Snowy Red was the one-man electronic band of the former Chainsaw bassist, Micky Mike. He started his own project under the name Snowy Red in October 80. With his new project, he wanted to prove that it was possible to self-produce a full album, despite meagre means: a few synthesizers, a 12/2 mixing panel, a 2-track reel-to-reel recorder and a few basic effects. This happened to be a successful experience: the record he released in January 1981 was pretty well received by the Belgian and foreign press. The album release was followed by a series of performances that were outside the scope of an ordinary rock gig. Micky sang alone on stage, accompanied by pre-recorded tapes and two dancers from MUDRA (Maurice Béjart's ballet school). To complete the stage set, slides were projected on one side, polaroids on the other, courtesy of photographer Stéphane Sergeant.
Micky believed the audience came not only to listen but also to watch: he wanted the visuals to enhance their memories of the performance. At the end of the concert, a 'suicide' hung himself on stage. Nothing pretentious, just different. Micky Mike dared to do what other Belgians only fantasized about.
Musically speaking, the duo Suicide was Micky Mike's strongest influence at the time. He even dedicated "Baby Tonight" to them. This avowed influence led to him being dubbed "Suicide, Belgian-style" by the audience.
In October 1981 Snowy Red started work on the second album. The minimal austerity of the first album was still there, but warmer sounds were added by a guitar, a bass, and more confident vocals. The single 'I'm Hurt' announced the release of 'The Right To Die'. Despite its new aesthetics and a brighter spectrum, the new album was as emotionally charged as its predecessor. The album was praised by the entire Belgian press. On stage, the show became more confident as Micky now stood alone, without the dancers who had flanked him during his first performances.
The album confirms the success of the experiment: concerts in England, Holland, positive review of Melody Maker and Vinyl. The new show does not have more dancers, slides and Polaroid were replaced by films in almost all performance. Snowy Red performed that year in the Ancienne Belgique (Brussels), supporting TC Matic and then toured in Britain and the Netherlands.
With the 'Vision' LP and some tracks on the 'The Beat Is Over' LP, Snowy Red was, for a brief moment only, a band. After the Belgian New Beat boom, Snowy Red called it quits and Micky Mike disappeared, only for the band to resurface again in 2004 as a duo (with a guitarist) at the Belgian Independent Music festival. [SOURCE: WEYRD SON RECORDS]
Rieg
(real name:
Geir Låstad) is a Norwegian musician, composer, player and live performer, a producer and record artist in the Ambient, Electronic, New Age and Space Music genre. He started his musical career in 1979 in those early underground "old school" days of todays electronic music. In these years Rieg issued 3 cassettes ('Source', 'Music for Wind' and 'Voices') on his older brother Jarli's label Agitasjon. The two last of the early cassettes was later re-issued in 1998, as CD's from the original master tapes. Much later the CD 'Return' was released in 2008. Rieg's latests CD 'The Absynth Ritual' was released in December 2010.
The Tapes were a band from Amsterdam, Netherlands, active between 1977 and 1982. Singer / guitarist Rolf Hermsen and guitarist Michiel Brandes met at the Rietveld Academy, and the group started in late 1977 with bassist Igor Roovers and drummer Dick van der Vaart. The influences came from emerging new wave bands like Talking Heads, XTC, Wire and Scritti Politti -especially with Talking Heads, with which the band was often compared. With its short and quirky songs, the debut album 'You Just Can't Sleep' (1978) was well received, and the band attracted interest from record labels, and abroad. The LP 'Party' was recorded on a larger budget, and distributed by Passport / WEA. There was a new drummer (Peter Meuris), and they work at Music Farm Studio in Baambrugge, under the direction of producer Don Willard (Beach Boys,Ron Wood, Steve Marriott). The album received good reviews in the country and abroad in 1980.
For the next album -and the last one- producer John Leckie (XTC, Magazine, Simple Minds) was cast. The group gained identity, ceasing to be "the Dutch Talking Heads". On this record they received participations from Henk Hofstede and Michiel Peters (Nits), Dennis Duchhart (Minny Pops -who would continue to perform with the band, replacing keyboardist Huba de Graaff), and from the pop and jazz singer Mathilde Santing (all artists who achieved recognition abroad). But The Tapes did not receive financial support to pursue an international career (although the record was released in the USA), and decided to stop. For the re-release of 'Party', the album was remixed, and received an additional CD containing nine bonus tracks recorded live in 1980.
