Wikipedia

Dark Star (band)

"I am the Sun" redirects here. For the Swans song, seeThe Great Annihilator.
This article is about the 1998–2001 rock band. For the electronic music trio, seeDarkstar (band).For other groups with similar names, seeDark Star (disambiguation).

Dark Starwere anEnglishpsychedelic rockband, formed in 1996 in London. The band was composed of vocalist/guitaristChristian Hayes,drummerDavid Francoliniand bassistLaurence O'Keefe.

Dark Star
OriginLondon,England
GenresAlternative rock,indie rock,psychedelic rock
Years active1996–2001
LabelsHarvest Records
Past membersChristian Hayes
David Francolini
Laurence O'Keefe

History

edit

Origins

edit

All three members of Dark Star had been members of the psychedelic rock bandLevitationbetween 1990 and 1994, with David Francolini also previously having played with Something Pretty Beautiful andThe Blue Aeroplanes,Christian Hayes withCardiacs,Ring,Panixphere andThe Dave Howard Singers,and Laurence O'Keefe withThe Jazz Butcher.Following the demise of Levitation, Hayes began working withHeather NovaandAll About Eve'sJulianne Reganand O'Keefe collaborated withDead Can Dance'sBrendan Perry,whilst Francolini stopped playing due to disillusionment with the music industry (although he did help Scottish bandOctopusget signed toFood Recordsand produced their debut albumFrom A to B).

In 1996, Francolini suggested to Hayes and O'Keefe that the three of them should start working together again, stating that "there was always this sense of unfinished business". The trio booked a studio and started rehearsing the day after they went to seeSonic Youthplay atThe ForuminKentish Townin April that year. After advertising for and auditioning several singers includingDaisy ChainsawandQueenadreenaguitaristCrispin Gray,[1]Hayes took over vocals.[2]Francolini commented that the singers they auditioned "seemed to suck the power out of it... it was weird. Really good people we worked with, you know? But once they opened their gob, it was like the power of the group was gone".[1]

The band first signed a publishing deal withWarner/Chappell Music.When the A&R scout they were dealing with there moved to work atEMI,their first action in their new job was to sign the band.[3]

First EPs andTwenty Twenty Sound

edit

Dark Star released their debut EPGraceadelicain 1998 onHarvest Records,theprogressive rocksubsidiary of EMI. They released their second EPI Am The Sunin 1999, along with their debut singleAbout 3am.

The band released their debut album,Twenty Twenty Soundon 21 June 1999. Produced bySteve Lillywhite,the album was recorded live, with Hayes stating that the band "recorded it all live so basically we just got in there, set up and did what we always do and got the best take. It's the best way to record a record really. If you haven't seen us live you may not think that, but it's exactly like we play it—there's no overdubs. It's basically what we do, it's what we play". Francolini described the band's sound as "Levitation, with all the chrome stripped off and painted matt black", with Hayes stating that he personally thought they sounded "likeHawkwindandThe Pixies".[3]The album was followed by re-releases of "Graceadelica" and "I Am The Sun" (albeit in remixed form), which gave the band two Top 40UK Singles Charthits.

Unreleased second album and split

edit

Following the promotional and touring cycle ofTwenty Twenty Sound,the band recorded two tracks with record producer and remixerDanny Saber(who remixed "Graceadelica" for single release) inLos Angeles.Seemingly scrapping that session,[1]the band entered the studio later that year to record their second album. Songs including "Roman Road", "The Last Thing She Ever Said", "Clicky" and "Three Seconds" were played during the band's shows in 2000 including festival dates such asReading and Leeds FestivalsandT In The Parkas well as a live show recorded forSTVshowBoxed Set.[4]

Despite lead-off singleStrangers And Madmenbeing premiered on theBBC Radio 1showThe Evening Session,the band parted ways with EMI shortly after. Commenting on the split with EMI, Francolini later revealed that the band "experienced losing a couple of key players who left the company and that coupled with the fact that we resolutely towed our own musical line, led to the parting of the ways".[5]

A new record deal was tentatively sought, however the band subsequently split in 2001 with no announcement, to pursue different projects. The single and album were left unreleased until 2023.

Post-split

edit

David Francolini returned to Bristol and set up arecording studio,as well as forming a new studio-based band with singer Anthony Tombling Jr, calledDragons.Although news of the project first emerged in 2003, the band's debut albumHere Are the Rosesdidn't surface until 2007.[6][7]Early live shows to promote the album featured both Hayes and O'Keefe. Dragons disbanded in 2009. In the interim, Francolini had produced and played on the 2005Julian CopealbumCitizen Cain'dunder the pseudonym Mitch Razor.[8]

Christian Hayes toured with thePet Shop Boysas live guitarist (reproducing parts originated byJohnny Marr) and worked as guitar tech/tour/production manager for the likes ofMy Bloody Valentine,Kula ShakerandDavid Cassidy.[9][6]In 2007, he began releasing archive releases of previously unreleased solo material (recording during and shortly after his time with Levitation) under the name of Mikrokosmos via Ingatia Recordings. A trio of releases,In the Heart of the Home,The Seven Starsand final installment in 2014Terra Familiarhave been issued.[10]

In 2011, Hayes organised and compiled the tribute recordLeader of the Starry Skiesin aid ofCardiacsfrontmanTim Smith,who had suffered two strokes in 2008 which left him paralysed down one side of his body and unable to speak.[11]Hayes also toured with a stage version ofMacbethin 2011 and 2012, produced by Platform 4 and described as "a tautpsychodramathat crackles with a wild electricity, brought alive by the sonic experiments of composer and guitarist Bic Hayes and sound designer Jules Bushel ".[12]More recently Hayes has been involved in several improvisational instrumental psychedelic bands inBrighton,including ZOFFF[13]and LSD-25[14]and formed both the psychedelic duo M U M M Y and the audio/visual project Cuts with his partner, Jo Spratley.[15][16]

