Cass Browne (born 27 September 1971 in
Wimbledon,
Surrey) is an English musician and writer.
He was a member of the band The Psychotics who became
Senseless Things
Senseless Things were an English pop punk band, formed in 1986 in London. The band released four studio albums and achieved two UK Top 20 hit singles before splitting up in 1995. Senseless Things reformed in 2017 to play several gigs includin ...
in 1986. Senseless Things made four studio albums, achieved two
UK Top 20 hits and released many other singles in their nine years together, before splitting up in 1995.
Jamie Hewlett was a big fan of the band and designed many of their sleeves. Senseless Things were known for their relentless touring schedule which saw them perform across the
UK, as well as
Europe
Europe is a large peninsula conventionally considered a continent in its own right because of its great physical size and the weight of its history and traditions. Europe is also considered a subcontinent of Eurasia and it is located enti ...
,
Japan and the
United States
The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 U.S. state, states, a Washington, D.C., federal district, five ma ...
.
When the Senseless Things split up, Browne formed a new band
Delakota
Delakota were an English alternative dance band from the late 1990s. The band mixed elements of Madchester, retro-rock, and modern dance music to produce a sound which was often compared to Primal Scream.
The band were formed by ex members of t ...
, which he toured with for a couple of years. Delakota made their first live appearance on
Newsnight
''Newsnight'' (or ''BBC Newsnight'') is BBC Two's news and current affairs programme, providing in-depth investigation and analysis of the stories behind the day's headlines. The programme is broadcast on weekdays at 22:30. and is also avail ...
and released the album
One Love in 1998, tracks from which received remixes from
Fatboy Slim
Norman Quentin Cook (born Quentin Leo Cook, 31 July 1963), also known by his stage name Fatboy Slim, is an English musician, DJ, and record producer who helped to popularise the big beat genre in the 1990s. In the 1980s, Cook was the bassist f ...
,
David Holmes, the pre-
UNKLE producer
Tim Goldsworthy
Tim Goldsworthy is a British record producer, DJ and recording artist.
Career
Originally a musician/producer for Unkle with James Lavelle, he later worked with James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem and was formerly joint owner of DFA Records. ...
,
Royal Trux
Royal Trux was an American alternative rock band active from 1987 to 2001, reuniting in 2015 but disbanded once again in 2019. It was founded by Neil Hagerty (vocals, guitar) and Jennifer Herrema (vocals).
History
While still a teenager, Hagert ...
, the artist
Four Tet
Kieran Hebden (born September 1977), known as Four Tet, is an English electronic musician. He came to prominence as a member of the post-rock band Fridge before establishing himself as a solo artist with charting UK albums such as '' Rounds'' ( ...
(under his "Joshua Falken" moniker),
Freddy Fresh and others. In 2022 the album saw a Deluxe Digital Edition release, alongside the original remixes and B-Sides. A visual was released for the
Fatboy Slim
Norman Quentin Cook (born Quentin Leo Cook, 31 July 1963), also known by his stage name Fatboy Slim, is an English musician, DJ, and record producer who helped to popularise the big beat genre in the 1990s. In the 1980s, Cook was the bassist f ...
remix of the single "C'mon Cincinnati" in September of 2022, which was assembled from recovered footage of the first Delakota concert in 1998, performed "200ft underground" at the
Hellfire Caves in High Wycombe.
Cass performed with
Urge Overkill
Urge Overkill is an American alternative rock band, formed in Chicago, Illinois, United States, consisting of Nathan Kaatrud, who took the stage name Nash Kato (vocals/guitar), and Eddie "King" Roeser (vocals/guitar/bass guitar). They are widely ...
for the promotion of the band’s single "
Girl, You’ll Be a Woman Soon
"Girl, You'll Be a Woman Soon" is a song written by American musician Neil Diamond, whose recording of it on Bang Records reached number 10 on the US pop singles chart in 1967. The song enjoyed a second life when it appeared on the 1994 ''Pulp ...
" taken from the soundtrack of the
Quentin Tarantino
Quentin Jerome Tarantino (; born March 27, 1963) is an American film director, writer, producer, and actor. His films are characterized by stylized violence, extended dialogue, profanity, dark humor, non-linear storylines, cameos, ensemb ...
film "
Pulp Fiction
''Pulp Fiction'' is a 1994 American crime film written and directed by Quentin Tarantino, who conceived it with Roger Avary.See, e.g., King (2002), pp. 185–7; ; Starring John Travolta, Samuel L. Jackson, Bruce Willis, Tim Roth, Ving Rha ...