Poeme Electronique was an electronic synth pop band from South London whose line up included Dave Hewson (synthesizers, production), Sharon Abbott (lyrics, lead and backing vocals), Julie Ruler (backing vocals) and Les Hewson (bass). The core of the group was Dave Hewson who was doing the musical production and whose brother and two other members, the backing singers Julie and Sharon, were associated with the London based group Stagestruk.
After the split of Stagestruk, Dave formed Poeme Elctronique with Sharon Abbott in 1981. The group went on to record new material but only managed to release one single back then. They released their only single 'The Echoes Fade' in 1982 and it became their ultimate brand record and a very important song in the early history of minimal electro. Poeme Electronique faded after the first and only release, Dave Hewson embarked on a career in TV music and set up another studio and started to concentrate more on his own work.
In 2009, the whole recording material including 14 previously unreleased tracks have been reissued as a 2LP deluxe edition on Anna Logue Records under the name 'The Echoes Fade'. [SOURCE: BURNING FLAME]
Orquesta De Las Nubes formed in 1980 by Suso Saiz and percussionist Pedro Estevan when the two met whilst studying a course on ‘Techniques of Contemporary Composition’ in Madrid.
Sharing a curiosity for American minimalist and Non-Western music, the pair began to share music through many listening sessions, during which the idea slowly evolved to try and make music together. Pedro’s partner at the time, soprano singer María Villa, would later join the two on vocals. With Suso’s sparse use of guitar loops, synthesizers, and drum computers in combination with the hypnotic percussion of Pedro Estevan and the wordless drifting vocals of María Villa, Orquesta De La Nubes would evolve as a group with a truly unique musical language; an ethereal and almost otherworldly musical realm.
Developing at first as a live act, through a number of performances in Madrid and beyond, Orquesta De Las Nubes was very much connected with, and inspired by, the avant-garde arts scene in Madrid at the time. Throughout their shows, a close circle of friends, including a number of painters, sculptors and designers, would collaborate with the trio to create unique imagery and elaborate stage sets for the group’s performances.
Yet, despite the growing fascination surrounding Orquesta De Las Nubes’ live performances, the trio would however find it extremely difficult to find a label willing to release their music on record. The group’s then manager Silvia Lovosevic therefore decided to set up her own label Linterna Música in order to make the work available. The group would release three albums between 1983-1987, two on the Linterna Musica label as well as an album and CD compilation of live tracks on the cult Spanish label Grabacionnes Accidentales.
Between this period the trio would also team up with American percussionist Glen Velez to record as the group Musica Esporadica; a one-off project in which they recorded a single album of the same name in 1985. [SOURCE: MUSIC FROM MEMORY]
Neon is one of the most active bands in the 80's Italian new wave.
The band, which was formed first as a duo at the end of the 70's in Florence's undeground culture, soon stands out for their Kraftwerk and new wave icons' synth, which made their style a unique 80's cultural dream's specimen, together with the new romantic and post-punk thoughts of bands like Joy Division, Ultravox and The Human League.
In 1980, the band got off to an electronic start with the single 'Information of Death', and later, through several line-up changes, it achieves to synthetize a mix of obsessive electro sounds, obscure athmospheres and quite original pop melodies which take shape in later EPs like 'Tapes of Darkness' (1981), 'Obsession' (1982), 'My Blues Is You' (1983) or 'Dark Age' (1984); in 1985 the LP 'Rituals' sanctioned Neon as the best Italian new wave band of that year.
Excellent studio productions and intense live activities has brought Neon to be one of the few icons belonging to alternative 80's Italian music scene.
In late 2005 a CD-Box containing Neon's first vinyl works was reissued, and it allowed audience to appreciate more the quartet's emotional fund, innovative power and mainly showed its heritage into the international electro-wave scene.
In 2008 two other CD issues were released: 'Oscillator', the first Neon concert back in 1979 in Florence and 'Memories, The Best of Neon 1980-1986'.
