Dome was an English

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of music that emerged in late 1977 in the wake of punk rock. Post-punk musicians departed from punk's fundamental elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a broader, more experiment ...

band, formed in 1980 and consisting of

Bruce Gilbert Bruce Clifford Gilbert (born 18 May 1946) is an English musician. One of the founding members of the influential and experimental art punk band Wire,Strong, Martin C. (2003) ''The Great Indie Discography'', Canongate, , p. 180-182 he branched ...

(guitar, vocals, synthesizer) and

Graham Lewis Graham Lewis (born Edward Graham Lewis, 22 February 1953) is an English musician. He is best known as a bassist, songwriter, and vocalist with punk rock/post-punk band Wire, of which he has been a core member since founding in 1976. Biography ...

(bass, vocals, synthesizer) of

Wire file:Sample cross-section of high tension power (pylon) line.jpg, Overhead power cabling. The conductor consists of seven strands of steel (centre, high tensile strength), surrounded by four outer layers of aluminium (high conductivity). Sample d ...

Background

Gilbert and Lewis formed Dome during Wire's 1980–1984 hiatus. Over its first three albums, Wire's music had progressed from rapid-fire

punk rock Punk rock (also known as simply punk) is a rock music genre that emerged in the mid-1970s. Rooted in 1950s rock and roll and 1960s garage rock, punk bands rejected the corporate nature of mainstream 1970s rock music. They typically produced sh ...

to moody, ambitious

. Dome continued the experimentation, often abandoning traditional song structures in favor of

found sound Found objects are sometimes used in music, often to add unusual percussive elements to a work. Their use in such contexts is as old as music itself, as the original invention of musical instruments almost certainly developed from the sounds of nat ...

s, melodic fragments, and what critics Steven Grand and David Sheridan described as "lurching mechanical noises infrequently keeping a vague beat". Between 1980 and 1981 Dome released three studio albums: ''

Dome A dome () is an architectural element similar to the hollow upper half of a sphere. There is significant overlap with the term cupola, which may also refer to a dome or a structure on top of a dome. The precise definition of a dome has been a m ...

'' (1980), '' Dome 2'' (1980) and ''

Dome 3 ''Dome 3'' is the third studio album by the English post-punk band Dome, released in 1981 by the record label Dome. Content ''Trouser Press'' wrote that ''Dome 3'' "breaks stride" from Dome's previous releases, "lifting the beats of other cu ...

'' (1981), on its own Dome Records label. As well as releasing Dome band albums, Gilbert and Lewis produced and released records by Desmond Simmons (who played on Wire bandmate

Colin Newman Colin John Newman (born 16 September 1954) is an English musician, record producer and record label owner. He is best known as the primary vocalist and songwriter for the post-punk band Wire (band), Wire. Early life Newman was born in Salisbury ...

's solo albums '' A-Z'' and ''

Not To ''Not To'' is the third studio album by Colin Newman, lead singer of post-punk band Wire. It was released in 1982, through record labels Beggars Banquet and 4AD. Like Newman's first solo record '' A-Z'', much of the material on ''Not To'' was r ...

'') and A.C. Marias, on the band's label. An album '' 3R4'' was released in 1980 under the name B.C. Gilbert & G. Lewis as well as a single "Ends With the Sea" in 1981, followed by an EP ''Like This for Ages'' released as Cupol, all on the

4AD 4AD is a British record label owned by Beggars Group. It was founded in London under the name Axis Records by Ivo Watts-Russell and Peter Kent in 1980 as an imprint of Beggars Banquet Records. The name was changed to 4AD after the release of th ...

record label. In 1982 it released ''MZUI (Waterloo Gallery)'', an LP of recordings made at the Waterloo Gallery with Russell Mills. In 1983 Gilbert and Lewis worked with Dome collaborator Angela Conway (aka A.C. Marias) to release ''Whilst Climbing Thieves Vie for Attention'', an LP under the name P'O. The same year, they released an LP ''

Or So It Seems ''Or So It Seems'' is an album by Graham Lewis, Bruce Gilbert and Daniel Miller under the pseudonym Duet Emmo (an anagram of Dome and Mute), released in 1983 by Mute Records. The title track was also released as a 12" single and its b-side "Hear ...

'' under the name Duet Emmo—an anagram of "Dome" and "Mute"—with Daniel Miller, head of

Mute Records Mute Records is a British independent record label owned and founded in 1978 by Daniel Miller (music producer), Daniel Miller. It has featured several prominent musical acts on its roster such as Depeche Mode, Erasure (duo), Erasure, Einstürze ...

, and released ''

Will You Speak This Word ''Will You Speak This Word'' is the fourth studio album by English post-punk band Dome, released in 1982 by Norwegian record label Uniton. Content According to ''Trouser Press'', ''Will You Speak This Word'' "combines some of '' Dome 3s ethni ...

'' a.k.a. ''Dome 4'' on the Uniton label. Wire reformed in 1984, although Dome continued to perform and record occasionally. ''Yclept'', a collection of Dome's later work, was released on WMO in 1998.

Discography

; Studio albums * ''

'' (1980) * '' Dome 2'' (1980) * ''

'' (1981) * ''

'' (1982) * ''Yclept'' (1999) ;; as B.C. Gilbert & G. Lewis * '' 3R4'' (1980) ;; as bcGilbert, gLewis & russellMills * ''MZUI'' (1982) ;; as Cupol * ''Like This for Ages'' (1980) ;; as Duet Emmo * ''

'' (1983) ;; as P'O * ''Whilst Climbing Thieves Vie for Attention'' (1983) ; Compilations and reissues * ''1 + 2'' (1992) * ''3 + 4'' (1992) * ''1-4+5'' (2011) ; Singles * "Jasz" (1981) * "Ends With the Sea" (1981) (as B.C. Gilbert & G. Lewis)

References

External links

* {{Authority control English post-punk music groups English experimental rock groups English rock music duos Wire (band)