Amber Sin were a club band formed by Errol McGrath after Coconut Mat split up in 1970. Errol tells us "Amber Sin were around for a couple of years with various different line ups and as with most bands at the time. We played most of the Working Men's Clubs’s in the Midlands.
The line up in this pic from left to right -
Errol McGrath (Vocal/Guitar), Brian White (Bass), Lol Ivans (Rhythm guitar), Tony Gibbard (Drums).
Other musicians include Trevor Hilton on bass (who defected to Smackee) and Tommy ? on drums at one stage.
At one stage bass player Al Varney (Ex Fission with Johnny Adams) was in Amber Sin.
This Amber Sin Mark 2 with
Errol McGrath (Vocal/Guitar), Alan Varney (Bass), Tony Gibbard (Drums).
Julianne Regan (born 30 June 1962, Coventry) - singer, song writer, guitarist, bass guitarist and keyboard player, is best known for being the lead singer of the band, All About Eve.
From Wiki
Regan moved to London at the age of 19 and found work as a journalist for music magazine Zig Zag, while also studying at the London College of Fashion. In her capacity as a journalist she was given the task of interviewing Gene Loves Jezebel and then subsequently joined that band on bass guitar...
All About Eve (first era) (1985-1992)
The first line-up of the group hit the studio in 1985 to record the first single "D For Desire", but following a falling out between Zwingmann and Regan, the former left the band. Soon after this Andy Cousin replaced Jackson on bass, thus creating the first well-known All About Eve line-up of Bricheno, Cousin and Regan, plus a drum machine. The group recorded demos and played several well-received gigs.
In 1986 Regan met a girl known to the wider world only as "Crazy Rachael" and her boyfriend ex-The Sisters of Mercy guitarist Wayne Hussey. Hussey was at the time recording the first Mission album God's Own Medicine and was so impressed with Regan's voice that he asked her to contribute backing vocals to the song "Severina". This started a close collaboration between the two bands that continues to this day, and at the time got All About Eve signed to the Mission's record label (on the back of them being support to the Mission's first tour and Regan appearing on several TV programmes with the Mission for performances of "Severina"). Regan also provides backing vocals on The Mission song "Wishing Well", which appears on the US version of their early songs collection album The First Chapter.
During production of the first, eponymous, All About Eve album, Regan formed a relationship with Simon Hinkler, guitarist with the Mission. Meanwhile a full-time drummer Mark Price was recruited to the band in 1988: he would go on to marry Regan's sister and also have a child, Joe (born 1990).
All About Eve soon hit the big-time with the first album and the single "Martha's Harbour" both going Top 10 along with four other Top 40 singles between the summers of 1988 and 1989. Fame, however, did not seem to sit all that well with Regan. She broke up with Hinkler, a situation which inspired Hussey to pen Mission song "Butterfly on a Wheel": this song is often viewed as a direct response to All About Eve's song "Scarlet", even though it contains references to several others. A short time later, Regan started a relationship with her own guitarist, Bricheno.
It was the collapse of her relationship with Bricheno that plagued the recording of the second album Scarlet and Other Stories. It is on record that Regan suffered something of a breakdown during this time and would later say "I don't think I've wept as often in my life as I did during the making of Scarlet and Other Stories." Understandably therefore, the lyrics to the songs on this album reflect the unhappiness of their author, particularly in "Scarlet", "December", "Drowning" (the B-side to "December") "Pieces of Our Heart", "Road to Your Soul" and "Only One Reason".
With Regan and Bricheno unable to speak to each other, the latter left the band at the end of 1990 (and join The Sisters of Mercy), to be replaced by Church guitarist Marty Willson-Piper. Two songs, "Strange Way" and "Farewell Mr Sorrow", from All About Eve's third album, Touched By Jesus, are concerned with the end of this relationship: however this was not an entirely bitter work for she would also write the concluding song, "Are You Lonely?" for her father.
Touched By Jesus did not quite enjoy the commercial success of the first two albums and All About Eve subsequently changed record labels to MCA in 1992. Here they were to record their fourth (and final) studio album Ultraviolet - a somewhat psychedelic move in which, as Regan later admitted, her vocals were mixed too far down into the swirling guitars, with the net result sounding something akin to Cranes or Spiritualized. This alienated fans, and the record did not make the Top 40. MCA ditched the group, and they split up in early 1993.