In the middle of 2007 the band started a Reunion Tour in Italy and Europe with the best of their 30 years of activity. [SOURCE: NEONFACTORY]
Japan's Midori Takada is a gifted percussionist and composer, whose ambient, minimalist music combines East Asian and African traditions with jazz and progressive classical sounds. Born in Tokyo in 1951, Takada honed her skills studying at Tokyo's University of Arts. After graduating, she made her professional debut performing with the Berlin RIAS Symphony Orchestra in the '70s.
Also during this period, she began expanding beyond classical music, exploring various Asian and African musical forms and instrumentation. She then spent several years as a member of the Mkwaju Ensemble, releasing such albums as 1981's 'Mkwaju' alongside keyboardist/composer Joe Hisaishi.
In 1983, she released her debut solo album, the highly regarded and innovative 'Through the Looking Glass'. Recorded over two days, the album showcased Takada performing on a variety of instruments like harp, vibraphone, and synthesizers, as well as found objects including reed organs, bells, ocarinas, and glass cola bottles. She then paired with shō player Mayumi Miyata for 1987's 'Nebula'. Takada returned in 1990 with 'Lunar Cruise', a collaborative project with jazz pianist Masahiko Satoh, as well as Yellow Magic Orchestra's Haruomi Hosono, and Kazutoki Umezu.
Over the years, she has also collaborated on world various world-fusion projects including performances with Ghana's Kakraba Lobi, Burkina Faso's Farafina Band, Korean saxophonist Kang Tae-Hwan, and many more. Takada's third solo album, 'Tree of Life', followed in 1999. Along with her solo work, she has composed for film and video game soundtracks, contributing to such franchises as "Final Fantasy", "Haibane-Renmei", and "Akira Senju's Tetsujin 28", among others. Takada has also worked on live theater productions, including collaborating with Tadashi Suzuki and his Suzuki Company of Toga on well-received adaptations of "Electra" and "King Lear". She also taught for many years at the Tokyo National University of Arts. In 2017, Takada toured in support of the reissuing of first two solo albums.
[SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]
La 1919 (aka La 1919 Spontaneo) are a Milanese avant-progressive band that first started life in September 1980. The brainchild of Luciano Margorani (born 19th July 1961, in Milano) and his friend Piero Chianura, the band have released five albums to date. Their sound is electronic-based, but still consists of traditional rock-band instruments, such as electric and bass guitar (with assistance by clarinets and saxophones on later releases). Mostly though, the band uses keyboard effects and tape looping, combined with a Fripp-ian and Frith-ian guitar sound, supplied by Margorani (much more evident on their second and third releases), with overlying electronic drums, culminating in a unique sound that flirts with jazz, no-wave, post-punk and electronica, yet is remarkably progressive rock in its basic state.
From 1982 to 1983, La 1919 were part of the "Coopertiva L'Orchestra" of Milan and they eventually released their debut album 'L'Enorme Tragedia' on cassette only in 1985. It seems they received somewhat of a following, because on their second release 'Ars srA' (1987), they are assisted on some tracks by Henry Kaiser on Synclavier and guitar and many other guest Italians. After their second release, the band recorded 'Deficit' in 1990 and then seem to have had a break until at least April 1991 and May 1992, when the they played live concerts in Italy. It was these concerts that became the basis for their third album 'Jouer, Spielen, To Play' (1994). On this album, they were ably assisted by RIO stalwart drummers Chris Cutler (Henry Cow, The (EC) Nudes, The Science Group) and Charles Hayward (Quiet Sun, This Heat, Camberwell Now, Massacre), as well as Roberto Zorzi, who is a prolific guitarist of the Fred Frith style and who has also played with Henry Kaiser. The material on this album was quite different to their first two albums (mostly due to the guest performers), consisting of twin guitars and even a song by Charles Hayward. Their fourth album was 'Giorni Felici' (1997) and again, the duo had guests, including Henry Kaiser, Franco Fabbri (Stormy Six), John Oswald and Fausto Rossi. In 2005 issued 'Freepopjazzrock' and 'False Memory Syndrome' in 2014.
