Attrition are an English
electronic music
Electronic music broadly is a group of music genres that employ electronic musical instruments, circuitry-based music technology and software, or general-purpose electronics (such as personal computers) in its creation. It includes both music ...
band, formed in
Coventry
Coventry ( or rarely ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands county, in England, on the River Sherbourne. Coventry had been a large settlement for centurie ...
in 1980 by Martin Bowes and Julia Niblock. The band emerged from the experimental post-punk scene of the early 1980s and, along with other groups such as
Throbbing Gristle
Throbbing Gristle were an English music and visual arts group formed in Kingston upon Hull by Genesis P-Orridge and Cosey Fanni Tutti, later joined by Peter "Sleazy" Christopherson and Chris Carter. They are widely regarded as pioneers of in ...
,
Coil,
Einstürzende Neubauten
(, 'Collapsing New Buildings') is a German experimental music group, formed in West Berlin in 1980. The band currently comprises founding members Blixa Bargeld (lead vocals, guitar, keyboard) and N.U. Unruh (custom-made instruments, percussion, ...
, and
In the Nursery
In the Nursery are an English neoclassical dark wave and martial industrial band, characterized by their cinematic sound. The duo has provided soundtracks to a variety of TV programmes and films, and is known for its rescoring of silent films ...
, greatly contributed to the development of industrial music in the UK.
History
Beginnings
In 1979, Martin started a xeroxed fanzine called ''Alternative Sounds'' to document the
Coventry
Coventry ( or rarely ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, cathedral city and metropolitan borough in the West Midlands (county), West Midlands county, in England, on the River Sherbourne. Coventry had been a large settlement for centurie ...
music scene (including such notables as
The Specials
The Specials, also known as the Special AKA, were an English 2 tone and ska revival band formed in 1977 in Coventry. After some early changes, the first stable lineup of the group consisted of Terry Hall and Neville Staple on vocals, J ...
and Furious Apples). The fanzine ran for 18 issues until 1981, and culminated in a vinyl compilation, "Sent from Coventry" (on
Cherry Red) and a brief appearance on the BBC's ''
Something Else'' programme. During this time, Martin met Julia at a local gig and, with the addition of Martin's brother Chris on guitar, Attrition was formed. In 1980 Chris was replaced by Julia's brother Ashley Niblock on synthesizer, and a short time later they replaced their live drummer with a drum machine; these changes facilitated Attrition's development beyond the post-punk of the early 80s into more experimental veins of sound.
1980s
Influenced by
punk
Punk or punks may refer to:
Genres, subculture, and related aspects
* Punk rock, a music genre originating in the 1970s associated with various subgenres
* Punk subculture, a subculture associated with punk rock, or aspects of the subculture s ...
's do-it-yourself aesthetic, Attrition took part in the emerging
cassette culture, contributing multiple early tracks to underground cassette compilations and fanzines alongside contemporaries such as
Portion Control,
Konstruktivits,
Chris & Cosey
Chris & Cosey, sometimes known as Carter Tutti, are a musical duo formed in 1981, consisting of couple Chris Carter (electronics) and Cosey Fanni Tutti (voice, electronics, guitar, cornet), both previously (and as of 2020 the sole surviving) ...
,
The Legendary Pink Dots
The Legendary Pink Dots (aka LPD) are an Anglo-Dutch experimental rock band formed in London in August 1980. In 1984, the band moved to Amsterdam, playing with rotating musicians and having, as core members, singer/songwriter/keyboardist Edwar ...
,
Nurse with Wound, and
Coil. Attrition's first album release came in the form of ''Death House'', a cassette of two experimental electronic soundtracks inspired by zombie films.
In 1983, Attrition received their first exposure in the national music press through a review by Dave Henderson in his "Wild Planet" column in ''
Sounds'', which led to their "Dreamsleep" track appearing on Henderson's compilation ''
The Elephant Table Album
''The Elephant Table Album: a compilation of difficult music'' was a 1983 compilation album, released on Xtract Records. The double album was compiled by music journalist Dave Henderson following a series of articles by him in ''Sounds (magazine), ...
'', the band's first vinyl appearance. A postal collaboration via exchanges of 4-track recordings with Seattle-based improvisational collective Audio Leter led to Attrition's second cassette album release, ''Action and Reaction''.