Laurence O'Keefe went on to work as aroadieandsession bassist,working with the likes ofSophia,Dead Can DanceandMartina Topley-Bird.[6]

Belated release of second album...out flew reason

edit

An unmastered seven-track version of the scrapped second album, titledZurichand omitting "Roman Road" and "Valentine", had been leaked within a couple of years of the split. Titled. A later nine-track version of the album appeared onSoundClouddescribed as "[the] Unreleased 2nd album from Dark Star",[17]which included the previously omitted tracks.

In January 2015, Christian Hayes appeared on Brighton & Hove Community Radio showThe Real Music Club,where he stated that he hoped to release the second album that year. He played the previously unreleased songThe Only Way,which was set to appear on the release but wasn't on the originally sequenced planned release. He confirmed that there were no plans for the band to reunite.[18]In January 2022, Hayes guested onThe C86 Showwhere he shared news that the long shelved second album had recently been finished and was ready for mastering.[19]

On 15 February 2023 the release of a then-recently finished second album was announced onBandcamp,with a release date of 21 February 2023. The finished album was titled...out flew reasonand contained seven of the nine tracks from theZurichleak, adding two more for a nine-track album.[20]

The seven tracks included from previous leaks were recorded atRockfield Studiosin 2000, with the further two added tracks recorded atWestlake Recording Studiosduring the scrapped sessions with Danny Sabre in 2001. The description included on Bandcamp also promised that new Dark Star material was to follow in 2023[20](although to date this has not emerged).

Cover art

edit

The cover art on all Dark Star releases up toI Am the Sunin 2000 was byTom Phillips,an artist fromPeckham,South London.The images he used were based on his workA Humument,an illustrative and textual reworking of an 1892Victoriannovel.Phillips had previously contributed similar artwork for the sleeve of theKing CrimsonalbumStarless and Bible Black.

Members

edit

Discography

edit

Albums

edit

Singles and EPs

edit
  • Graceadelica(EP) (1998)
  • I Am the Sun(EP) (1999)
  • "About 3am" (single) (1999, #50)
  • "Graceadelica" (remix single) (2000, #25)
  • "I Am the Sun" (remix single) (2000, #31)[22]

Bootlegs

edit
  • Zurich(early mixes of second album) (2003)

References

edit
  1. ^abc"Dark Star Interview".13 April 2004. Archived from the original on 13 April 2004.Retrieved20 December2017.{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  2. ^"Pop: The general theory of relativity".Independent.co.uk.9 April 1999.Retrieved20 December2017.
  3. ^ab"Interview with Christian Hayes".13 September 2005. Archived from the original on 13 September 2005.Retrieved20 December2017.{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  4. ^OHMrecordings (5 November 2006)."Dark Star - Roman Road - Boxed Set".Archivedfrom the original on 21 December 2021.Retrieved20 December2017– via YouTube.
  5. ^"Alive®:: Alive.co.uk:: Interviews".20 October 2007. Archived from the original on 20 October 2007.Retrieved20 December2017.{{cite web}}:CS1 maint: bot: original URL status unknown (link)
  6. ^abc"Dark Star News".7 February 2006. Archived fromthe originalon 7 February 2006.Retrieved20 December2017.
  7. ^"Dragons – Here Are The Roses - Album Reviews - musicOMH".musicomh.3 June 2007.Retrieved20 December2017.
  8. ^"Julian Cope - Citizen Cain'd".Discogs.January 2005.Retrieved20 December2017.
  9. ^"L&Si Online - Lighting&Sound International".18 July 2007. Archived fromthe originalon 18 July 2007.Retrieved20 December2017.
  10. ^Recordings, Ignatia."Ignatia Recordings".Ignatia Recordings.Archived fromthe originalon 19 March 2016.Retrieved20 December2017.
  11. ^Gittins, Ian (3 February 2011)."Cardiacs tribute album to raise money for paralysed singer Tim Smith".The Guardian.Retrieved20 December2017– via theguardian.
  12. ^"Platform 4".platform4.org.Archived fromthe originalon 24 June 2016.Retrieved20 December2017.
  13. ^"KOZFEST MMXVI, by ZOFFF".ZOFFF.Retrieved20 December2017.
  14. ^"The Real Music Club Brighton".therealmusicclub.Archived fromthe originalon 27 February 2018.Retrieved20 December2017.
  15. ^"EP1, by CUTS".Invada.Archived fromthe originalon 15 September 2017.Retrieved20 December2017.
  16. ^"Invada Records UK".facebook.Archived fromthe originalon 26 February 2022.Retrieved20 December2017.
  17. ^"Zurich - Dark Star".
  18. ^Roy Weard."TheRealMusicClub105_060115".Retrieved20 December2017– via Internet Archive.
  19. ^"Christian Hayes or Bic Hayes special - Dark Star, Levitation & Ring".19 January 2022.
  20. ^abc"...out flew reason by dark star".15 February 2023.
  21. ^"Chart Log UK: Asher D - Dyverse".Archived fromthe originalon 19 October 2015.Retrieved2015-11-01.
  22. ^"Official Charts Company".Officialcharts.Retrieved20 December2017.
edit
Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=Dark_Star_(band)&oldid=1275241546"