A range of genres including rock, folk, blues - and a touch of prog rock.
From their website
Their single Calico Jack.
Alchemista are a Coventry-based five-piece band playing their own original songs in a style best described as melodic rock.
Caroline Luxton-White (lead vocals), Paul Jayes (keyboards), Steve Kavanagh (guitar), Matt Molland (bass) and Colin Halliwell (drums)
All share a love of an eclectic mix of songs, ranging from ethereal and epic to catchy and up-tempo. Reviewing their last EP “Clear Skies to See” in Hot Music Live (a publication promoting originals music in Coventry and Warwickshire) Andy Holdcroft said, “Alchemista are definitely a band unlike any others around here currently and I recommend their classic song writing and playing style to you. The tracks are admirably clear, and you can appreciate both the excellent vocals and often very subtle instrumental touches. Above all, the songs have very clear meanings and have obviously been wrought with care, intelligence and love".
THE AK BAND Punk, Powerpop, Ska, Indie, Alternative c1980
Singles Pink Slippers / Skegaway produced by Roger Lomas I believe. Label: BAATTLE BOB1 8.3.12 / Walnuts-Moleteazers UK 1981 Over You / Dead Slumber Album Manhole Kids RCA 1981
Lead Vocalist / Bass Neville (Nev Slipper) (Later joined Coma Cou) They featured on Rhythm Method Compilation Johnny AK / Maz Walnut. Won Battle of the Bands 1980
Pete Chambers says " The AK Band were the nearest thing Kenilworth ever had to a hit band. Playing Ska music very much in the mould of Bad Manners. Their single Pink Slippers has graced many a Best of Ska Album."
From Tone and Wave "This is the Ak Bands first recording from 1980. They were a British power pop trio who played a lot of 2Tone inspired ska with no horn section or keys. The first song here Pink Slippers is an up-tempo song about receiving a bad Christmas gift and the other song Skegaway has more of a Police sound to it.
Side A - Pink Slippers Side B - Skegaway
Comment My brothers band were playing in the final of the London heat in Battle of the Bands in 1980 at the Rainbow theatre, they came second to a band called The Time Flies. The Ak Band were in the competition at an earlier heat and were signed straight away and you could tell why, when they came on and performed their songs the whole place was rocking. Great memories. Sean M Hoxton London
Dave Burns and The Agents....line up Keith Bates lead Guitar, Terry Hamilton Vocals, Clive Ellams Drums, Colin Bonsor Bass, Alan Hankinson Rhythm Guitar.
The Agents broke up with the late Alan Hankinson and the Late Dave "Spud" Simpson on Drums accompanied by Rob Price vocals, the late Roger Prince Lead Guitar and Mick Broadhurst on bass......The Joneses
Keith Bates joined The Reason formerly The Puncture Outfit.
Formed 1990/ 91 out of small time Coventry bands - Bubblegum Flesh and The Candy Thieves. Influences - Echo and the Bunnymen (and Ian McCulloch).
Signed to Oasis Label Creation in a Coventry pub. Pete Chambers writes - "continued arrogance and record company squabbling killed off initial momentum" Dropped when Sony took over Creation Label.
Albums Against Perfection (Creation / CRE 138) - Mar 1993 - Charted No 70 Album Charts Fake (Creation / CRE 165) - Sept 1994 (Failed to chart - dropped from Creation label) Footnotes - Best Of 92-94 (Cherry Red / CDMRED327) - Jan 2008 Singles Sunshine Smile (Creation / CRE 127) - Apr 1992 12" Rave reviews in NME - No1 in Indie Charts I'll Be Your Saint (Creation / CRE 133) - Jul 1992 (Top 5 in Indie Chart) Homeboy (Creation / CRE 140) - Oct 1992 (Top 5 in Indie Chart) 'Homeboy/Summerside' (fanclub only tape) Sistine Chapel Ceiling (Creation / CRE 153) - Jan 1993 (Top 5 in Indie Chart) NME Single of the Week Favourite Fallen Idol (Creation / CRE 159) - Apr 1993 Kangaroo Court (Creation / CRE 172) - Apr 1994 Vendetta (Creation / CRE 177) - Sept 1994
Piotr then formed Casino and then Polak
Wikipedia explains further - " The 12" single of "Sunshine Smile" ("I'll Be Your Saint" & "Breathless" on the b-side) was pressed up to be released on record producer Pat Collier's 'Money To Burn' label the band received a gushing review in the NME. The single was never released.