Luciano Margorani learned to play classical guitar from 1972 to 1977, under the tutelage of Mariuccia Tioli and then in 1980, from master Mario Gangi. He presented a progressive rock and electronic music radio show called "Musica dal Penguin Café" on Radio Regione, Milan, from 1979 to 1982. His primary instruments are electric guitar and bass and he has played as a guest on minimalist composer Rhys Chatham's 1995 project "Notte della 100 chitarre", along with 99 other guitarists. In March 2005, Luciano Margorani joined Roberto Zorzi and Zeno de Rossi and formed Roberto Zorzi's Raincoat Crowd where he plays bass guitar. He also plays synthesizer and keyboards in La 1919.
To date, Margorani has also released six solo releases, as well as collaboration albums with Roberto Zanisi ('Vendetta', 1999) and Dorgon ('Margorani vs. DJ$Shot', 2002).
In 1988, Piero Chianura's electronic music making brother Claudio Chianura (born 1959), set up "Auditorium Review" and Margorani also contributed to this magazine in 1989/90. Claudio and Piero Chianura joined up together in 2005 to set-up InSound, an Italian monthly music magazine.
On 11th December 1999, Piero Chianura and Roberto Zorzi performed live in Milan, with electronic artists Claudio Chianura and Steve Jansen, for what would become the 2001 album 'Kinoapparatum'.
La 1919's influences seem varied indeed and they are hard to pin down precisely. Obvious influences though seem to be '80s minimalist Electronica, Jazz, electronic post-punk like Charles Hayward's This Heat and Camberwell Now and RIO movement founders Henry Cow and Etron Fou Leloublan. Individual artists that also maybe an influence include Henry Kaiser, Fred Frith and Robert Wyatt (indeed, one track on their debut strangely bears a resemblance to 'Rock Bottom'-era Wyatt). [SOURCE: PROG ARCHIVES]
Kino Glaz, Italian experimental neofolk pioneers, were formed by ex Tomografia Assiale Computerizzata (T.A.C.) members Simon Balestrazzi and Gregorio Bardini -who also
collaborated with Thelema-, plus Paola Sartori and Patrizia Mattioli. 'Al Passo Con L'Arcangelo' is the only work by Kino Glaz, released on ADN (Auf Dem Nil), a label founded in the early 80's, at the beginning as a fanzine and tape-label, and immediately characterized by its experimental 'nature'. Its vinyl catalog is still remembered for the works by Doubling Riders, Riccardo Sinigaglia, Christina Kubisch and La 1919. [SOURCE: SHERWOOD]
Since emerging in the late '80s, composer, guitarist, producer, and all-around musical polymath Jim O'Rourke's wide-ranging output has found audiences with experimental jazz and noise fans, chill room denizens, indie rockers, and bedroom experimentalists, and bridged gaps between some otherwise isolated compositional communities. As a guitarist, he is recognized for his work with prepared guitar in improvisational settings, and also for playing with noise rock pioneers Sonic Youth, in Loose Fur with Wilco's Jeff Tweedy and Glenn Kotche, and for David Grubbs' experimental rock group Gastr del Sol, just to name a few. He has also released over 30 solo albums, spanning singer/songwriter fare, adventurous post-rock, noise and tape experiments, ambient pieces, and pastoral instrumentals, with a knack for combining them into idiosyncratic art song. His 1989 solo debut, 'Some Kind of Pagan', experimented with prepared guitar and field recordings, while his 1997 Drag City label debut, 'Bad Timing', veered into more standard song forms. Some diverse highlights of his prolific career also include teaching the child actors the songs for Richard Linklater's film "School of Rock" (2003), winning a Grammy for producing Wilco's album 'A Ghost Is Born' (2004), and playing guitar and piano on Richard Thompson's score for the Werner Herzog documentary "Grizzly Man" (2005). Over 25 years into his recording career, he cracked the Billboard Heatseekers Albums chart in 2015 with his solo LP 'Simple Songs'.
