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Vim: There aren't any sheep in Mongolia!
Den: That's a good name for a band...
Bad News by Bad News © 2004 Parlophone Records Ltd.
Naked But For Glasses By Andrew Burns Origin: I am a wearer of spectacles and there is no denying that occasionally on getting undressed my glasses have been the last item of attire left. Not to put too fine a point on it (or scare anyone away) this has been commented on, and such comment, to my ear, resulted in a good name for a band. Chris Appleton in the mid to late 80’s had been the creative force behind psychedelic dance act Nipple Tickle. As the 80’s turned to the 90’s he was looking to add more of a pop sensibility to his post- Acid House electronica. Appleton found this sensibility in songwriter Luke Maguire. Maguire’s 60’s inspired, metropolitan infused brand of pop hooks laid over Appleton’s club friendly dance beats were infectious and had the crossover appeal Appleton had been searching for. When they added Maguire’s then girlfriend, the impossibly beautiful Freja Pedersen to the collective, the Danish singer’s breathy, lightly accented vocals completed the picture. Their first single as Naked But For Glasses was “Induced Sun” in 1991 and was picked up eagerly by club DJs across the UK, leading to it reaching No. 38 on the UK pop chart. They returned 6 months later with “Goodbye Privacy”, the first single from their self-titled first album. This absurdly infectious track was their real breakthrough, just missing out on the UK Top Ten as well as being a hit across Europe. The album was top 3 in the UK and really cemented their position in that first vanguard of what we would later call Britpop. While the rest of their Britpop contemporaries eschewed the Acid House dance aesthetic in favour of a rockier outlook, Naked But For Glasses ploughed their own furrow. They returned in 1994 with their second album “Cloud Cover”. Cloud Cover had been recorded during the breakdown of Pedersen and Maguire’s relationship and while this made promoting the album quite tense (colossal understatement!) it was a massive hit across Asia and Europe and even made some impact in the US. When Pedersen left it looked like time had been called on Naked But For Glasses, but Appleton and Maguire returned with a third album, 1997’s “Flatpack Love” that featured a series of guest female vocalists, most notably perhaps Fiona McPherson of Glaswegian all-girl punk band 9th Earl of Scandal. Her track, “Crazy Confectious” was the most successful release from the album, though, although it still stands up as a good listen even today, Flatpack Love is by some distance Naked But For Glasses’ weakest selling album. Nearly 5 years passed before they came back again in 2002 with the album “Bubble Wrap”. On vocal duties, this time for the whole album, was Donna Burton of Kiwi girl group Might as Maze.This decision lent a much more cohesive feel to this album. The lead single from Bubble Wrap, the achingly sad “Bound By Pain” is their biggest hit to date (though say that quietly in the presence of Freja Pedersen). With Pedersen persuaded back into the studio for the fifth album, “Waterloo Sunscreen” was a triumphant return for the original lineup and garnered two of their biggest hits (after Bound By Pain- sorry Freja!) in “Framed Summer” and “Mug Of Love”. Naked But For Glasses are rumoured to be back in the studio now working on their 6th album.
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Dead Orchid
By Andrew Burns Origin: Neither my partner nor I are what you might call "gardeners". Even house plants are, frankly, in mortal peril in our care. We have an orchid. It's dead. Nuff said. Dead Orchid formed in the summer of 1987 when David Fowler, Norman Shaker and Pete Davis (then playing together as Spoof Elephant) met vocalist Lisa Denton. Her ethereal, other worldly, haunting voice was the perfect match for Fowler’s enigmatic lyrical poetry and when this was layered over Davis’ shimmering, unpredictable, heavily distorted guitars, magic happened. The studio was Fowler’s real instrument and on “British Values”, their first album, he gave full reign to his perfectionism to produce an era-defining sonic revelation. The reliance on what could be achieved in the studio meant they were never more than a competent live act. Visually always something less than dynamic, the need for immense concentration to reproduce their complex signature sound on stage led to them being dubbed shoegazers along with the likes of My Bloody Valentine, in whose wake Dead Orchid definitely sailed. Work began on the second album towards the end of 1989 and, despite the rumours (in the NMM in particular) that Fowler’s iron grip on the day to day was crippling the production as well as relationships in the band, “Middling Medicine” arrived in October 1990, riding the wave of shoegazing’s peak. Middling Medicine comfortably outsold it’s predecessor at the time but it has been viewed unkindly in hindsight. The previously described enigmatic lyrics had drifted dangerously close to nonsense, making Van Dyke Parks sound like Richard Dawkins by comparison. The signature heavy distortion was beginning to sound like white noise. The third album that was going to reestablish Dead Orchid’s reputation has never materialised, though it was rumoured to be in the can in 1996. Davis and Shaker have both moved onto other projects (Death Pete Davis and Noble Cabbage respectively) while Fowler and Denton remain singularly associated with Dead Orchid. Dead Orchid’s loyalists are still hopeful that the unheard album will appear ahead of a triumphant return. Might As Maze
By Andrew Burns Origin: Another donation from my daughters, my eldest this time. This is something she used to say a lot, an amalgamation of "Might as well" and "May as well". Might as mays has turned into a family saying. Should I turn it into an imaginary band? Might as mays... Might As Maze are an all girl pop group who formed in Christchurch in New Zealand in 1998. Inspired by the global success of the Spice Girls undoubtedly they also cite influences as diverse as Nirvana, Bananarama, Siouxsi Sioux, Bowie (of course) and Chrissie Hind. These influences give their brand of pop a harder edge than that of many girl groups of a similar vintage. Karen Harper, Tania Showell and Donna Burton were all unknowns when record producer Jon Ropata brought them together and introduced Ella Sparks into the mix. Sparks had been a child actor on daytime TV in New Zealand and Ropata saw star potential in her. He was right, but his master stroke was in not promoting her alone, instead enveloping her in a girl band. Their debut single, the absurdly catchy "Back Pocket" was a hit in New Zealand and Australia, but it was the second single "Cat House" that was the breakout hit that would make them stars internationally. Their first album "This Is Us" was a colossal hit in Japan and across Europe, fans in the UK in particular embracing this edgier style of pop. "This Is Us" focussed on Sparks as the lead vocalist, but by the time 2001's follow up "Dark Sunshine" appeared a more egalitarian order had been established with all four members sharing lead vocal responsibilities, Donna Burton in particular revelatory on the title track. The single "Dark Sunshine" remains their biggest hit globally. A gruelling world tour was undertaken to promote Dark Sunshine and the toll this took on all of them meant that by the time "Wonder Women" their third album was released in 2004 the group was already on hiatus. Wonder Women's sales can be directly correlated with the amount of promotion it received- there was very little of either. While Might As Maze have never officially disbanded they remain on that hiatus to this day. Time for a reunion tour...? |
AuthorAndrew Burns really should know better and has so many more important things to be doing than writing this drivel. Please offer him no encouragement either via social media or through the contact page Archives
September 2017
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