Signed to Creation Records in 1992, after a UK tour supporting Curve they released their first single a re-recording of "Sunshine Smile" in May of that year. Distancing themselves from the Shoegazing movement, by attempting to be more outspoken than traditional shoegazers, Adorable were briefly seen along with other bands Suede and The Verve as being a part of a new movement tagged 'New Glam', a label attributed to Fijalkowski's assertion that "we want to put the glamour back into pop".
"Sunshine Smile" was NME's Single of the Week, and topped the Indie Singles chart as well as entering the mainstream UK single top 100 charts for three weeks. A backlash in the press against the band's outspoken image immediately followed, and the band were never to be interviewed in the mainstream UK press after their debut single. The band released "I'll Be Your Saint", "Homeboy" and "Sistine Chapel Ceiling" (NME single of the Week), which all went into the Top 5 in the Indie charts, but failed to enter the mainstream Top 75. The Album "Against Perfection" released in 1993 went to #70 in the album charts, and the band toured the USA, Europe, Australia & Japan.
The second album "Fake", was seen as a far more introspective album, which Fijalkowski himself suggests was the result of the band feeling vulnerable. Although the two singles "Kangaroo Court" & "Vendetta" again entered high in the Indie Singles chart, the album failed to dent the mainstream Top 75, and strained relations both within the band and with Creation resulted in the band announcing their split onstage in Brussels in late 1994.
In subsequent years, the band has been re-classified as being part of the shoegazing movement.
Subsequent to the band's demise, Robert Dillam moved to Scotland where he joined The Zephyrs and is teaching computer networking. Stephen Williams remains in Coventry and is currently the Assistant Director of the International Office at the University of Warwick, whilst Fijalkowski went on to form the band Polak, who signed to One Little Indian Records and now uses the anglicised version of his name; Pete Fijalkowski.
From Adorable's My Space "Within two pints of Adorable meeting Alan Mcghee for the first time in a pub in the centre of Coventry in January 1992, the conversation got quite heated when we asked him about the dropping of My Bloody Valentine from the label. Mcghee likened his relationship with MBV as that of a girlfriend and boyfriend, but said that he couldn't tell Kevin Shields face to face that his services were no longer required at Creation. I made Mcghee promise that if and when he came to drop Adorable from Creation he would have the guts to do so to my face.
So was born an uneasy relationship between Adorable and Creation records, that was never really to thaw over the next two and a half years. Things started promisingly enough, our first single 'Sunshine Smile' got NME single of the week, lots of evening session play on National Radio One, number one in the indie charts and three weeks in the national top 100 charts, but had we had the advantage of a crystal ball we would have seen that this was to be our UK high point, and that it would be downhill all the way from thereon."
The Candy Thieves
Before Adorable, three of the band were in The Candy Thieves
"I lent the kit to Ted Duggan,(another great Coventry drummer) on one occasion as he had almost the exact same kit. His band Acorn did a great version of Cream's 'Toad' and I think Ted wanted to have the double kit that was just being made popular by Ginger Baker and Keith Moon. at the time. He was playing with guitarist brother John in 'Acorn' at the time and Dek McConkey on bass I think. For a while they had Maggie Hall as a Go Go dancer. Good ol' Maggie. She's in Australia now. She was Phil Street's girlfriend for a long time). "
NEW INFORMATION FROM IAIN MacDonald
Acorn - Ted Duggan / John Duggan / Dek McConkey / Iain MacDonald
Acorn were previously known as Purple Haze and The New Fanatics and a few other names. Later, in 1970, they changed the name again to Rogation Sunday and then Liberation. Soon they would become part of Drops of Brandy.
Simon Mastrantone - guitar and vocals Dan McKee - bass and vocals
Steve White - drums Tom Wise - guitar
4 Releases -
Forbidden Curriculum
Shadow Permanence
Consumerism is a STD
What Happened
Academy of Morticians on My Space (now deleted)
Tracks - What Are You Doing / There Must be More Than This To Life / Our Friends (RIP) / Local Neighbourhood Capitalist / Profitganda / What Happened / Acceptable / Junk Food News / Welcome to England (TM) / Playing for Air (Live) /
Pete Chambers tells us in Godiva Rocks -
" The band are from Balsall Common in Cov. Derived from the covers band Sovereign, they went on to become Who Killed Culture 3 then Dongle and finally Academy Of Mortcians."