He first picked up the guitar at the age of six, but it wasn't until O'Rourke studied composition at DePaul University that his interest in the less-obvious possibilities of the instrument led him through the early catalogs of the post-classical and electro-acoustic traditions. While at DePaul, O'Rourke completed much of the work that would constitute his first few releases. He also had the opportunity to meet noted improvisational guitarist Derek Bailey, who invited O'Rourke to play at the British Improv Festival Company Week, leading to further collaborative projects with Bailey, Henry Kaiser, Eddie Prevost, and David Jackman. O'Rourke began working with Dan Burke's Illusion of Safety project in the early '90s, and released three albums through Staalplaat and Tesco before moving on to form experimental "rock" group Gastr del Sol with David Grubbs. Although he focused more on collaboration after a string of solo releases in the early '90s, O'Rourke didn't abandon solo work, releasing 'Terminal Pharmacy' through John Zorn's Tzadik label in 1995, and completing commissioned pieces for The Kronos Quartet and the Rova Saxophone Quartet. Also in 1995, O'Rourke was invited by German experimental electronic label Mille Plateaux to conduct an extended remix of their entire back catalog. He also produced and co-wrote a good portion of innovative German outfit Faust's Table of the Elements release 'Rien'. Subsequent releases included 1997's acclaimed 'Bad Timing' and, in 1999, the equally lauded 'Eureka'. O'Rourke began a long-running collaboration with Fennesz and Peter Rehberg in 1999, with the release of 'The Magic Sound of Fenn O'Berg' on Rehberg's Mego label. The label also released O'Rourke's 2001 solo laptop album 'I'm Happy, And I'm Singing, And a 1, 2, 3, 4'.
In 2001, O'Rourke released 'Insignificance', an album featuring appearances by guitarist Jeff Tweedy and Glenn Kotche of Wilco. The trio also later collaborated in the side project Loose Fur, releasing a self-titled album in 2003 and 'Born Again in the U.S.A.' in 2006. A sideman and collaborator as much as a solo artist, O'Rourke has performed as a member of several ensembles including (and most famously) joining the legendary noise-rock band Sonic Youth. He appeared on several of their albums, including 2002's 'Murray Street' and 2004's 'Sonic Nurse'. Leaving Sonic Youth in 2005, O'Rourke relocated to Tokyo, Japan and continued to perform, produce, and record.
In 2008, he released the experimental 'Hagyou' featuring saxophonist Akira Sakata. The following year, he delivered the 38-minute extended work 'The Visitor', which was dedicated to Derek Bailey. 'Unreleased?', a collaboration with Fire!, appeared on Rune Grammofon in 2011. The same year, O'Rourke began releasing a series of archival solo electronic recordings on Editions Mego, starting with 'Old News #5'. During this time, he also continued to moonlight as a film composer on the occasional feature, short, or documentary, scoring the Japanese films "Kaien Hoteru: Burû" and "My Man" in 2012 and 2014, respectively. In 2015, O'Rourke made his long-awaited return to vocal-based singer/songwriter material with 'Simple Songs', his fifth solo LP for Drag City.
O'Rourke's first duo collaboration with Fennesz, 'It's Hard for Me to Say I'm Sorry', appeared on Editions Mego in 2016. A lengthy avant-garde solo composition, 'Disengage', saw release later that year and was followed in 2017 by the ambient collaboration 'Wakes on Cerulean' with Kassel Jaeger. Arriving in 2018 on the Japanese label Newhere, 'Sleep Like It's Winter' incorporated pedal steel, shortwave radio, and keyboards into O'Rourke's version of ambient music. The next year, Sonoris issued 'To Magnetize Money and Catch a Roving Eye', a four-hour piece consisting of field recordings and electro-acoustic instrumentation that was recorded over the span of two years at O'Rourke's Steamroom studio. In 2020, Editions Mego kicked off its Portraits GRM series with 'Shutting Down Here', an album that combined recordings O'Rourke made at Paris' GRM studio 30 years apart, as well as sessions at Steamroom. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]
Irsol were a Minimal synth group from Coventry, England. They released two cassettes in the early 1980s on Alan Rider's Coventry-based Industrial/Experimental label Adventures In Reality. Members
were Ashley Niblock, Edward Pearson and Wud (Richard Woodfield). [SOURCE: LAST.FM]
Hellbastard is an English crust punk/thrash metal band formed in 1984 in Newcastle, England.
