had another hit after 1980's "Cruel to Be Kind," his records found a devoted cult audience and were often critically praised.
The son of a British Royal Air Force officer, Lowe spent part of his childhood stationed in the Middle East before his family settled in Kent. As a teenager, he played in a variety of bands, including Three's a Crowd and Sounds 4 Plus 1, with his friend, guitarist Brinsley Schwarz. In 1965, the pair formed the guitar pop band Kippington Lodge, which landed a contract with Parlophone Records the following year. Over the next four years, the group released five singles, but none received much attention. In 1969, Kippington Lodge evolved into the country-rock band Brinsley Schwarz, who secured a record contract with United Artists the following year. At the outset of their career, the Brinsleys attempted to gain fame by holding a showcase concert at the Fillmore East, but the publicity stunt backfired, making them outcasts from the British music scene by the time their first album was released. Over the next five years, the group slowly built a following as the leading exponents of pub rock, a back-to-basics movement of good-time rock & roll that found a niche in the early '70s.
With their unassuming appearance and unpretentious music, pub rockers set the stage for punk rock in the late '70s, not only by relying on three-chord rock & roll, but also by establishing a circuit of pubs to play. Of all the old-guard pub rockers, Lowe was the most significant in the development of punk rock. By the time Brinsley Schwarz broke up in 1975, he had already gained a reputation as an excellent, eccentric songwriter, and he was beginning to produce artists like Graham Parker, Dr. Feelgood, and The Kursaal Flyers. At the time, his songwriting was veering away from the country-rock and bluesy rock that distinguished his Brinsley work, and he was beginning to write inventive pop songs. Lowe wanted to leave United Artists, but the label refused to let him go, so he proceeded to record a series of deliberately unmarketable singles in hopes of getting kicked off the label. The first was "Bay City Rollers We Love You," a tongue-in-cheek tribute to the teen pop sensations credited to The Tartan Horde. Inexplicably, the single became a hit in Japan -the Japanese branch of UA even asked for a full album- and the label kept him as an artist. However, after "Let's Go to the Disco," credited to The Disco Brothers, UA dropped him.
After leaving the label, Lowe became the first artist on Jake Riviera and Dave Robinson's fledgling independent label Stiff Records, as well as the label's in-house producer. Recorded for just 65 pounds and released in the summer of 1976, 'So It Goes' / 'Heart of the City' became the first British proto-punk single of the late '70s, earning glowing reviews if not sales. Lowe began producing records at a rapid rate, helming The Damned's debut album, 'Damned Damned Damned' -the first British punk album- and Costello's 'My Aim Is True' in 1977; he would produce all of Costello's albums between 'My Aim Is True' and 1981's 'Trust'. Lowe also produced singles by Wreckless Eric, The Rumour, and Alberto y los Trios Paranoias, as well as Graham Parker's early albums. In the summer, he became part of Dave Edmunds' touring band Rockpile, which would become his backing band within a year. He also released the 'Bowi EP' (a play on the title of David Bowie's 'Low' LP) in 1977, and toured with the Stiff package tour Live Stiffs before leaving the label with Costello to join Riviera's new label, Radar Records.
Lowe released his debut album, 'Jesus of Cool' (retitled 'Pure Pop for Now People' for its American release), in 1978, which featured his first British Top Ten hit, "(I Love the Sound Of) Breaking Glass." The single "American Squirm" was released in the fall of 1978 to little success. After producing the Pretenders' debut single, "Stop Your Sobbing," Lowe recorded his second album, 'Labour of Lust', supported by Rockpile; Edmunds' 'Repeat When Necessary' was recorded at the same session. 'Labour of Lust' featured Lowe's one big American hit, "Cruel to Be Kind," which was a reworked version of an old Brinsley Schwarz song. Between the recording and touring in 1979, Lowe married Carlene Carter, the stepdaughter of Johnny Cash; he would produce her albums 'Musical Shapes' (1980) and 'Blue Nun' (1981).
Lowe and Edmunds toured with Rockpile to support their respective 1979 albums, and the pair were the subject of the BBC documentary "Born Fighters" later that year. Rockpile became notorious for their wild, frequently drunken performances and their spirited selection of originals and obscure covers. In 1980, the bandmembers decided to record an album together, but the sessions were plagued by tension between Lowe and Edmunds. 'Seconds of Pleasure', the group's lone album, was released in the fall of 1980 to mixed reviews; it generated one hit single, the Eddie Phillips-written "Teacher Teacher." Rockpile split only months after the release of 'Seconds of Pleasure', with the remaining members choosing to support Edmunds on his solo album.