From Wikipedia (Now deleted)
" This band were key players in the late 90's UK punk rock scene. During their 6 year career the Academy Morticians released two full length albums and two EP's.
Early years
Formed in 1997, the Academy Morticians played their first few gigs in their school canteen at nights they promoted themselves. Inspired by DIY punk bands from the USA such as The Dead Kennedys and Bad Religion, they self financed and released their first EP "The Forbidden Curriculum" in 1998. The limited run of 50 copies sold out quickly with notably, one copy going to horror author Stephen King and another ending up in the hands of Dead Kennedys frontman Jello Biafra which would come in useful at a later date. The EP was recorded across three sessions with Mckee and Mastrantone doing the bulk of the performing. Drummer Christian Rot played drums on three of the tracks with Mastrantone playing drums on the rest. Encouraged by favourable press from the UK underground, the band recorded their first album "Shallow Permanence" in summer of 1998, this time sharing the release between their own imprint Cursed, and small independent Welsh label Smokin' Troll. With a title borrowed from the poem No More Hiroshimas by James Kirkup, the album was 14 tracks long and recorded in three days. Due to a last minute walk out by Rot, Mastrantone was forced to play drums and once more the bulk of the musicianship was done by Mastrantone and Mckee. One notable addition to the line up was Tim Cadman who guested on the track "Malleable"; Cadman would later join the band on second guitar.
The album was released in 1999 and it was at this stage that the band began its bond with the influential fanzine Fracture, who reviewed Shallow Permanence with the words "a band this country would not be the same without." Both musically innovative with its blending of influences and lyrically ambitious with its interlinking songs themes, the album is considered by most fans to be their most consistent and entertaining. It was also well received by the UK underground press.
"ACADEMY MORTICIANS, THE - Description: One of the hardest working bands, this spritely Jello Biafra recommended lot play politically charged punk/indie with plenty of melody and quirks. Latest release details: A 7" on CRACKLE! Records called "Consumerism is an std" for $5 ppd from Crackle Records, PO Box 7, Otley, LS21 1YB, UK or direct in the USA from pshaw, PO Box 2246, Minneapolis, MN 55402-0246, USA or mutant pop, 5010 NW Shasta, Corvallis, OR, 97330, USA Also from those addresses the Crackle Records 29 track CD sampler featuring an exclusive A.M. track for a stupidly cheap $7 or lower. Also a 14 song album for $11 (cash only) direct from them (see address) Address: 86 Kelsey Lane, Balsall Common, Coventry, CV7 7GT, UK. Web: /TheAcademyMorticians.htm Email: profitganda@hotmail.com "
" Academy Morticians are actually a pretty new band to me - I read about them in the hallowed pages of Suspect Device in either 2001 or 2002 I think, and got the Consumerism Is An STD 7" . I thought since it was on Crackle, it would be punk-pop and nothing more, though obviously I was aware of the political message, that's why I got the thing! I was taken aback a bit, and not since the days when I listened to Chokeword, Active Minds, the Clash and Crass non-stop did I feel a need to be an active anti-capitalist, or anarcho. I was going to write to them, intending an interview for F.O.D. 2, but then I saw that they were in Fracture, so I ignored it for a while. Then DaN, singer and bassist, left a message on my guestbook and asked why I claimed to interview AM, on this very page, when I hadn't! So I thought up some insanely-worded questions and DaN answered promptly. Thanks to DaN and AM!
Bry: What is the current line-up of the band? How long has it been together? How many records have you got out? Is everything OK between you and Simon now, so there'll be no more hiatuses?
Dan: Things between me and Simon are fine nowadays, in fact we’re meeting up at the anti-war march in London this weekend and he’s staying with me in Cardiff the next week to see my improvisational comedy group perform. We basically had a lot of unresolved issues from our growing up together that have now been resolved after a brief but brutal band break-up and so now we’re back, bigger and better than before.
The band has been together (save for the aforementioned break-up for a year) since 1995 with a variety of line-ups that centred around Simon and me and nowadays we have our best, or “classic” line-up of myself on bass and vocals as per usual, Simon on guitar and vocals also as per usual, and on guitar, Tom Wise, and drums, Steve White.