". Cass Browne also worked with
Damon Albarn as his drummer on 2002's ''
Mali Music''
Browne was an important member of the
Gorillaz
Gorillaz are an English virtual band formed in 1998 by musician Damon Albarn and artist Jamie Hewlett, from London. The band primarily consists of four fictional members: 2-D (character), 2-D (Singing, vocals, Musical keyboard, keyboards), Murd ...
family from his addition in 2001, until his departure in 2012. From 2001 to 2010, he provided drums and drum machines on Gorillaz’
Gorillaz (album)
''Gorillaz'' is the debut studio album by English virtual band Gorillaz, released on 26 March 2001 in the United Kingdom by Parlophone and in the United States by Virgin Records. The album reached number three in the UK and number fourteen in ...
and
Demon Days
''Demon Days'' is the second studio album by British virtual band Gorillaz. It was first released on 11 May 2005 in Japan and on 23 May 2005 in the United Kingdom by Parlophone and in the United States by Virgin Records. Produced by the band, D ...
. He performed at all dates on Gorillaz live shows and appears on ''
Demon Days Live'' behind the drums at the
Manchester Opera House
The Opera House in Quay Street, Manchester, England, is a 1,920-seater commercial touring theatre that plays host to touring musicals, ballet, concerts and a Christmas pantomime. It is a Grade II listed building. The Opera House is one of the m ...
.
Cass performed on the 2010 The
Escape to Plastic Beach Tour
The Escape to Plastic Beach Tour was a concert tour by the British alternative rock virtual band Gorillaz in support of their third studio album ''Plastic Beach''. During the tour, Damon Albarn recorded '' The Fall'', described by Albarn as a ...
debuting at The
Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival
The Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival (commonly called the Coachella Festival or simply Coachella) is an annual music and arts festival held at the Empire Polo Club in Indio, California, in the Coachella Valley in the Colorado Desert. ...
in Palm Springs, on 18 April 2010. The live band were now joined by additional musicians such as
Lou Reed
Lewis Allan Reed (March 2, 1942October 27, 2013) was an American musician, songwriter, and poet. He was the guitarist, singer, and principal songwriter for the rock band the Velvet Underground and had a solo career that spanned five decades. ...
,
Snoop Dogg
Calvin Cordozar Broadus Jr. (born October 20, 1971), known professionally as Snoop Dogg (previously Snoop Doggy Dogg and briefly Snoop Lion), is an American rapper. His fame dates back to 1992 when he featured on Dr. Dre's debut solo single, ...
,
Bobby Womack
Robert Dwayne Womack (; March 4, 1944 – June 27, 2014) was an American singer, songwriter, musician, and record producer. Starting in the early 1950s as the lead singer of his family musical group the Valentinos and as Sam Cooke's backing guit ...
,
Neneh Cherry
Neneh Mariann Karlsson (born 10 March 1964), better known as Neneh Cherry, is a Swedish singer-songwriter, rapper, occasional DJ and broadcaster. Her musical career started in London in the early 1980s, where she performed in a number of punk an ...
,
Mark E. Smith,
Hypnotic Brass Ensemble
Hypnotic Brass Ensemble is an eight-piece, Chicago-based brass ensemble consisting of eight sons of the jazz trumpeter Phil Cohran. Their musical style ranges from hip hop to jazz to funk and rock, including calypso and gypsy music. They call t ...
,
De La Soul
De La Soul () is an American hip hop trio formed in 1988 in the Amityville area of Long Island, New York. They are best known for their eclectic sampling, quirky lyrics, and their contributions to the evolution of the jazz rap and alternat ...
,
Mos Def
Yasiin Bey (; born Dante Terrell Smith, December 11, 1973), previously and more commonly known by his stage name Mos Def (), is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, and actor. His hip hop career began in 1994, alongside his siblings in the s ...
,
Bootie Brown
The Pharcyde (currently known as The Far Side) is an American alternative hip hop group, formed in 1989, from South Central Los Angeles. The original four members of the group are Imani (Emandu Wilcox), Slimkid3 (Trevant Hardson), Bootie Brown ...
,
Little Dragon,
Shaun Ryder
Shaun William George Ryder (born 23 August 1962) is an English singer/songwriter and poet. As lead singer of Happy Mondays, he was a leading figure in the Madchester cultural scene during the late 1980s and early 1990s. In 1993, he formed ...
,
Bashy
Ashley Thomas (born 4 February 1985), also known by his stage name Bashy, is an English actor and rapper.
Early life
Thomas was born in Hammersmith, West London, the first born of a Jamaican mother and Dominican father. He attended St. M ...
and
Kano,
Gruff Rhys
Gruffudd Maredudd Bowen Rhys (; born 18 July 1970) is a Welsh musician, composer, producer, filmmaker and author. He performs solo and with several bands, including Super Furry Animals, which obtained mainstream success in the 1990s. He formed ...
of
Super Furry Animals
Super Furry Animals are a Welsh rock band formed in Cardiff in 1993. For the duration of their professional career, the band consisted of Gruff Rhys (lead vocals, guitar), Huw Bunford (lead guitar, vocals), Guto Pryce (bass guitar), Cian C ...