Lowe returned with 'Nick the Knife' in February of 1982, supporting the album with a band featuring guitarist Martin Belmont and keyboardist Paul Carrack; the group was first called The Chaps, but their name changed to Noise to Go during the American tour. 'Nick the Knife' was a moderate hit, but its follow-up, 1983's 'The Abominable Showman', was a flop. Lowe retaliated by shifting his music toward roots rock on his 1984 album 'And His Cowboy Outfit'. Both 'Cowboy Outfit' and its 1985 successor, 'Rose of England', were greeted with positive reviews and improved sales; the former featured his last U.K. hit, "Half a Boy Half a Man," and the latter featured his last U.S. hit, a reworking of his chestnut "I Knew the Bride (When She Used to Rock & Roll)." In 1986, he reunited with Costello to produce 'Blood & Chocolate'. The album was one of many -including efforts by The Fabulous Thunderbirds, John Hiatt, and Paul Carrack- he produced in the '80s.
During much of the mid-'80s, Lowe suffered from alcohol abuse, but with the assistance of his old mates Costello and Riviera, he recovered and gave up looking for a crossover pop hit, concentrating on country-rock and roots rock. 'Pinker and Prouder Than Previous' (1988) was the first indication of this shift in style, but the record largely went unnoticed. Produced by Dave Edmunds, 'Party of One' (1990) became his first charting album since 1985. Later that year, Lowe divorced Carter. The following year, he formed the supergroup Little Village with John Hiatt, Ry Cooder, and Jim Keltner; all of the musicians played on Hiatt's 1987 breakthrough album, 'Bring the Family'. Little Village were fraught with tension, and their eponymous 1992 album and its supporting tour suffered as a result. The group disbanded upon the tour's conclusion. While he was working on material for a new album, Lowe's Brinsley Schwarz composition "(What's So Funny 'Bout) Peace, Love and Understanding," which had previously been a hit for Costello, was covered by Curtis Stigers for the soundtrack to Whitney Houston's film "The Bodyguard". The album became the biggest-selling soundtrack in history and, in the process, Lowe unexpectedly became a millionaire from the songwriting royalties.
Lowe made a comeback in 1994 with the straight country LP 'The Impossible Bird'. Hailed as his finest effort in years, the album became a hit in the burgeoning Americana movement in the U.S., and he supported the album with his first solo tour in five years; his touring band featured former Commander Cody guitarist Bill Kirchen. In 1998, Lowe returned with 'Dig My Mood', followed by a series of three albums for Yep Roc: 2001's 'The Convincer', 2004's live 'Untouched Takeaway', and 2007's 'At My Age'. His fourth outing for the label, 'The Old Magic', followed in 2011 to bigger sales numbers than his other Yep Roc titles due to nearly universal critical acclaim. Two years later, Lowe returned with 'Quality Street: A Seasonal Selection for All the Family', his first collection of Christmas music. Lowe supported 'Quality Street' with a tour where he was backed by the instrumental group Los Straitjackets. The pairing was so successful that the group cut a collection of Lowe covers called 'What's So Funny About Peace, Love and Los Straitjackets' in 2017. That same year, Lowe's out of print albums from the '80s were reissued by Yep Roc.
Lowe brought Los Straitjackets into the studio as his supporting band for the EP 'Tokyo Bay' / 'Crying Inside', which appeared in June 2018. Another tour with Los Straitjackets followed in support, and then Lowe released the 'Love Starvation' / 'Trombone' EP in May 2019. Later that summer, Will Birch published the biography "Cruel to Be Kind: The Life and Music of Nick Lowe". 'Lay It on Me', Lowe's third EP with Los Straitjackets, arrived in June 2020. Among the EP's three additional songs was an instrumental cover of Shocking Blue's "Venus" by Los Straitjackets, a cut that represented Lowe's first production credit in a quarter-century. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]
VKTMS formed in San Francisco as a fiery punk band, regulars at places like the Mab, who earned some notoriety with '100% White Girl', a single which was accused (wrongly) of containing racist material. They split in 1982 but reformed briefly in 1994, releasing their self-titled album from 1982 and a single ('Goin' Downtown', 1996), the latter of which came in a double pack with the debut single included. Singer Nyna Crawford died in 2000, having succumbed to cancer.