We first released a self-released ep called “The Forbidden Curriculum” of a very limited run of 70 back at school in about ’96 or something, but such luminaries to own one include Jello Biafra and Stephen King! Then we recorded a full length album called “Shallow Permanence” in about ’98-’99 that was released by Smokin’ Troll. Next we had the 7” on Crackle!, “Consumerism is an STD” in 2000, the joke there was supposed to be that it’s a Socially Transmitted Disease, but few people bothered to read that gem of wit inside the actual inlay so no one got it!
Then we went on to record the album What Happened? which has just come out now in 2003 on Iron Man and my own label, Who Killed Culture? Records. We started recording it in late 2000 but this CD was the most cursed release ever, from sky-high recording bills to evil record labels screwing us around and lying to us repeatedly, it took fucking two and a half years to finally get it out there (hence the title!). To set the scene of how cursed the release of this record was, you should know that the 2000 Bush “election” happened at the same time we were first finishing the recording and I am convinced that the two tragedies are related in some clusterfucked karmic way!
OK, not really, but now it is finally out, I’m really fucking proud of it for lasting the ride and still sounding as kick-ass as it did when we started on it!Bry: Obviously you're an intelligent punk-pop (I know, it's a shit description, but you don't sound like Discharge or anything...so it's the best one I can come up with at this moment in time!) band - do you see that there is a distinct lack of political or sensible punk-pop bands? Dan: Yes, I really do. We have got a lot of heat in punk rock circles for not conforming to expectations and playing poppier punk rock with melodies and four part harmonies, yet singing about serious issues. I really respect Crackle! Records for taking a chance on us back in 2000 with our ep because often pop-punk fans find us too political or some such bullshit, even though they like our music.
Saying that, it’s not that I think all bands should be serious and political etc, and I love bubblegum pop-punk about girls/boys and beer as much as the next man (and I don’t even drink!). I have a side project with Paul Raggity called The Whining Maggots and we do Screeching Weasel/Ramonesy pop-punk about love, life etc…no politics at all really and it’s a lot of fun.
What I hate is stupid closed-mindedness so that you have to sing about a certain thing if you sing a certain kind of music. I want more political pop-punk bands and more bubblegum crust bands!
We just write the music we like and sing the songs we want to sing about. Simon and I are deeply involved in political thought (I’m doing a fucking degree in politics and philosophy!) so that’s what we sing about…but we love good, tuneful music too, so we write what we write!
It’s not like we’re even always political! “Never” on the EP wasn’t political, nor was “Rebekah” or “Detta To Beth” on Shallow Permanence? Just like how my other band, Bullet of Diplomacy (which is Academy Morticians without Simon) has a love song called “Intangible Entities Don’t Leave Explanations” on our demo. We just write what comes to us, and when you’re socially aware in the world today a lot of that is going to be political unless you have your head in the sand, but we’re not going to limit ourselves to people’s small circles of expectation and their preconceptions of what a band who sound like we do should sing about!
Our debut EP, “We Are The Rascal Multitude” should be released by now. I run the label because no one has the balls to put out our stuff(Decline Records would!!! - Bry). The AM album is £7.50 and the B.O.D EP is £5, all prices are post-paid. Send orders (cheques payable to Dan McKee) care of 86 Kelsey Lane, Balsall Common, Coventry, CV7 7GT, UK. If you want to get in touch, my e-mail is whokilledculture@yahoo.co.uk and the band website is http://www.geocities.com/whokilledculture/1.html Cheers for the interview, Bry!
From their My Space -
" Academy Morticians.. oh what to say. Quirky, inventive, ahead of their time, unique, geddy lee(??)... What do other people reckon... "Wow! And I mean that in the fullest sense of the word, in that I’m pleasantly surprised at the quirky sound of the Academy Morticians. Imagine a disturbed young kid growing up with parents that constantly play Queen & Dead Kennedys records all the time and you might understand what he sounds like. The tracks ‘Welcome To England’ and ‘It’s Not a Small World’ actually demonstrate this pretty well with bizarre melodies that include Bad Religion/ Queen style vocal harmonies with that DK punk rock backbone which makes you realise this is no ordinary band... Probably one of the quirkiest punk bands in the UK right now so definitely worth seeing live if you get the chance. " - Drowned in Sound "It could so easily be alienating, yet like their forebears the razorblades are wrapped up in sweet candy: three-part harmonies, dive-bombing guitars and hailstorm drumming combining to vigorous effect. The production run of their DIY debut EP stretched to a mere seventy copies, yet both Jello Biafra and Stephen King have copies, which is a recommendation only a halfwit could ignore." - LOGO magazine "A band this country would not be the same without" -FRACTURE
When Flowers Grow Fangs - Academy Morticians
Never / Capitalism Sucks - Academy Morticians
ACADEMY MORTICIANS - PROFITGANDA (LIVE!) July 4th, 2009
Line up: Derek Wilson (guitar, vocals), Nicky Hawkswell (bass), Jimi Longworth (drums).