Members "Scruff" Lewty, Phil Laidlaw and Ian "Scotty" Scott formed Hellbastard, which was to be a combination of Crass-like politics and the music of Slayer. In 1990, after several EPs, full-lengths and line-up changes, the group appeared on the Combat-Earache compilation album, 'Grindcrusher', with the song "Justly Executed", from the Earache Records 'Natural Order' LP.
They are considered to be a hugely influential band in the crust punk genre. The genre allegedly adopted its name from the band's first demo, 'Ripper Crust'. They are also considered to be a part of the crossover thrash scene.
After leaving Hellbastard, Scotty later went on to form Hellkrusher. At one time vocalist/guitarist "Scruff" Lewty and ex-guitarist Nick Parsons played for their friends' band Energetic Krusher. Hellbastard also passed on a deal with Vinyl Solution Records in 1989 in favour of an opportunity with Energetic Krusher; their 'Path To Oblivion' album appeared soon after. Hellbastard opted to sign with Earache.
Original vocalist/guitarist "Scruff" set about reforming the band in 2007 and Hellbastard concluded numerous American and European tours. Prior to this, "Scruff" had formed other acts, including Nero Circus, Sidewinder, King Fuel, Heavy Water, The Dischargers and Moodhoover, all of which (with the exception of King Fuel) released albums and toured extensively. [SOURCE: WIKIPEDIA]
S/Z is an enigmatic industrial band formed in the United Kingdom by one Mohamed, Paul Belford and Susan McCoubrie. They released two EPs, one self-titled 12" in 1983, and the split 7" 'Ritual: Magnetic North' with Last Few Days on the Touch label in 1985, and one self-released untitled cassette in 1982.
Genocide Organ is a German power electronics/martial industrial collective, formed in Mannheim, Germany in 1985. They are known for their brutal and controversial presentation in their music and attitude.
Many of the themes present in their music make reference to the Ku Klux Klan, the Third Reich and war. This insistence on these themes has led to accusations of being far-right extremists, but they have denied these accusations in interviews saying: “We never say what we think, and we never believe what we say, and if we tell the truth by accident, we hide it under so many lies that it is difficult to find out”.
Their live performances are rare, involving metal junk and blow torches to build a wall of industrial noise. Almost all Genocide Organ records are out of print and, due to the small number of copies pressed.
Genocide Organ members are wrapped in mystery, the real names are unknown, during their live performances they are used to wearing masks and hoods to hide their identities. Records are credited to the pseudonyms of Wilhelm Herich, Doc M. Riot and D.A.X. Roland Freisler (now active as Diutesc) that was one of the two live frontmen together with Wilhelm Herich; in the band since 1989, he left the band in 1999 and his role has been taken by Brigant Moloch of Anenzephalia.
Another member of the band was Ray Treatment who was in the band from 1986-1987. [SOURCE: WIKIPEDIA]
Neil Ruttenberg was a staple in the early Austin punk/new wave scene. He began working at pivotal record store Inner Sanctum in '74 and by '79 was doing a weekly radio show on KUT as Reverend Neil X. Having played in Neil Young cover bands in high school, it was in '78 that he changed directions while playing in the experimental band Radio Free Europe.
Though he only played 5 or 6 gigs with them, he did appear on a couple cassette releases and the 1979 double 7", 'History Of The Invisible Dog', where he contributed vocals to the song "Alien Day." Ultimately he was let go for being "too commercial," which led to him starting his next group, F-Systems.
The band incurred numerous line-up changes through their duration so they never had a definitive sound. Neil's songs would often be inspired by films as well as his love for prog rock and bands like Siouxsie and the Banshees, Magazine and PIL. Typically he would write the music and play bass while Lorenda Ash would come up with the words and sing the songs.
The earliest line-up had Bob Murray from Standing Waves on drums, but he only played their first gig, a three song set at a house party. Later came Mark Lander in his place and Kerry Crafton joined on guitar. After that they wanted to add keyboards. A Colombian musician named Andres Andujar, who had played in a successful South American band called Ankora, answered their ad.
F-Systems primarily play Raul's until the original management left and the bookings dried up. Club Foot soon became the alternate fun place to be. Their manager, Shirley Staples, worked there running lights. She assured them gigs, designed posters, and put all the money they made from shows into an account so they could make a record.