, The
Syrian National Orchestra for Arabic Music and more. Performances were the undertaken throughout the year with a headlining spot at 2010’s
Glastonbury Festival
Glastonbury Festival (formally Glastonbury Festival of Contemporary Performing Arts and known colloquially as Glasto) is a five-day festival of contemporary performing arts that takes place in Pilton, Somerset, England. In addition to contempo ...
. The world tour would take in appearances across Europe, the U.S., China, Australia and New Zealand, with additional headline concerts at the
Roskilde
Roskilde ( , ) is a city west of Copenhagen on the Danish island of Zealand. With a population of 51,916 (), the city is a business and educational centre for the region and the 10th largest city in Denmark. It is governed by the administrative ...
and
Benicassim festivals.
Cass Browne was the author of all the dialogue of the band members, penning the autobiography ''
Rise of the Ogre'' in 2006 and writing dialogue such as MEL's website tour in ''
Phase One: Celebrity Take Down'' in 2002. He chiefly writes all the interviews as the characters for magazines who wish to interview Noodle, 2D, Russel and Murdoc. He co-wrote and co-directed the 2001 mock-documentary "
Charts of Darkness" on Gorillaz for Channel 4 in association with Dazed TV, and hosted by
Krishnan Guru-Murthy. This was subsequently licensed to
MTV and shown worldwide. Cass also wrote, voice-directed and was the musical supervisor for the Gorillaz episode of
MTV Cribs
''MTV Cribs'' (also known as ''Cribs'') is an American documentary television show that originated on MTV and features tours of the private homes of celebrities. It originally aired from 2000 to 2010. In 2017, MTV produced short-form episodes o ...
, which featured
Murdoc Niccals showing the viewers around the Gorillaz
Kong Studio
Gorillaz are an English virtual band formed in 1998 by musician Damon Albarn and artist Jamie Hewlett, from London. The band primarily consists of four fictional members: 2-D (vocals, keyboards), Murdoc Niccals (bass guitar), Noodle (guitar, k ...
. The video aired on 26 December 2005.
With Gorillaz he worked on the campaigns and collaborations with
3 Mobile
3 or Three is a global brand name owned by Hutchison 3G Enterprises S.A.R.L., under which several UMTS-based mobile phone networks and broadband internet providers operate in Hong Kong, Macau, Austria, Denmark, Indonesia, Ireland, Sweden, and ...
,
Motorola
Motorola, Inc. () was an American multinational telecommunications company based in Schaumburg, Illinois, United States. After having lost $4.3 billion from 2007 to 2009, the company split into two independent public companies, Motorola ...
,
Microsoft
Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational corporation, multinational technology company, technology corporation producing Software, computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at th ...
and
Converse. The collaboration with Converse was a part their "Three Artists. One Song" project, which commissioned the Gorillaz track
DoYaThing
"DoYaThing" is a single by British alternative rock virtual band Gorillaz, featuring LCD Soundsystem frontman James Murphy and André 3000 of Outkast. The single was released on 23 February 2012. It was commissioned by Converse as a part of th ...
featuring
LCD Soundsystem
LCD Soundsystem is an American rock band from Brooklyn, New York, formed in 2002 by James Murphy, co-founder of DFA Records. The band comprises Murphy (vocals, various instruments), Nancy Whang (synthesizer, keyboards, vocals), Pat Mahoney ( ...
frontman
James Murphy and
André 3000
André Lauren Benjamin (born May 27, 1975), better known as André 3000, is an American rapper, singer, songwriter, record producer and actor. He is best known for being a part of southern hip hop duo Outkast alongside fellow rapper Big Boi.
...
of
Outkast.
He is also featured in the film
Bananaz
''Bananaz'' is a 2008 British documentary film by Ceri Levy about Damon Albarn and Jamie Hewlett's virtual alternative band Gorillaz.
Information
During the years from 2000 to 2006, the director Ceri Levy filmed the creators of the Gorillaz ...
, which documents the journey of the Gorillaz band from 2001 until 2005, playing in the studio and live.
From 2009 to 2019, Cass was a member of the reimagined
Penguin Cafe, originally conceived by
Arthur Jeffes, son of
Simon Jeffes and
Emily Young
Emily Young FRBS (born 1951) is a sculptor, who has been called "Britain's greatest living stone sculptor". She was born in London into a family of artists, writers and politicians. She currently divides her time between studios in London and I ...
, as a continuation of his father's project the
Penguin Cafe Orchestra. Penguin Cafe appeared at various festivals, theatre venues and Arts events and were frequent visitors to
Japan.
