Cannon were a five-piece, instrumental

post-rock Post-rock is a form of experimental rock characterized by a focus on exploring textures and timbre over traditional rock song structures, chords, or riffs. Post-rock artists are often instrumental, typically combining rock instrumentation ...

band, based in

Glasgow Glasgow ( ; sco, Glesca or ; gd, Glaschu ) is the most populous city in Scotland and the fourth-most populous city in the United Kingdom, as well as being the 27th largest city by population in Europe. In 2020, it had an estimated pop ...

Scotland Scotland (, ) is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Covering the northern third of the island of Great Britain, mainland Scotland has a border with England to the southeast and is otherwise surrounded by the Atlantic Ocean to th ...

History

Cannon was formed in early 1999 by guitarists David Philp, Stuart Henderson, and Jonny Williamson. The band lineup was completed by the addition of Andrew Gifford of Fiddlers' Bid on bass and drummer Tom Pettigrew. Gigging throughout Scotland, Cannon played alongside bands such as

Interpol The International Criminal Police Organization (ICPO; french: link=no, Organisation internationale de police criminelle), commonly known as Interpol ( , ), is an international organization that facilitates worldwide police cooperation and cr ...

, Bis,

The Cooper Temple Clause The Cooper Temple Clause was an English alternative rock band, formed in Wokingham, Berkshire in 1998. The band released three albums before announcing their split on 24 April 2007, following the departure of Daniel Fisher. After signing a re ...

and

Medal A medal or medallion is a small portable artistic object, a thin disc, normally of metal, carrying a design, usually on both sides. They typically have a commemorative purpose of some kind, and many are presented as awards. They may be int ...

, as well as appearances at music festivals such as

Truck A truck or lorry is a motor vehicle designed to transport cargo, carry specialized payloads, or perform other utilitarian work. Trucks vary greatly in size, power, and configuration, but the vast majority feature body-on-frame constructi ...

in 2001 and

T in the Park T in the Park festival was a major Scottish music festival that was held annually from 1994 to 2016. It was named after its main sponsor, Tennents. The event was held at Strathclyde Park, Lanarkshire, until 1996. It then moved to the disused ...

in 2002. The band were championed by DJ

Vic Galloway Michael "Vic" Galloway (born 4 August 1972) is a DJ on BBC Radio Scotland. Galloway presents a self-titled show on Radio Scotland every Monday from 9pm to 11pm and also the BBC Introducing Scotland Thursday evenings/Friday mornings from 11pm to ...

, their records getting regular play on his

BBC Radio Scotland BBC Radio Scotland is a Scotland, Scottish radio station, radio network owned and operated by BBC Scotland, a division of the BBC. It broadcasts a wide variety of programmes. It replaced the Scottish BBC Radio 4 opt-out service of the same na ...

show, "Air", and they were invited to record a live session for the show. Pettigrew left the band in late 2001 and was replaced by former

Juliet Turner Juliet Turner is a singer/songwriter from Tummery, near Omagh, County Tyrone, Northern Ireland. She started recording in 1996, and has opened for such artists as Bob Dylan, U2, Bob Geldof, and Bryan Adams. She also toured with Roger McGuinn, ...

and

Duke Special Duke Special (born Peter Wilson; 4 January 1971) is a songwriter and performer based in Belfast, Northern Ireland. A piano-based songwriter with a romantic style and a warm, distinctly accented voice, he was previously known for his distinctiv ...

sideman Tim Harbinson. Gifford left several months later, and was replaced by Craig Sinclair. Cannon disbanded in 2003. Philp went on to play in Glasgow 'horror blues' band,

Uncle John & Whitelock Uncle John & Whitelock were a Scottish horror punk band from Glasgow. They were active from 2001 to 2006 and were noted for their live shows which incorporated elements of performance art. History Uncle John & Whitelock was formed in 2001 by ...

, and was guitarist on

Isobel Campbell Isobel Campbell (born 27 April 1976) is a Scottish singer, songwriter and cellist. She rose to prominence at age nineteen as a member of the indie pop band Belle & Sebastian, but left the group to pursue a solo career, first as The Gentle Wave ...

and

Mark Lanegan Mark William Lanegan (November 25, 1964 – February 22, 2022) was an American singer, songwriter, and poet. First becoming prominent as the lead singer for the early grunge band Screaming Trees, he was also known as a member of Queens of the ...

's 2008 European tour. Harbinson went on to join

electronica Electronica is both a broad group of electronic-based music styles intended for listening rather than strictly for dancing and a music scene that started in the early 1990s in the United Kingdom. In the United States, the term is mostly used to ...

band

Laki Mera Laki Mera are a three-piece electronic band, based in Glasgow, Scotland. History Formed in 2004 as a recording project by Andrea Gobbi and Laura Donnelly (formerly of God's Boyfriend), Laki Mera took their name from the Chimaera of Greek myt ...

along with Trevor Helliwell, Cannon's sound engineer. Philp, Gifford and Pettigrew later formed

Adopted as Holograph Adopted as Holograph are a Scottish band from Glasgow, Scotland. Blending alternative rock with continental jazz and Music of Southeastern Europe, Balkan music, their music frequently incorporates Gothic literature, Gothic themes and has been d ...

, playing gypsy influenced folk music.

Music

Cannon's music, by virtue of its instrumental nature and the relative complexity of its arrangements has been described as

math rock Math rock is a style of progressive and indie rock with roots in bands such as King Crimson and Rush as well as 20th-century minimal music composers such as Steve Reich. It is characterized by complex, atypical rhythmic structures (including ...

. Comparisons have been made with bands such as

Mogwai Mogwai () are a Scottish post-rock band, formed in 1995 in Glasgow. The band consists of Stuart Braithwaite (guitar, vocals), Barry Burns (guitar, piano, synthesizer, vocals), Dominic Aitchison (bass guitar), and Martin Bulloch (drums). ...

and

Slint Slint was an American rock band from Louisville, Kentucky, formed in 1986. The band consisted of guitarist and vocalist Brian McMahan, guitarist David Pajo, drummer and vocalist Britt Walford, Todd Brashear (bassist on ''Spiderland''), and ...

but also with 1980s alternative rock band the

Cocteau Twins Cocteau Twins was a Scottish rock band active from 1979 to 1997. They were formed in Grangemouth by Robin Guthrie (guitars, drum machine) and Will Heggie (bass), adding Elizabeth Fraser (vocals) in 1981 and replacing Heggie with multi-instru ...

Discography

Studio albums

*''Cannon'' (2008)

EPs

*''Soothsayer'' (2001)

Compilations

*''T Break 2002'' (2002) *''Gdansk'' (2003)

References

{{Reflist

External links

Cannon on Myspace
Scottish post-rock groups Scottish indie rock groups Musical groups from Glasgow Musical groups established in 1999 Musical groups disestablished in 2003 1999 establishments in Scotland