In June of 1980, they went in the studio and recorded "People" and "Naked Kiss." In the midst of the recording sessions, Kerry left the band due to internal conflict over the production of the record. Jerry Barton was brought in and re-recorded the guitar parts for "Naked Kiss," while Randy Franklin of Standing Waves produced.
Their friend Roland Swenson had recently started a label called Classified to release records for Standing Waves, the band he was managing. F-Systems asked if they could use the Classified name on their record to add credibility. So even though the single is credited to Classified Records, the band financed and released the two pressings of 500 copies themselves.
That December, Andres got a lucrative job in San Antonio. For the next several months he'd trek back and forth between the two cities to play gigs. But after a while he had to follow his career path. So Randy Franklin left Standing Waves and filled in, playing the keyboard parts on guitar.
In mid-1981, a friend in the RTF program at UT made them music videos for "People" and a newly recorded song called "Exorcism." The videos were used for a class project and never commercially released. Dick Ross, who had now taken over on drums, appears playing and lip syncing in both videos, though he didn't actually play on the recording of "People." Dick had previously played in The Vendettas and then in a short-lived group called The Ray-Vons, who would later become Max & The Make-Ups. Randy was also in the videos playing the keyboard.
The band had built a steady following. Their songs were played on local KLBJ with the help of Samantha, who was shopping the record around to DJs and stores. She even ran an ad in NME. They earned themselves slots opening for Gang Of Four, Grace Jones, Joan Jett and U2.
But alas, things fell apart by the fall of 1982. Neil moved to LA to work on his true passion, film. Dick would go on to play with Joe King Carrasco for many year and still plays the bar circuit. Andres went on to a successful career in engineering. Kerry recorded and produced many seminal Austin bands at Earth & Sky Studios before moving to Dallas in '88 to work with metal band Rigor Mortis. [SOURCE: CHEAP REWARDS]
Over a 30-plus-year run, Chapel Hill, North Carolina quartet Superchunk has become one of the best and most lasting examples of D.I.Y. spirit meeting with inspired artistry. Since their earliest singles, buzzy guitars and racing, punky tempos backed principle songwriter Mac McCaughan's nasal but melodically-charged vocals, resulting in power pop of a higher voltage. The band remained emphatically independent over the years, releasing music on their self-started label Merge and focusing on organically developing as trends came and went. Superchunk's focus on high-energy guitar rock shifted intermittently as the band matured. A discography that started out focused on frequently released high-energy singles in 7" form (including 1990's anthem against lazy bosses everywhere "Slack Motherfucker") grew over the years to include the aching catharsis of 1994 breakup album 'Foolish', flirtations with jazz instrumentation on 1999's Jim O'Rourke-produced 'Come Pick Me Up', the political angst and amplified volume of 2018's 'What a Time to Be Alive', and the softened delivery and orchestral touches of their 12th studio album, 2022's 'Wild Loneliness'.
Superchunk were formed in the college town of Chapel Hill in 1989 by singer/guitarist McCaughan, bassist Laura Ballance, drummer Chuck Garrison, and guitarist Jack McCook. Initially dubbed merely Chunk -the "Super" prefix was later added to avoid confusion with a similarly named New York City avant-jazz band- the group issued its debut single, 'What Do I', on the Merge label, which was jointly run by McCaughan and Ballance. The follow-up was 1990's epochal 'Slack Motherfucker', MacCaughan's blistering tirade against a lazy Kinko's co-worker. The single was immediately hailed on both sides of the Atlantic as one of the definitive indie anthems of the era, and with the subsequent release of their self-titled debut LP, Superchunk were widely celebrated among the most promising young bands in America.
As the success of acts like Nirvana and Pearl Jam made Seattle an early-'90s music scene of note, label heads scrambled to locate the next alternative rock hotbed. Chapel Hill became the consensus choice, and Superchunk were tapped as the Next Big Thing. The quartet -which had subsequently exchanged McCook for guitarist Jim Wilbur- soon found itself in the middle of a major-label bidding war, but the bandmembers defiantly stuck to their guns, remaining on Merge for their brilliant 1991 sophomore effort 'No Pocky for Kitty', recorded by Steve Albini and distributed by Matador. A singles collection, 'Tossing Seeds', followed in 1992, and a year later Superchunk -with new drummer Jon Wurster- returned with the superb 'On the Mouth', highlighted by the singles "Mower" and "The Question Is How Fast."
