Chakk were an
industrial funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in African American communities in the mid-1960s when musicians created a rhythmic, danceable new form of music through a mixture of various music genres that were popular among African Americans in the mi ...
band from
Sheffield
Sheffield is a city in South Yorkshire, England, whose name derives from the River Sheaf which runs through it. The city serves as the administrative centre of the City of Sheffield. It is historically part of the West Riding of Yorkshire ...
, who existed from 1981 until 1987.
[Chakk](_blank)
(AllMusic) Members were Alan Cross,
Mark Brydon
Mark Errington Brydon is an English bassist, guitarist, composer, arranger, recording engineer, remix artist and producer best known as a member of the group Moloko.
Previous work
He comes from Sunderland, England, but established himself in ...
, Dee Boyle, Sim Lister, Jake Harries and Jon Stuart.
[Chakk](_blank)
(discogs.com) The band never achieved commercial success, but have been noted for their wide influence on later British dance music, particularly via Fon Studios.
[Simpson, Dave (2011)]
'Catalyst bands': What do you mean, you've never heard of them?
, ''The Guardian
''The Guardian'' is a British daily newspaper. It was founded in 1821 as ''The Manchester Guardian'', and changed its name in 1959. Along with its sister papers '' The Observer'' and '' The Guardian Weekly'', ''The Guardian'' is part of the ...
'', 21 July 2011. Retrieved 13 October 2012 Mark Brydon later went on to form and achieved success with
Moloko
Moloko () were an Irish-English electronic music duo formed in Sheffield, England, consisting of vocalist Róisín Murphy and producer Mark Brydon. Blending elements of electronica and dance music, they are best known for their UK top 10 sin ...
.
History
Chakk's first single, "Out of the Flesh", produced by
Richard H. Kirk, on
Cabaret Voltaire's Doublevision label, reached number three on the independent charts in 1984. The band recorded a
John Peel
John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey (DJ) and radio presenter. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly fr ...
session on 17 October 1984 ("Cut The Dust", "Sedative Ends", "No. 3 Sound", "Mother Tongues"). Their second single "You", released in 1985, was also an indie hit, reaching number 14. They then signed an album deal with
MCA Records
MCA Records was an American record label owned by MCA Inc., which later became part of Universal Music Group.
Pre-history
MCA Inc., a powerful talent agency and a television production company, entered the recorded music business in 1962 w ...
, who released ''10 Days in an Elevator''. The initial version of the album was rejected and a rerecorded version was finally released in 1986; it did not sell well and the band was dropped later that year.
[ They released a few more singles and split in 1987.
Non-MCA recordings from "You" onwards were released on their own Fon Records label ("Fuck Off ]Nazis
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in N ...
" or "Fear of Nazis
Nazism ( ; german: Nazismus), the common name in English for National Socialism (german: Nationalsozialismus, ), is the far-right totalitarian political ideology and practices associated with Adolf Hitler and the Nazi Party (NSDAP) in N ...
", from a piece of 1940s graffiti on a wall in Sheffield),[Young, Rob (2005) ''Warp: Labels Unlimited'', Black Dog Publishing, , p. 29] which was started by the band with their manager, Amrik Rai (formerly a journalist for ''New Musical Express
''New Musical Express'' (''NME'') is a British music, film, gaming, and culture website and brand. Founded as a newspaper in 1952, with the publication being referred to as a 'rock inkie', the NME would become a magazine that ended up as a f ...
''). Rai also ran a record shop of the same name for a time.
Brydon built Fon Studios with the MCA advance money (reportedly £100,000) in 1985[Lazell, Barry (1998) ''Indie Hits 1980–1989'', Cherry Red Books, , p. 39][Fish, Mick (2002) ''Industrial Evolution: Through the 80s with Cabaret Voltaire'', SAF Publishing Ltd, , p. 172] as it was cheaper to build a studio in Sheffield than to record in London. Fon Studios and the Fon Force production team became important to Sheffield music and paved the way for labels like Warp
Warp, warped or warping may refer to:
Arts and entertainment Books and comics
* WaRP Graphics, an alternative comics publisher
* ''Warp'' (First Comics), comic book series published by First Comics based on the play ''Warp!''
* Warp (comics), a ...
.[ Brydon did significant later work in production (including "]House Arrest
In justice and law, house arrest (also called home confinement, home detention, or, in modern times, electronic monitoring) is a measure by which a person is confined by the authorities to their residence. Travel is usually restricted, if al ...
" by Krush
Krush were a UK dance music group, who had a crossover hit single with "House Arrest" in 1987.
Career
The group consisted of musicians Mark Gamble, Cassius Campbell and record producers Mark Brydon and Robert Gordon. Ruth Joy was the featured ...
) and started Moloko
Moloko () were an Irish-English electronic music duo formed in Sheffield, England, consisting of vocalist Róisín Murphy and producer Mark Brydon. Blending elements of electronica and dance music, they are best known for their UK top 10 sin ...
with Róisín Murphy
Róisín Marie Murphy ( , ; born 5 July 1973) is an Irish singer, songwriter, and record producer. She first became known in the 1990s as one half of the pop duo Moloko alongside English musician Mark Brydon. After the breakup of Moloko, she ...
.
Aftermath
In 2007, a digital compilation of the band's FON Records' singles was released.
Chakk were featured in Eve Wood's documentary films on the Sheffield music scene, ''Made in Sheffield'' (2009) and ''The Beat Is the Law'' (2011).[City music beat goes on into new decades]
", ''Sheffield Telegraph
The ''Sheffield Telegraph'' is a weekly newspaper published in Sheffield, England. Founded in 1855 as the ''Sheffield Daily Telegraph'', it became known as the ''Sheffield Telegraph'' in 1938.
History
The ''Sheffield Telegraph'' was founded i ...
'', 2 November 2009. Retrieved 13 October 2012[City bands are back on the beat]
, ''Sheffield Telegraph
The ''Sheffield Telegraph'' is a weekly newspaper published in Sheffield, England. Founded in 1855 as the ''Sheffield Daily Telegraph'', it became known as the ''Sheffield Telegraph'' in 1938.
History
The ''Sheffield Telegraph'' was founded i ...
'', 18 November 2011. Retrieved 13 October 2012
In 2016, the band's debut album ''Clocks and Babies'' was remastered and reissued on CD and digitally.
Discography
Albums
* ''Clocks and Babies'' (cassette, 1982)
* ''10 Days in an Elevator'' (LP+EP, MCA MCG-6006, 1986)
* ''Beneath the Dancefloor – Basement Tapes'' (Chakk 1983–1984) (mini-LP, Fon FONX-6, 1987)
* ''Out of the Flesh: The Singles'' (download only, iTunes, 2007)
Singles
* "Out of the Flesh (Mix I)" (6:00) // "Out of the Flesh (Mix II)" (3:53) / "Out of the Flesh (Mix III)" (5:06) (12", Doublevision DVR-6, 1984) – UK Indie no. 4
Collaboration
* (with The Swanhunters) "Bloodsport" (12", Fon SWAN-3, 1986)Swanhunters, With the Chakk – Bloodsport (Vinyl) at Discogs
/ref>
:"Bloodsport (The Full Report)" // "Bloodsport (State of Emergency)" / "Bloodsport (Too Little Too Late)"
References
External links
*
* statistics and tagging at Last.FM
Last.fm is a music website founded in the United Kingdom in 2002. Using a music recommender system called "Audioscrobbler", Last.fm builds a detailed profile of each user's musical taste by recording details of the tracks the user listens to, e ...
{{Authority control
British industrial music groups
Musical groups from Sheffield
Musical groups established in 1981