Fila Brazillia is an English electronica duo from

Kingston upon Hull Kingston upon Hull, usually abbreviated to Hull, is a port city and unitary authority in the East Riding of Yorkshire, England. It lies upon the River Hull at its confluence with the Humber Estuary, inland from the North Sea and south-ea ...

, Yorkshire, England, formed in 1990 by Steve Cobby and David McSherry.

History

Their early albums were released on

Pork Recordings Pork Recordings is a record label based in Kingston upon Hull, East Yorkshire, England, that specialises in electronica, mostly in the downtempo or chill-out styles. Formed in the early 1990s by David "Porky" Brennand and Steve Cobby, its mo ...

, also based in Hull: '' Old Codes New Chaos'', '' Maim That Tune'', '' Mess'', ''Black Market Gardening'', '' Luck Be a Weirdo Tonight'' and ''Power Clown''. After creating their own music label with Sim Lister, Twentythree Records, they released further albums ''A Touch of Cloth'', ''Jump Leads'', ''The Life And Times of Phoebus Brumal'', ''Dicks'' and ''Retrospective''. They have also released two DJ mix albums, '' Another Late Night: Fila Brazillia'', for Azuli Records' "

Another Late Night ''Late Night Tales'' and its predecessor ''Another Late Night'' are the names of two related series of artist-curated compilation albums released by Azuli Records in the UK until 2009 when the independent record label Night Time Stories took o ...

" series, and ''Another Fine Mess: Fila Brazillia'', and two collections of remixes: ''Brazilification'' and ''B2''. Their collaborations include working with

Harold Budd Harold Montgomory Budd (May 24, 1936December 8, 2020) was an American composer and poet. Born in Los Angeles and raised in the Mojave Desert, he became a respected composer in the minimalist and avant-garde scene of Southern California in the ...

and

Bill Nelson Clarence William Nelson II (born September 29, 1942) is an American politician and attorney serving as the administrator of the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA). Nelson previously served as a United States Senator from Flo ...

to release ''Three White Roses & A Budd'' (Twentythree Records, 2002). They co-produced the first

Twilight Singers The Twilight Singers are an American indie rock band. The group was formed in 1997 by Greg Dulli as a side project during a hiatus from his group The Afghan Whigs. After the Afghan Whigs disbanded, Dulli used The Twilight Singers as his own art ...

LP ''

Twilight as Played by The Twilight Singers ''Twilight as Played by The Twilight Singers'' is the first album by The Twilight Singers, released by Columbia Records in 2000. Critical reception ''The Washington Post'' wrote that "the hushed, claustrophobic approach to soul music recalls th ...

'' with

Greg Dulli Greg Dulli (born May 11, 1965) is an American musician from Hamilton, Ohio. Debuting as a member of the rock band the Afghan Whigs in 1986, Dulli has been a member of the Twilight Singers, Gutter Twins, and in 2020 released his debut solo albu ...

in 2001. Cobby and McSherry have produced more than 70 remixes for artists including

Black Uhuru Black Uhuru is a Jamaican reggae group formed in 1972, initially as Uhuru ( Swahili for 'freedom'). The group has undergone several line-up changes over the years, with Derrick "Duckie" Simpson as the mainstay. They had their most successful per ...

, Busta Rhymes,

DJ Food DJ Food is an electronic music project currently headed by Kevin Foakes (also known as "Strictly Kev"). Originally conceived by the members of Coldcut on the Ninja Tune independent record label, the project started in 1990 on the premise of pro ...

Lamb Lamb or The Lamb may refer to: * A young sheep * Lamb and mutton, the meat of sheep Arts and media Film, television, and theatre * ''The Lamb'' (1915 film), a silent film starring Douglas Fairbanks Sr. in his screen debut * ''The Lamb'' (1918 ...

, Radiohead and

The Orb The Orb are an English electronic music group founded in 1988 by Alex Paterson and Jimmy Cauty. Known for their psychedelic sound, the Orb developed a cult following among clubbers "coming down" from drug-induced highs. Their influential 19 ...

Bill Hicks William Melvin Hicks (December 16, 1961 – February 26, 1994) was an American stand-up comedian, social critic, satirist, and musician. His material—encompassing a wide range of social issues including religion, politics, and philosophy—wa ...

, the controversial American stand-up comedian, satirist and social critic, "appears" on Fila Brazillia's album '' Maim That Tune'' (1996) and the album is dedicated to Hicks. Their music has made its mark both on small-screen blockbusters (such as '' CSI'' and ''

Sex and the City ''Sex and the City'' is an American romantic comedy-drama television series created by Darren Star for HBO. An adaptation of Candace Bushnell's newspaper column and 1996 book anthology of the same name, the series premiered in the United Stat ...

'') and cult cinema films such as '' Dogtown and Z-Boys'', '' Riding Giants'' and '' Once in a Lifetime: The Extraordinary Story of the New York Cosmos'', a 2006 documentary about the

New York Cosmos New York Cosmos may refer to * New York Cosmos (1970–1985), a team in the North American Soccer League (then the top-tier soccer league in the United States and Canada) * New York Cosmos (2010), a team playing since 2020 in the National Independ ...

soccer team. One of their better-known songs, ''A Zed and two L's'', appears on '' Jam'', a black comedy sketch show by British satirist Chris Morris. Their song "Here Comes Pissy Willy" from the ''Power Clown'' album featured as the theme to the ''

James Whale James Whale (22 July 1889 – 29 May 1957) was an English film director, theatre director and actor, who spent the greater part of his career in Hollywood. He is best remembered for several horror films: ''Frankenstein'' (1931), '' The O ...