In addition to Superchunk's relentless tour itinerary and prolific recording schedule, McCaughan released the 1994 LP 'I Hope Your Heart Is Not Brittle', the first full-length release from his side project Portastatic. Even as media attention shifted elsewhere, Superchunk forged ahead. Their 1994 album 'Foolish' deepened the band's emotional currency, with most songs directly addressing the fallout of Ballance and McCaughan's romantic relationship ending. An intra-band breakup album, 'Foolish' was a favorite with fans and critics alike. Also in 1994, the band offered up 'Incidental Music', a second compilation of singles, B-sides, compilation tracks, and other assorted offerings. 1995's 'Here's Where the Strings Come In' heralded a subtle refinement of their core sound, and was supported by a tour on the second stage at that summer's Lollapalooza festival; the first single and video, the surging "Hyper Enough," was even a minor hit. A brief hiatus preceded the release of the 1996 EP 'The Laughter Guns'. The full-length 'Indoor Living' appeared the next year, and Superchunk returned in 1999 with 'Come Pick Me Up'.
Ten years later, the band remained as prolific as ever with their eighth full-length release, 'Here's To Shutting Up', which arrived in 2001. A third collection of singles, the double-disc 'Cup of Sand', followed in 2003, compiling the band's singles and assorted rare tracks from 1995 to 2002. Superchunk contributed songs to various compilations over the following years, including a humorous duet with "Meatwad," the meatball-shaped character from Comedy Central's Aqua Teen Hunger Force, which ultimately appeared on the show's soundtrack. They also released material on their own, including the 2009 EP 'Leaves in the Gutter'. The band's ninth album, 'Majesty Shredding', which featured a horn section and guest vocals from Mountain Goats' John Darnielle, arrived the following September. The band's next album was tinged with melancholy, as several songs dealt with their grief over the death of production designer David Doernberg, a longtime friend. Superchunk released 'I Hate Music' in the summer of 2013, promoting it with a month-long U.S. tour. Due to worsening hearing issues, Ballance didn't go on the road with the band this time around; she was replaced on bass by Jason Narducy of Split Single. He also played with Wurster in Bob Mould's band.
After the tour, the band dialed things back and the members concentrated on other things, like running Merge and, in Wurster's case, running a hilarious Instagram page, but Superchunk were sparked back into life by the results of the 2016 presidential election. McCaughan began writing songs soon after the results came in and was finished by February of 2017, at which time they began recording with Beau Sorenson, who they had worked with on 'I Hate Music'. The album was recorded in a rush of energy and, for the first time in a while, had no keyboards. It did have a wide range of guest vocalists though, including Sabrina Ellis of A Giant Dog, Waxahatchee's Katie Crutchfield, David Bazan, and Stephin Merritt. Two songs recorded for the album were released for charity in 2017; the proceeds from "I Got Cut" went to Planned Parenthood, and those from "Break the Glass" went to the Southern Poverty Law Center. 'What a Time to Be Alive' was released in February of 2018 and the band headed out on a month-long tour immediately after. The next year Superchunk celebrated the 25th anniversary of their watershed 1994 album 'Foolish' with 'AF (Acoustic Foolish)'. The album revisited all 12 of the original album's songs, with additional vocals again from Katie Crutchfield as well as an appearance from Wye Oak's Jenn Wasner. 12th studio album 'Wild Loneliness' changed course somewhat from the disquieting fuzz of its immediate predecessor, turning down the aggression and volume in favor of more subtle fare. This came in the form of graceful string arrangements from Owen Pallett, guest saxophone parts from Wye Oak's Andy Stack, and members of Teenage Fanclub adding vocal harmonies to sanguine lead single "Endless Summer." After sharing several songs in advance of the album, 'Wild Loneliness' was released in February of 2022. [SOURCE: ALLMUSIC]