They made a comeback single, 'Mayhem With A Beat', in 1996. [SOURCE: PUNKY GIBBON]
Originally from the Austin scene that spawned such kindred spirits as the Butthole Surfers and Scratch Acid, this NYC trio crafts a so(m)ber mixture of Brit gloom (Joy Division, Bauhaus) and New York guitar screech (Sonic Youth, Swans). While its work has been spotty, Nice Strong Arm has never been less than intriguing.
Initially distinguished by a propulsive two-drummer lineup (only captured on the first LP), NSA’s debut is shot through with an art-rock sensibility that cushions the entropic din. From guitarist Kevin Thomson and bassist Jason Asnes’ brooding vocals to the grim, almost directionless songs, the record is all about hurt and despair. “Date of Birth” and “Minds Lie” have bite, but a more focused look into the abyss would be welcome.
'Mind Furnace' is a far more subdued effort, angst-ridden and often beautiful. The intricate song structures (that don’t grab immediately but reward upon further examination) and downbeat lyrics detailing domestic decay comprise the bulk of a record that always seems on the verge of bursting through its self-imposed restraints. Highlights: the gripping “Swingset” and frightening “Faucet Head.”
'Cloud Machine' pairs two new studio tracks (including a bright, metallic funk instrumental called “Cop Show”) with two songs cut live at CBGB. 'Stress City' is an extremely forceful (read: LOUD) and rhythmically sophisticated record that fairly approximates what Nice Strong Arm can do live. The songs’ excessive verbiage does, upon closer inspection, resemble bad collegiate poetry, but the requisite dank imagery colors such skewed funkers as “Desert Beauty Bloom” and “Neighborhood Voyeur.” The stirring sound of collapse. [SOURCE: TROUSER PRESS]
Gong gone punk. The only New York Gong album 'About Time' documents Daevid Allen's 1979 New York trip to partake of the then-happenin' CBGB's scene. The new sound is an odd hybrid of psychedelia ("Preface"), new wave ("I Am a Freud") and punk ("Much Too Old"), with a lyrical sentiment reminiscent of early-'70s Gong ("Jungle Window"). The album opens with an effects-laden recording of Allen reciting his "trippy" poetry. Some of the compositions, like "I Am a Freud," bleed quirky rhythms and melodies resembling the work of the League of Gentlemen and Talking Heads. "Materialism" and "Strong Woman" feature Allen's glissando guitar, which seems a forerunner to the sound Fripp and Belew employed on their early-'80s King Crimson projects. "Materialism," penned by Laswell, is a standout with its dominating bass driving home the groove. Another highlight is "Jungle Window," the most Gong-like piece in the set, featuring Gary Windo's jagged sax and Laswell's popping bass. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]
New Fast Automatic Daffodils (later shortened to New FADS) were an alternative rock group from Manchester, England, active between 1988 and 1995.
The band was formed in 1988 by former members of the punk rock group Pariah. Dolan Hewison, Justin Crawford, Perry Saunders and Icarus Wilson-Wright were former students at Manchester Polytechnic, while Andy Spearpoint attended drama school.
The name comes from a poem by Adrian Henri that mixed an advertisement for a yellow Dutch car with a Wordsworth poem. Often associated with the 'Madchester' scene of the late 1980s, but never really part of that scene, the band's debut single, 'Lions' was released in 1989 on Playtime records (then home to Inspiral Carpets), followed the same year by the 'Music Is Shit' EP. In 1990, they signed to Play It Again Sam Records, September of that year seeing the release of 'Fishes Eyes', and debut album 'Pigeonhole' appearing in November, which reached the UK top 50.
In March 1991, the British music magazine, NME, reported that the band were appearing at the 'Great Indie Festival - A Midsummer's Day Dream' at Milton Keynes Bowl in June that year. Also on the bill were 808 State, Gary Clail, Shades of Rhythm, The Shamen, Paris Angels plus Flowered Up. Further singles followed in 1991 and 1992, with second album 'Body Exit Mind' issued in October 1992 (reaching No. 57 in the UK). 1994 saw the band shorten their name to New FADS, with 2 EPs released that year, before a final album, 'Love It All' in 1995. The band split up in 1995.