Attrition's first London concert followed, with a supporting slot from Coil, and the first European tour in April 1984 with the Legendary Pink Dots.
The debut album ''The Attrition of Reason'' appeared on Third Mind Records in autumn of 1984. The next year, Julia left the band to join the Legendary Pink Dots, and Bowes returned with new band members Marianne, Alex Novak, and Pete Morris to release the second proper Attrition album, ''Smiling, at the Hypogonder Club'', which was generally well received. The following year, however, this lineup dissolved and Bowes released ''In The Realm of the Hungry Ghosts'', a collection of rarities, compilation tracks, and B-sides from the preceding few years. This was the last release on Third Mind. The band then switched to Belgium's Antler-Subway Records for the release of ''At the Fiftieth Gate'' in 1988, which saw the addition of guitarist Gary Cox.
1990s
After a short hiatus, Bowes began work on music once more and Julia rejoined Attrition in 1990. A compilation of songs from previous releases was released by
Projekt Records
Projekt Records is an independent record label established by Sam Rosenthal in 1983, the label focuses on darkwave, ambient, shoegaze, gothic rock, ethereal, dream-pop, and dark cabaret releases.
History
Projekt was founded in 1983 by Sam ...
in the US, introducing Attrition to US audiences. "A Tricky Business" was released in 1991 on Italy's Contempo Records and marked a new era for the band. These US releases were complemented with European editions on German labels Hyperium and Trisol. ''The Hidden Agenda'' came out in 1993, followed by ''Ephemera'' in 1995, which mirrored the dark ambient nature of early album ''Death House''.
1996 saw the release of ''3 Arms And A Dead Cert'', which showed an increased use of organic instruments, including the first use of live orchestral elements as provided by Franck Dematteis of the Paris Opera.
This album also was the first proper release on Projekt, a relationship that would continue for many years and would see the release of a succession of albums during the '90s that saw progressed development of Attrition's signature sound. Also in 1996 the band toured the US for the first time, at the culmination of which Julia left the band once more.
The following year, Bowes revisited various works from the past decade of Attrition music and recorded new classical string variations of the songs, releasing them as ''Etude''. After heavy touring in the late 1990s, including a stop at
Wave-Gotik-Treffen
The (WGT; German for "Wave Gothic Meeting") is an annual world festival for "dark" music and "dark culture" in Leipzig, Germany. 150+ bands and artists from various backgrounds (gothic rock, Electronic body music, EBM, Industrial music, indust ...
, Attrition released ''The Jeopardy Maze'' in 1999.
2000s
Five years passed between ''The Jeopardy Maze'' and the next Attrition album, ''Dante's Kitchen'', released in 2004. During the interim a remix album and a rarities album were put out and the entire back catalog of Attrition was reissued on CD in Europe and the band focused on touring and playing live again. Attrition finally founded their own label, Two Gods, in 2006 and released ''Tearing Arms from Deities'', a 25th anniversary collection of material spanning Attrition's career, and ''Something Stirs - The Beginning'', a collection of many of their cassette compilation tracks from the early 1980s.
Two Gods would serve as a vehicle for releasing remastered reissues of the entire Attrition back catalogue in the following years. It has also served as a label for releases from other bands, including
Rossetti's Compass
Rossetti's Compass is a synthpop and EBM music band created in November 2010 by the British musician Mark Warner. It was conceived from a desire to explore different directions in the electro musical sphere, from pure synthpop to dark and men ...
.
In June 2008, Attrition once more became a multi-member act with the addition of female vocalist Sin D'rella.
Bowes and Sin then released the twelfth album proper for the band, ''All Mine Enemys Whispers - The Story of Mary Ann Cotton'', a concept album built around the true story of a mid-19th century serial killer in England, the arresting officer of whom Bowes is a descendant.
The album bears a marked departure from what has come to be seen as the signature Attrition sound, ditching prominent synthesizer base lines, percussion, and vocals for atmospheric, ambient, and found sounds. Guests on the album include
Emilie Autumn
Emilie Autumn Liddell (born September 22, 1979) is an American singer-songwriter, poet, author, and violinist. Autumn's musical style is described by her as "Fairy Pop", "Fantasy Rock" or "Victoriandustrial". It is influenced by glam rock and ...
