Slowdive Biography
Slowdive was a dream pop / shoegaze band formed in 1989, lasting until 1995. The band was formed in Reading, Berkshire, England and signed to Creation Records in the UK. Initially championed by the British music press, the band scored a UK top forty entry with their debut album Just For A Day. The band consisted of Rachel Goswell (vocals/guitar), Neil Halstead (vocals/guitar), Nick Chaplin (bass), Christian Savill (guitar), Simon Scott (drums, 1990 until early 1994) and Ian McCutcheon (drums, 1994 onwards). Goswell and Halstead had known each other since early childhood in Reading, Berkshire. Initial demos were released as the Slowdive EP in late 1990 - the band's sound was influenced by the Cocteau Twins and Creation labelmates My Bloody Valentine, featuring heavy use of guitar effects and muted vocals. Reviews in Melody Maker and the NME were enthusiastic, and two further well-regarded EPs followed in 1991 (Morningrise & Holding Our Breath). The debut album Just For A Day was written and recorded in six weeks, and was generally felt to be a disappointment. Also, the UK music press had started to pick up on the american grunge scene, and the more introspective sounds of Slowdive, labelmates Ride, Chapterhouse and other "shoegazing" bands had fallen from critical favour. American label SBK pushed back the release of the album after a disastrous viral marketing campaign (involving vandalism of a public statue). In early 1992 the band toured the USA with Ride, and returned to the UK to record a second album. The following album, Souvlaki, is probably the band's most popular and well-received record. Two songs featured contributions from Brian Eno, "Souvlaki Space Station" was influenced by dub reggae, tracks such as "Dagger" and "Here She Comes" were indications of the country-rock direction Halstead and Goswell would take a few years later, and several songs such as "When The Sun Hits" and "Alison" continued the style of the first album, with better songwriting. Initial copies of the UK version came with Blue Day, a compilation of most of the early EP tracks which was originally released as a separate album in Japan and some European countries. Later in the year the band released 5ep, four songs which showed the influence of ambient techno - the lead track "In Mind" was remixed by Bandulu and Reload (both then signed to Creation's dance label). As with the first album, SBK delayed release, and the band found themselves touring the USA in the summer of 1993, supporting Catherine Wheel, with no product to promote. The US version of Souvlaki was eventually released in early 1994, and included "Some Velvet Morning" (originally recorded for the
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Slowdive Albums
Title | Release | ||
---|---|---|---|
1 | Souvlaki (bonus disc) | 2005 | |
2 | Souvlaki | 1994 | |
3 | Just For A Day | 1991 | |
4 | Pygmalion | ||
5 | Catch the Breeze | ||
6 | El Principe | ||
7 | Gas Nation |
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