The band recorded three sessions for John Peel's radio show, the first two of which were compiled onto an album, 'The Peel Sessions' in 1991. Their song "Big" also reached No. 14 in the Festive Fifty in 1990 and featured on the influential 1990 compilation album 'Happy Daze'. Their lone charting success in the United States was the single "Stockholm", which reached No. 30 on the Billboard Modern Rock charts in 1993.
Singer Andy Spearpoint also flirted with acting, having a small part in "Coronation Street" and was reported in 2004 to be working as a freelance music teacher. Dolan Hewison is Director of the Greater Manchester Music Action Zone. Icarus Wilson-Wright worked with Basement Jaxx. Justin Crawford is one part of DJ duo Unabombers and has also recorded solo, under the name Only Child. [SOURCE: WIKIPEDIA]
One of the most important bands of the second wave of U.K. punk, the U.K. Subs had been on the scene since the early days of British punk. But as the first wave of bands began to crumble, the U.K. Subs just got tougher and faster, and slowly rose to fame as many of their peers were burning out, finally breaking out in 1979. The group's signature sound was stripped-down and anthemic British punk tunes, not unlike the early Clash but with less gingerbread and a heavier attack, coupled with ranting vocals that merged anger with dark humor. U.K. Subs may have grown faster and leaner with the passage of time, and a heavy metal influence edged into their music in the '90s, but for folks who wanted their punk rock simple, forceful, and full of shout-along choruses, the band reliably delivered throughout a long and eventful career. If anything has been the U.K. Subs' trademark, it's longevity; vocalist and founder Charlie Harper has kept the group alive for over 40 years, and while more than 75 other people have gone in and out of the lineup over the years, he's kept the beery rabble-rousing spirit of the U.K. Subs alive and well on the road and in the studio.
Harper founded the U.K. Subs in 1976. He had previously been the lead singer with an R&B act called The Marauders (and held down a day job as a hair stylist), but after catching a show by The Damned, Harper decided punk rock was the future, and he formed a group called The Subversives. Harper teamed up with guitarist Nicky Garratt, bassist Steve Slack, and drummer Pete Davies to complete the first edition of the group, whose name was soon pared down to U.K. Subs. The band began making the rounds of the London club circuit, and earned the seal of approval from influential BBC disc jockey John Peel, who recorded two radio sessions with the band, one in 1977 and another in 1978. Despite their growing notoriety, it wasn't until 1979 that the group finally scored a record deal, with GEM Records signing the band and releasing their first studio album, 'Another Kind of Blues'.
As many acts on the U.K. punk and new wave scene were either breaking up (The Sex Pistols, X-Ray Spex, Generation X) or going through creative transitions (The Clash, The Damned, Wire), the U.K. Subs proved there was still a lively audience for no-frills punk rock, and 'Another Kind of Blues' became a surprise hit, rising to number 21 on the British charts. The group's second album, 1980's 'Brand New Age', fared even better, peaking at number 18, and a live set recorded at the Roxy in London in 1977 received a belated release from Stiff Records (without the band's input) as 'Live Kicks'. The band responded by delivering an album drawn from more recorded live shows, 1980's 'Crash Course', which took the band to the Top Ten of the U.K. LP charts, making it to number eight. Their live attack was also documented in a short documentary by filmmaker Julien Temple, "Punk Can Take It!" The hard-working Subs introduced a third studio effort, 'Diminished Responsibility', in 1981, which became another chart success, reaching number 18 on the British listings.
By 1980, the band experienced its first major lineup change, when Davies fell ill and was replaced for a tour by Ian Tansley, and then by Steve Roberts. Davies would return and depart the U.K. Subs numerous times over the years, as would guitarist Nicky Garratt and bassist Paul Slack (as well as Slack's initial replacement, Alvin Gibbs). In 1982, the U.K. Subs jumped from GEM to NEMS Records, and their first album for the label, 'Endangered Species', didn't fare as well on the charts as their previous efforts. And while many British punk acts found indifferent audiences in the United States, the U.K. Subs' most successful albums were never even released in America until many years after the fact, though they staged their first North American tour in 1980.