Formed in 1966 as heavy/progressive blues band with Cream / Mayall / Beck influence.
'The group are strongly opposed to the current soul music trend' said manager Rodney Joyce in early 1967.
Wilson left February 1967 replaced by Joe Beale. They were augmented by Tim James on vocals and harmonica. Eventually they moved to London and split in late 1967.
Wilson later formed Ning.
From drummer Jim Pryal
" I left home about 1969 and moved into a flat in Whitley village with a local guitar hero of the time, 'Beck' who's real name was Derek Wilson. He had played in '3 am blues' band with Nicky Hawkswell on bass and Rodney Joyce on congas. Living in that flat was a life changing experience for me. Nicky visited the flat and had a Fender bass guitar he'd painted lime green with Wooleys gloss paint and burned the word 'F**K' upside down into the wood. He was an amphetamine addict from Keresley village and I don't what happened to him in the end. He seemed like an exciting guy to know at the time. "
Bung - Part 2 Live at the Walsgrave, Coventry 1977 from Coventry Music Scene on Vimeo.
Memories from Bill Keller (From Rex Brough site)
"I was the bass guitarist in Bung. Paul Sampson and I were mates at primary school, and went on to form a number of bands in Coventry in the 1970s and (very early) eighties. Along with Clive Layton (absolutely fantastic keyboard player --his father Archie Layton was a well known pianist and composer in Coventry) we performed as Temple (very prog-rock). Later, I formed Bung as a Jazz-Rock combo with Dave Budd (saxophone), Paul Sampson (guitar) and Gary Kirton (drums). Later line-ups involved an alternative sax player called Ed (can't remember his surname), and Amanda Pask on flute. We played regularly at the Lady Godiva (the Dive) and the City Centre pub (alas, no more).
I really stopped playing in bands around 1980, around the time Paul got involved with Ens (great mates of ours) and I went off to pursue other things at University. However, I did do a few things before 'retiring' completely. So, you might note that I was the bass player on the earliest of the commercial Reluctant Stereotypes singles (i.e. not 'The Lull', but on 'She has changed not you/etc.'). I recorded on both the A and B side of the single, along with Paul, Steve Edgson and Paul Brook (brilliant drummer, much missed) at the former Horizon studios in Coventry (no longer there, sad to say). My bass playing survives only on the B-side of the single, however; the bass line for the A-side was re-recorded by the Stereotype's incoming bass player (but he took my line!). Around this time, I also played a one-off gig in Coventry with the outfit that became the Jazz Rock group Pzazz. That was great fun, but of course their eventual bass player really was brilliant!"
Memories from Dave Gilbert (Again from from Rex Brough site)
"I was a big fan of Bung at the time, (still am). I was at college with Paul Sampson. I remember Bill played an old Burns Jazz Bass, quite valuable even then. I must have seen them over 20 times. They were all absolutely stunning musicians, Bill not playing anymore is a tragedy. They did an instrumental "Flight of the Waterboatman in 21/8", Thats the time signature! Try counting it out, god knows how they did it! I've got a tape of them playing at The Walsgrave pub, late '77 i think, (maybe'78?). Vocals are poor, but the rest is stunning! Paul wrote the set-list out for me, which i've still got, "Boatman" is on it too! Cheers, Dave"
Bron Area: a short biography from Glass Records (included with their LP).