Show'' on

Talk Radio Talk radio is a radio format containing discussion about topical issues and consisting entirely or almost entirely of original spoken word content rather than outside music. Most shows are regularly hosted by a single individual, and often featu ...

in the late 1990s. After releasing their ''Retrospective'' album in 2006, Cobby and McSherry quietly ended their longtime partnership. Currently, McSherry is a lecturer in Sound and Music Production at the

University of Lincoln , mottoeng = Freedom through wisdom , established = 1861 – Hull School of Art1905 – Endsleigh College1976 – Hull College1992 – University of Humberside1996 – University of Lincolnshire and Humberside2001 � ...

. Cobby went on in late 2006 to form Steel Tiger Records with Sim Lister. Over the course of 2007, the label saw various digital releases by J*S*T*A*R*S (Cobby and Lister), Peacecorps (Cobby and guitarist Rich Arthurs) and by

The Cutler The Cutler is an electronica collaboration from Kingston upon Hull, Yorkshire. Formed by Steve Cobby, formerly half of Fila Brazillia, and David 'Porky' Brennand, founder of Pork Recordings, they play electronica and Dub music. Formed in 200 ...

(Cobby and ex-head of

David "Porky" Brennand). The first formal album by

on Steel Tiger Records was released on 7 July 2008, and the most recent "Everything Is Touching Everything Else" ( Steel Tiger Records ST016, 10 June 2013) – with vocals by Isobel Helen, Archie Heselwood, Andrew Taylor and Little Glitches – distributed by Kudos Records Ltd. In 2013 Steve Cobby provided the soundtrack for the Hull '

UK City of Culture UK City of Culture is a designation given to a city (or a local area from 2025) in the United Kingdom for a period of one calendar year, during which the successful bidder hosts cultural festivities through culture-led regeneration for the ye ...

2017' bid film - 'This City Belongs to Everyone', produced by Nova Studios - on 20 November 2013

, East Riding of Yorkshire, was announced as the winning City, and so as UK City of Culture 2017. After a 16 year hiatus, on 6 March 2020, the band returned with the release of the MMXX EP.

Discography

Albums

* '' Old Codes New Chaos'' (1994) * '' Maim That Tune'' (1995) * '' Mess'' (1996) * '' Black Market Gardening'' (1996) * '' Luck Be a Weirdo Tonight'' (1997) * ''Power Clown'' (1998) * '' A Touch of Cloth'' (1999) * ''Jump Leads'' (2002) * ''The Life and Times of Phoebus Brumal'' (2004) * '' Dicks'' (2004)

Singles

*''Mermaids'' (

, 1991) *''Rankine'' (

, 1992) *''Fila Funk/Rankine (Live At Bounce)'' (

, 1993) *''Pots & Pans/The Sheriff'' (

, 1993) *''Slacker'' (

, 1994) *''A Zed & Two L’s/Harmonicas Are Shite'' (

, 1995) *''Soft Music Under Stars/Blood'' (

, 1996) *''Wigs, Bifocals And Nurishment'' (

, 1997) *''The Speewah/Feathery Legs'' (

, 1998) *''Bovine Funk/Here Comes Pissy Willy'' (

, 1998) *''Throwing Down A Shape'' (

, 1998) *''FB@V&A'' (

, 2001) *''Fila Brazillia Versus A Certain Ratio'' (

, 2003) *''Fila Brazillia Remix Beef Wellington & DJ Razor'' (

, 2003) *''The Goggle Box'' (

, 2004) *''Neanderthal'' (Twentythree Records, 2007) *''One Track Mind'' (Twentythree Records, 2007)

EPs

*''Sycot Motion'' (Mindfood, 1996) *''Ridden Pony'' (

, 1999) *''Bitten Bugs'' (

, 1999) *''Spill The Beans'' (

, 2001) *''Three White Roses & A Budd'' (with

and

) (Twentythree Records, 2002 – recorded 2000) *''Saucy Joints'' (Twentythree Records, 2002) *''We Build Arks'' (Twentythree Records, 2002) *''One Track Mind'' (Twentythree Records, 2007) *''MMXX'' (Twentythree Records, 2020)

Compilations

*'' Music for Freelance'' (1999) *''Retrospective'' (Twentythree Records, 2006)

Remixes

*''Brazilification (Remixes 95–99)'' (Kudos, 1999) *''21 Brazilliant Remixes (B2)'' (Twentythree Records, 2003) *''Soul Sauce'' on ''Verve Remixed 2'' ( Verve Music Group, 2003)

DJ mix albums

*'' Another Late Night: Fila Brazillia'' (2001) *''Another Fine Mess: Fila Brazillia'' (2004)

References

"Fila Brazillia, album review – Jump Leads"
by Frank Tope, ''The Guardian'', 8 February 2002, retrieved 16 Feb 2008
"The ultimate summer mix – Europe's hottest dance festivals"
by Matt Munday, ''The Guardian'', 1 June 2002, retrieved 16 Feb 2008
"The BBC Collective – Editor's Review – 'The Sound of Brazil, by way of Hull' – interview with Fila Brazillia"
by Paul Clark, ''BBC'', 22 August 2002, retrieved 16 Feb 2008
"Fila Brazillia (Sonar 97) – DJmag.com's guide to the history of the Sonar Festival, Spain"
''DJmag.com'', 2007, retrieved 16 Feb 2008

by Pascal Wyse, ''The Guardian'', 19 September 2000, retrieved 16 Feb 2008
"Hull's City of Culture bid film revealed to the public"
BBC News article,12 November 2013

External links

Official website
* ttp://www.discogs.com/artist/Fila+Brazillia Fila Brazillia Discography* {{Authority control English electronic music duos Musical groups from Kingston upon Hull Downtempo musicians Trip hop groups