A.C. Marias was the name under which

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 ...

collaborator Angela Conway released an album and several singles during the 1980s.

History

The first A.C. Marias release was the "Drop" single, released in July 1981 on Wire's Dome label, and featuring the band's

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 ...

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 ...

.Strong, Martin C. (2003) ''The Great Indie Discography'', Canongate, , p. 193 Conway went on to work with members of Wire as Duet Emmo, releasing the ''Or So It Seems'' album in 1983 on

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 ...

. She subsequently signed a solo contract with the label. As well as providing vocals for Lewis's He Said project in the mid-1980s, Conway's first A.C. Marias release for over five years, "Just Talk", was released in October 1986. She was assisted by Gilbert on most of the recordings.Neate, Wilson
''One of Our Girls (Has Gone Missing)'' Review
,

Allmusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

. Retrieved 8 December 2018 On the single "Time Was" (1988) and the album ''One of Our Girls (Has Gone Missing)'' (1989) she was also assisted by other Mute Records musicians, including

Barry Adamson Barry Adamson (born 11 June 1958)Biography
. Barryadamson.com. is an English pop and rock music ...

and

Rowland S. Howard Rowland Stuart Howard (24 October 1959 – 30 December 2009) was an Australian rock musician, guitarist and songwriter, best known for his work with the post-punk group The Birthday Party (band), The Birthday Party and his subsequent solo career ...

. ''One of Our Girls'' was described by

writer Wilson Neate as "an intriguing collection of minimalist pop songs", while ''

Trouser Press ''Trouser Press'' was a rock and roll magazine started in New York in 1974 as a mimeographed fanzine by editor/publisher Ira Robbins, fellow fan of the Who, Dave Schulps, and Karen Rose under the name "Trans-Oceanic Trouser Press" (a reference ...

'' writer Ira Robbins described the album's first side as "a sheer pastel curtain of arty guitar figures, light synth strains, and dry, wispy vocals that never quite achieves song-ness".Robbins, Ira
A.C. Marias
, ''

''. Retrieved 8 December 2018 The album's title track was released as a single in February 1990, the last A.C. Marias release to date. The song was described by

Simon Reynolds Simon Reynolds (born 19 June 1963) is an English music journalist and author who began his career at ''Melody Maker'' in the mid-1980s. He subsequently worked as a freelancer and published a number of books on music and popular culture. Reynold ...

and Joy Press as "perhaps the ultimate expression of a female desire to be invisible", while Conway described the song's theme as "saying enough's enough...to be not present can be more powerful than actually being present and proclaiming your identity as 'woman'". Conway put the project on hold in 1990, and concentrated on her work as a music video director, which included making videos for Wire. She and Gilbert composed additional music for the Anna Campion film '' Loaded'' (also known as ''Bloody Weekend''), under the name A.C. Marias.

Discography

Albums

*''One of Our Girls (Has Gone Missing)'' (1989), Mute

Singles

*"Drop"/"So" 7" (1980), Dome Records *"Just Talk"/"No Talk", 7"/12" single (1986), Mute *"Time Was"/"Some Thing", 7"/12" single (1989), Mute – UK Indie no. 27 *"One of Our Girls Has Gone Missing"/" Vicious", 12"/CD single (1989), Mute

References

External links

* * {{DEFAULTSORT:Ac Marias English alternative rock groups Mute Records artists British women singers Wire (band)