, Erica Mulkey, and Bowes' own two children.
2009 has seen the release of a live album, ''Kill the Buddha!'', that celebrates 25 years of live touring, and ''Wrapped in the guise of my friend'', an album of Attrition songs covered by other bands.
In 2012, Martin worked with his wife Kerri on their first full-length movie score, ''Invocation''.
Martin taught music technology at City College in Coventry for many years and left in 2011 to work full-time on mastering and production for Attrition and other artists in his studio The Cage.
In 2013, the band released, ''The Unraveller of Angels'', which was followed in 2015 with ''Millions of the Mouthless Dead''. The latter album Martin made with Anni Hogan (of
Marc and the Mambas
Marc and the Mambas was a new wave group, formed by Marc Almond in 1982 as an offshoot project from Soft Cell. The band's line-up changed frequently, and included Matt Johnson from and Annie Hogan, with whom Almond worked later in his solo ...
fame), which explored First World War poetry set to dark ambient scores, including a guest appearance from
Wolfgang Flur (ex-
Kraftwerk
Kraftwerk (, ) is a Germany, German Electronic music, electronic band formed in Düsseldorf in 1970 by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider. Widely considered innovators and pioneers of electronic music, Kraftwerk was among the first successful a ...
).
Musical influences and characteristics
Martin Bowes has cited a wide variety of influences on his music, including experimental rock, punk, post-punk, and industrial groups such as
The Velvet Underground
The Velvet Underground were an American Rock music, rock band formed in New York City in 1964. Its classic lineup consisted of singer and guitarist Lou Reed, Welsh multi-instrumentalist John Cale, guitarist Sterling Morrison, and percussionis ...
,
Crass
Crass was an English art collective and punk rock band formed in Epping, Essex in 1977 who promoted anarchism as a political ideology, a lifestyle, and a resistance movement. Crass popularized the anarcho-punk movement of the punk subculture, ...
, the
Sex Pistols
The Sex Pistols are an English punk rock band formed in London in 1975. Although their initial career lasted just two and a half years, they became culturally influential in popular music. The band initiated the punk movement in the United Ki ...
,
Magazine
A magazine is a periodical literature, periodical publication, print or digital, produced on a regular schedule, that contains any of a variety of subject-oriented textual and visual content (media), content forms. Magazines are generally fin ...
,
Joy Division
Joy Division were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Salford in 1976. The group consisted of vocalist, guitarist and lyricist Ian Curtis, guitarist and keyboardist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris (musici ...
, and
Cabaret Voltaire, early experimental electronic groups like
Kraftwerk
Kraftwerk (, ) is a Germany, German Electronic music, electronic band formed in Düsseldorf in 1970 by Ralf Hütter and Florian Schneider. Widely considered innovators and pioneers of electronic music, Kraftwerk was among the first successful a ...
, classic rock'n'roll (
Elvis
Elvis Aaron Presley (January 8, 1935 – August 16, 1977) was an American singer and actor. Referred to as the "King of Rock and Roll", he is regarded as one of the most significant cultural figures of the 20th century. Presley's sexuall ...
), and even
Beethoven
Ludwig van Beethoven (baptised 17 December 177026 March 1827) was a German composer and pianist. He is one of the most revered figures in the history of Western music; his works rank among the most performed of the classical music repertoire ...
.
In the early 1980s, Attrition was grouped into the post-punk movement, and as post-punk birthed subgenres and cross-pollinated with others, the band came to be seen as an early and influential part of the fledgling industrial and darkwave genres. Later on they would also gain a considerable following among the goth scene.
By the early 1990s Bowes had become the primary member and songwriter
and Attrition had developed its own distinctive electro-acoustic sound. This was based on Martin's deep growl, Julia's fretless bass work and breathy sub-operatic vocals, and a backline of electronic instrumentation, comprising analogue
synthesizer
A synthesizer (also synthesiser or synth) is an electronic musical instrument that generates audio signals. Synthesizers typically create sounds by generating waveforms through methods including subtractive synthesis, additive synthesis a ...
s (including a
Korg Mono/Poly
The Korg Mono/Poly (MP-4) is a paraphonic analog synthesizer released by Korg in 1981, bridging the gap between Polyphony and monophony in instruments, monophonic and polyphonic synthesis. Released in the same year as the Korg Polysix, as a comp ...
and
Korg MS-20
The Korg MS-20 is a patchable semi-modular monophonic analog synthesizer which Korg released in 1978 and which was in production until 1983. It was part of Korg's MS series of instruments, which also included the single oscillator MS-10, the ke ...