However, none of this kept Charlie Harper down, and while the U.K. Subs' personnel would change on a regular basis from the mid-'80s onward (Lars Fredericksen of Rancid was briefly a member in the early '90s), the band continued to tour nonstop, playing in the U.K., Europe, and Japan on a regular basis, and occasionally making their way to the United States. Between studio efforts, live discs, and compilations of their back catalog, the band had literally dozens of albums to their credit when they issued 2016's 'Ziezo', which Harper declared would be the U.K. Subs' final studio album. However, Harper insisted that the band wasn't over despite that claim, and several months later, 'Friends and Relations' appeared, which combined new music with rare archival material. 'Ziezo' received a belated United States release in 2018 via Cleopatra Records. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]
Tranquil Eyes is a Dutch minimal synth band formed in 1982. Lex Grauwen and Paul Oosterbaan had worked together for about eight years before they formed Tranquil Eyes. They decided to turn their back to stage performances and started experimenting with home-taping. Using an array of electronics, they recorded a great amount of songs and made a fine selection on 'Walks', their first and only release (1985). For fans of League Of Nations,Oppenheimer Analysis, and Ensemble Pittoresque. [SOURCE: FORCED EXPOSURE]
The Sneetches were one of the handful of bands in the U.S. playing classic British Invasion-inspired, mid-'60s West Coast-sounding guitar pop in the late '80s. Their short run of albums and singles never had a large audience, and they never found the major-label success they desired, but the band remains a hidden pleasure for fans of witty, melodically rich pop music.
The band was formed in San Francisco by the duo of vocalist/bassist Mike Levy and guitarist Matt Carges, both of whom had previously spent time playing in punk bands and wanted to move in a softer direction. Beginning in 1985, the duo set about recording a demo tape that sounded like a lo-fi take on Herman's Hermits' tuneful nature mixed with the burnished soul of The Beau Brummels. The songs made their way to the U.K., where the Kaleidoscope Sounds label released an eight-song EP titled 'Lights Out with the Sneetches'. By this time drummer Daniel Swan, formerly of the British punk band The Cortinas, had joined the lineup and the band began playing local clubs. They signed to new local label Alias and hit the recording studio. The resulting album, 'Sometimes That's All We Have', was released in 1989. After initially playing bass on-stage, Levy switched to guitar, which meant they often played live with no bassist. To fill the gap, another British expat, Alec Palao, joined up. (It was Palao who had gotten Kaleidoscope Sounds' boss Joe Foster interested in releasing the band's demos, and had also been instrumental in convincing Creation Records to release 'Sometimes That's All We Have' in the U.K.)
The quartet's next trip to the studio resulted in 1989's 'Please Don't Break My Heart' single, which contained a peppy take on The Monochrome Set's classic "He's Frank." That same year, The Sneetches launched a cross-country tour of the U.S. and hit the studio to record their second album, 'Slow', a more experimental and arranged record. It was released by Alias in 1990. That same year, they toured the U.S. again, collaborated with power pop heroes Shoes at their Illinois studio, and visited the U.K., where they played with John Cale and The Monochrome Set. Over the next couple years, they had the honor of backing ex-Flamin Groovies guitarist Cyril Jordan on a run of concerts, while also recording sporadically. The results of the sessions were released as singles on Bus Stop (1992's 'And I'm Thinking', 1993's 'A Good Thing'), Elefant (1993's 'Sunnyside Down'), and Jellybean Sounds! (1993's 'She May Call You Up Tonight').
The band also made friends with another ex-Groovies and ended up playing with Chris Wilson, backing him on-stage and on an album, 1993's 'Chris Wilson & the Sneetches'. After all these detours and side projects, and the release of a collection of early tracks on Rev-Ola in the U.K. (titled 'Obscureyears'), The Sneetches finally found time to record their third album. Moving from Alias to Spin Art, they released 'Blow Out the Sun' in 1994, then basically called it a day soon afterward. Mike Levy began working on a solo album and the rest of the bandmembers began pursuing other avenues (Swan became a booking agent and Palao a respected and very busy producer of reissues for various labels like Big Beat and Numero). When Levy's 'Fireflies' album was released in 2000, the band rallied to back him at various shows, and they played the occasional reunion show under The Sneetches name. In 2017, Palao put his skills as a reissue guru to work on The Sneetches' back catalog, and the U.S. label Omnivore released the career-spanning collection 'Form of Play: A Retrospective'. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]