Full Album
Bron Area started life as a duo March 1979, emerging from an embryo of musicians in Nuneaton. Martin Packwood and Steven Parker had been involved in a number of these before meeting a wider and more competent group of musicians. Notably among these was Peter Becker who supported and encouraged them in the early stages of Bron Area. With the reorganization of The Reluctant Stereotypes, resulting in the departure of Martyn Bates and Chris Dunne (later to drum on all later Bron Area records) the former arrived at a Bron gig to be introduced to Peter and thus Eyeless In Gaza came into being. Ambivalent Scale Recordings was later established and saw the release of Bron Area’s One Year cassette album and Fragile Sentences Ep as well as Eyeless In Gaza’s Kodak Ghosts Run Amok Ep and Kevin Harrison’s On Earth 2 cassette (later released as a Cherry Red album [remixed]). As Eyeless moved on to greater glory via their deal with Cherry Red Records, the momentum of Nuneaton’s music scene diminished, Bron Area subdued their efforts somewhat until David Barker of Glass Records, having heard 2 songs from the Alternative Sounds fanzines compilation tape Facet 1 asked them to appear on his Wonderful World of Glass Vol. 1 Lp at the end of 1981. So impressed was Mr. Barker that on the strength of a recent demo tape Bron Area were signed to Glass at the beginning of 1982. The first vinyl was a 12” Ep entitled ‘Different Phrases’ released in March ’82 and later released as a 7” on Posh Boy Records in the USA. Now, after the best Above Review from Alternative Sounds part of 1982 being spent in the recording studio Bron Area’s first album is ready. The album is The Trees and the Villages – a title which suggests the sentiments of their present music. Although not quite as described in Stringent Measures fanzine “a modern day country music … with a little organic additive” it does through different means seek to fulfil the same role as that music. Martin Packwood: “The album doesn’t take risks, but I really don’t see how any music could claim to do so. The only thing you risk in being avant garde is that no one is going to buy the record and listen to what you have to offer. People take risks in their lives – in their decisions, their lifestyles and so on – not when they listen to a record.”
Discography (From Eyeless in Gaza Website - above)
One Year (ASR 003, 1980, C45)
Part One: You’d be Amazed/The Long Dream/Unknown Friends/1977/Yes She Knows/Love Song/Images
Part Two: Sunday Morning/Walking/You’d be Amazed*/Swarm/The Car/1945*/Calling Michael/Genette*/Green Avenue/“Jazz”/Where is She Now?
Some songs included in part two are from our days as a duo. These have been reworked into the present set with a (*)
Steven Parker: Voice, Keyboards. Alain Royer: Guitar, Voice. Martin Packwood: Bass, Voice. Recorded live and with Kevin Harrison. Vocal on ‘Calling Michael’ by Isabelle. Saxophone (you’ll be lucky) by Dave. Commentry on ‘Where is She Now?’ by John.
Bron Area began in March 1979 as a duo playing songs at small gigs mostly to friends. Steven had been playing piano for 4 years and sang in a punk band Addix through ’77. Martin had played ‘My Way’ to drunks in social clubs on the organ for some time, and played punk R&B band Radiation One before joining Bron Area. The music from those days as a duo are summarised in part one.
Since then their music has become somewhat more agressive, and they have acquired a guitarist, Alain. He played in several bands in France until he moved to Brighton and was a founder member of The Squares. He then moved to Coventry and joined Bron Area after a jam. The music of this period is catalogued in part two.
Fragile Sentences (ASR 012, 1981, Ep 7”)
Fragile Sentences – Green Avenue/The Unfortunate Reply/System
Steven Parker: Vocals, Keyboards, Recorder. Martin Packwood: Bass, Vocals, Recorder.
Recorded at Woodbine Street in Nov/Dec 1980. Produced by Bron Area and John Rivers.
Different Phrases (Glass 012, 1982, 12”)
Different Phrases/You Would be Amazed/Dancing
Martin Packwood: Vocals, Bass, Keyboards. Steven Parker: Vocals, Keyboards.
Help from: Steven Bialik: Saxophone. Christopher Dunne: Drums.
Les Arbes/Love Stories/As Midday Screams/This Year/Dancing/Sometimes in Water .../Caught then Drowned Affection/Elegy to Innocence/Secret Places/In Victory/Separate Rooms
Martin Packwood, Steven Parker with help from: Chris Dunne: Drums. Steve Biolik: Saxophone, Liz Seal [Martyn Bates’ wife]: Voice. John A Rivers and Jonathan dee: Studio.
Compilations
Facet 1 ( ?, 1981, C?/Magazine)
Drift Away/Fragile Sentences
The Wonderful World of Glass Volume One (Glass 010, 1981, Lp)
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