), sequencer (
Roland MC-202
The Roland MC-202 (MicroComposer) is a monophonic analog synthesizer and music sequencer released by Roland in 1983. It was the first groovebox. ), drum machine (
Roland TR-808
The Roland TR-808 Rhythm Composer, commonly known as the 808, is a drum machine manufactured by Roland Corporation between 1980 and 1983. It was one of the first drum machines to allow users to program rhythms instead of using preset patterns. ...
), and various effects units.
"At first, there wasn't the same sort of scene and we were in more of an 'industrial' thing. There was nothing like the clubs you get now, it was actually quite difficult to play anywhere that would appreciate you. It's a lot easier now, it's not just Goth, it's a mix - Darkwave or whatever. That's gotten stronger, so that has helped, but really, we were there before it was built."
Discography
(selected; a full discography can be obtained from the official website — see links below)
Albums
* (1982) ''Death House''
* (1983) ''Action and Reaction'' (a collaboration with Audio Leter)
* (1984) ''The Attrition of Reason''
* (1985) ''Smiling, at The Hypogonder Club''
* (1988) ''At the Fiftieth Gate''
* (1991) ''A Tricky Business''
* (1993) ''The Hidden Agenda''
* (1995) ''Ephemera''
* (1996) ''3 Arms and a Dead Cert''
* (1997) ''Etude'' (early works performed by a chamber orchestra)
* (1999) ''The Jeopardy Maze''
* (2003) ''The Eternity LP'' (more classical works)
* (2004) ''Dante's Kitchen''
* (2008) ''All Mine Enemys Whispers - The story of Mary Ann Cotton''
* (2012) ''Invocation - a film score''
* (2013) ''The Unraveller of Angels''
* (2015) ''Millions of The Mouthless Dead''
Compilation albums
* (1986) ''In the Realm of the Hungry Ghosts'' (a compilation of remixed early material)
* (1990) ''Recollection: 84-89''
* (2000) ''The Hand that Feeds - the remixes''
* (2000) ''Esoteria'' (1982–1999, a collection of ambient works)
* (2001) ''Keepsakes And Reflections'' (B-sides and rarities)
* (2006) ''Something Stirs - the beginning (1981–83)''
* (2006) ''Tearing Arms from Deities'' (25 year anniversary collection of rare, remastered and remixed material)
* (2010) ''Wrapped in the guise of my friend - the tribute album''
* (2010) ''Dreamtime Collectors: 1980–2010 (The Best of Collection)''
* (2011) ''Demonstro =: 1981–86''
* (2014) ''In Dark Dreams: 1980-2015''
Live albums
* (1985) ''Terminal Kaleidoscope'' (split with Legendary Pink Dots)
* (2000) ''Heretic Angels - Live in the USA. 1999''
* (2008) ''Across the divide - Live in Holland. 1984''
* (2009) ''Kill the Buddha! - Live on the 25 year anniversary tour''
* (2011) ''The Truth In Dark Corners - Live in the Netherlands. 1985''
* (2014) ''Live at The General Wolfe. 21.04.83''
* (2016) ''Live at Club Neutral - Toronto 06/06/2010''
* (2018) ''Live in Wellington. New Zealand. 11.05.18''
* (2019) ''Invocation. Live in Toronto. 2019''
* (2022) ''Live at Projektfest, Chicago, USA - 1996''
* (2023) ''Live in The Cage. 07.02.23''
References
External links
Official websiteartist information/discography page at CyberNoise*
ttps://web.archive.org/web/20120219061851/http://www.othervoicesrecords.com/index.html Attrition interview (August 2011) Martin Bowes of Attrition interview on dieseele radio/ www.dieseele.net (December 2014)
{{DEFAULTSORT:Attrition
British dark wave musical groups
British industrial music groups
English electronic music groups
English new wave musical groups
Metropolis Records artists
Musical groups from Coventry
Projekt Records artists
Third Mind Records artists
Cassette culture 1970s–1990s