Carcrash International 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 associated with the

Batcave The Batcave is a subterranean location appearing in American comic books published by DC Comics. It is the headquarters of the superhero Batman, whose secret identity is Bruce Wayne and his partners, consisting of caves beneath his personal r ...

scene, formed by Dave Roberts (aka Dave Sex Gang), original bass player of

Sex Gang Children Sex Gang Children are an early gothic rock and post-punk band that formed in early 1982 in Brixton in London, England. Although the original group only released one official studio album, their singles and various other tracks have been packa ...

, who used the name for two projects.

History

The band made their initial appearance in 1983 on the compilation album ''The Whip'' with the title track "The Whip" (credited to Dave Sex Gang). The song was performed by Roberts on vocals and guitar, drummer Matthew Best (later of

Psychic TV Psychic TV (aka PTV or Psychick TV or several other aliases) were an English experimental music, experimental video art and music collective, formed by performance artist Genesis P-Orridge and Scottish musician Alex Fergusson (musician), Alex ...

) and guitarist Lester Jones (formerly of

Crisis A crisis (: crises; : critical) is any event or period that will lead to an unstable and dangerous situation affecting an individual, group, or all of society. Crises are negative changes in the human or environmental affairs, especially when ...

). The record also featured a song by Best called "32nd Piano Concerto in A Minor". Later the same year, a new version of "The Whip" was released as a single (credited to Carcrash International), which included another track, "The White Hotel", along with two mixes of the title track. The band had then expanded to include violinist Pip Knapp and a second drummer, Roberts' Sex Gang bandmate

Nigel Preston Nigel Preston (4 April 1963, Birmingham, England – 1 April 1992) was an English drummer. He was a founding member of the Cult. He also played and recorded with Theatre of Hate, Sex Gang Children, the Baby Snakes, the Gun Club and DeLuca. ...

(formerly of

Theatre of Hate Theatre of Hate are a British post-punk band formed in London, England, in 1980. Led by singer-songwriter and guitarist Kirk Brandon (formerly of The Pack), the original group also consisted of bassist Stan Stammers (formerly of The Straps ...

, and later of Death Cult,

the Cult The Cult are an English Rock music, rock band formed in Bradford in 1983. Before settling on their current name in January 1984, the band had performed under the name Death Cult, which was an evolution of the name of lead vocalist Ian Astbury ...

, the Baby Snakes and

the Gun Club The Gun Club were an American post-punk band from Los Angeles that existed from 1979 to 1996. Created and led by singer-songwriter and guitarist Jeffrey Lee Pierce, they were notable as one of the first bands in the punk rock subculture to i ...

). A second 12" single, "All Passion Spent", was released in 1984, backed by "Dial First... (P.O.A.)". For this release, the band was a trio consisting of Roberts, Best and new guitarist Stephanie Paynes. Roberts assembled an all-new Carcrash International lineup for 1985 12" single "Crash", which was backed by "Mercenaries for War" (a

John Cale John Davies Cale (born 9 March 1942) is a Welsh musician, composer, and record producer who was a founding member of the American rock band the Velvet Underground. Over his six-decade career, Cale has worked in various styles across rock, dr ...

cover) and "Seduction". In 1993, the recently established

Cleopatra Records Cleopatra Records is a Los Angeles-based independent record label that has the sub-labels Hypnotic Records, Goldenlane, Stardust, Purple Pyramid, Deadline and X-Ray Records. History Founded in January 1992 by Brian Perera, it specializes in go ...

label re-released an expanded version of ''The Whip'' compilation featuring both the title track and "The Whip II". A UK edition issued by

Jungle Records Jungle Records is a British independent record label established in 1982, specializing in punk rock, post punk, gothic, and alternative releases. From 1982 to 1986, they also operated as a record distributor and were associate members of t ...

also credited "32nd Piano Concerto in A Minor" to Carcrash International. Following the ''Whip'' reissue and 1992 Sex Gang Children reunion, Roberts also formed a new darker, more

gothic rock Gothic rock (also called goth rock or simply goth) is a style of rock music that emerged from post-punk in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s. The first post-punk bands which shifted toward dark music with gothic overtones include Siouxsie an ...

-oriented version of the band, releasing Carcrash International's sole ful-length studio album, ''Fragments of a Journal in Hell'' in 1993 on Cleopatra. Among the session musicians appearing on the album were

Matt Green Matthew Green may refer to: *Matthew Green (British politician) (born 1970), British Liberal Democrat Member of Parliament for Ludlow and subsequently for Shropshire South *Matthew Green (Canadian politician) (born 1980) NDP Member of Parliament f ...

(ex-

Spahn Ranch Spahn Ranch, also known as the Spahn Movie Ranch, was a 55-acre (22.3 ha) movie ranch in Los Angeles, California. For a period it was used as a ranch, dairy farm and later movie set during the era of westerns. After a decline in use for filming b ...

) on keyboards, and Nicky Garratt (ex-

U.K. Subs U.K. Subs are an English punk rock band, among the earliest in the first wave of British punk. Formed in 1976, the mainstay of the band has been vocalist Charlie Harper (singer), Charlie Harper, originally a singer in Britain's Rhythm and blues ...

) and Colin Dminchin on guitar. Also playing on the album were two former

Christian Death Christian Death is an American rock band formed in Los Angeles County, California, in 1979 by Rozz Williams. With major line-up changes over the years, Christian Death has retained "a relentlessly confrontational stand against organized religion ...

members, guitarist Barry Galvin and drummer David Glass, both then of Mephisto Walz). The release was followed by a promotional concert in San Francisco in 1994, by a lineup consisting of Roberts on bass, Ian Haas (original drummer of London After Midnight on drums and D.A. on guitar). Carcrash International disbanded the following year.

Discography

Studio albums

*''Fragments of a Journal in Hell'' (1994,

)

Singles

*"The Title Track From 'The Whip'" (1983,

Crammed Discs Crammed Discs is an independent record label whose output blends world music, rock, pop, and electronica. Based in Brussels, Belgium, Crammed was founded in 1980 by Marc Hollander of Aksak Maboul and has since released around 400 albums and 300 ...

) *"All Passion Spent" (1984, Crammed Discs) *"Crash" (1985, L'Invitation Au Suicide)

Compilation appearances

*"The Whip" (as Dave Sex Gang) on ''The Whip'' (1983, Kamera Records) *"The Whip" and "The Whip II" on ''The Whip'' (1993, Cleopatra Records) *"The Whip", "The Whip II" and "32nd Piano Concerto in A Minor" on ''The Whip'' (1993,

) *"Last Remains" on ''In Goth Daze'' (1994, Cleopatra Records) *"Decades" on ''Art of Gothic'' (1994, Talitha Records)

References

External links

Carcrash International discography

Official myspace
{{Authority control English post-punk music groups Alternative rock groups from London English gothic rock groups Musical groups established in 1983 Musical groups disestablished in 1995 1983 establishments in England 1995 disestablishments in England