In 2016 Cass joined east London band
Deadcuts, which also features former
Senseless Things
Senseless Things were an English pop punk band, formed in 1986 in London. The band released four studio albums and achieved two UK Top 20 hit singles before splitting up in 1995. Senseless Things reformed in 2017 to play several gigs includin ...
frontman
Mark Keds,
but has since taken an extended leave from the group.
Alongside original Senseless Things member
Morgan Nicholls, Delakota partner Des Murphy and guitarist Ade Emsley, Cass formed Circle 60, a "neuer Klang sonic-assemblage of psychedelic-punk, art and Sci-fi melodics". They released their debut album "Sawnoff ShotGold" in 2018.
In 2019 he formed alternative rock supergroup Loup GarouX, with Mercury-nominated songwriter
Ed Harcourt and
Richard Jones Richard Jones may refer to:
Arts and entertainment
*F. Richard Jones (1893–1930), American filmmaker
*Dick Clair (Richard Jones, 1931–1988), American producer, actor and TV writer
*Richard Jones (The Feeling), British bass guitarist
*Richard J ...
of The Feeling. The Loup GarouX track "Sleep Forever" was featured as the title and show music for the ITV2 zombie-apocalypse show "Zomboat!" The first official single 'I Know The Truth About You' received airplay from
BBC Radio 1
BBC Radio 1 is a British national radio station owned and operated by the BBC. It specialises in modern popular music and current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including electronica, dance, ...
and
BBC 6 Music
BBC Radio 6 Music is a British digital radio station owned and operated by the BBC, specialising primarily in alternative music. BBC 6 Music was the first national music radio station to be launched by the BBC in 32 years. It is available on ...
.
Loup GarouX made their first live appearance On 21 February 2020 at Glasgow’s
Barrowland Ballroom
The Barrowland Ballroom (also known as Barrowlands) is a dance hall and music venue in Glasgow, Scotland.
History
The original building opened in 1934 in a mercantile area east of Glasgow's city centre, built by Maggie McIver, the "Barras Queen ...
as support to the recently reformed
Supergrass
Supergrass are an English rock band formed in 1993 in Oxford. For the majority of the band's tenure, the line-up consisted of brothers Gaz (lead vocals, guitar) and Rob Coombes (keyboards), Mick Quinn (bass, backing vocals) and Danny Goffey ...
on their UK Tour. This culminated in two nights at London’s
Alexandra Palace
Alexandra Palace is a Grade II listed entertainment and sports venue in London, situated between Wood Green and Muswell Hill in the London Borough of Haringey. It is built on the site of Tottenham Wood and the later Tottenham Wood Farm. Orig ...
venue, on 6 and 7 March.
Loup GarouX are to release their debut album “Strangerlands” - written, recorded and produced by the band at Harcourt’s Wolf Cabin studio - in October 2021. The album is mixed by
Cenzo Townshend
Vincenzo Capellini Townshend (born 28 October 1963) is an English record producer, mixer, and audio engineer, and has worked with artists and bands including the Rolling Stones, a-ha, Kaiser Chiefs, U2, Snow Patrol, Florence and the Machine ...
.
Selected discography
with
Senseless Things
Senseless Things were an English pop punk band, formed in 1986 in London. The band released four studio albums and achieved two UK Top 20 hit singles before splitting up in 1995. Senseless Things reformed in 2017 to play several gigs includin ...
*1989: ''Postcard C.V.'' (album)
*1991: ''The First of Too Many'' (album)
*1993: ''
Empire of the Senseless'' (album)
*1994: ''Peel Sessions'' (compilation)
*1995: ''Taking Care of Business'' (album)
*1998: ''The Singles'' (compilation)
*2022: ''The First of Too Many - 30th Anniversary Edition'' (album)
with
Delakota
Delakota were an English alternative dance band from the late 1990s. The band mixed elements of Madchester, retro-rock, and modern dance music to produce a sound which was often compared to Primal Scream.
The band were formed by ex members of t ...
*1998: ''
One Love'' (album)
*2022: ''
One Love - Deluxe Edition'' (album)
with Damon Albarn
*2002: ''
Mali Music'' (album)
with
Gorillaz
Gorillaz are an English virtual band formed in 1998 by musician Damon Albarn and artist Jamie Hewlett, from London. The band primarily consists of four fictional members: 2-D (character), 2-D (Singing, vocals, Musical keyboard, keyboards), Murd ...
*2001: Gorillaz (album)
*2005: Demon Days
*2006: ''Demon Days: Live at the Manchester Opera House'' (Live album / DVD)
with Penguin Cafe
*2009: ''Live At The Royal Albert Hall'' (album)
*2011: ''
A Matter of Life...'' (album)
*2014: ''The Red Book'' (album)
*2017: ''The Imperfect Sea'' (album)
*2019: ''Handfuls of Night'' (album)
with Deadcuts
*2018: ''Hit on All Sixxes'' (album)
with Circle60
*2018: ''SawnOff ShotGold'' (album)
with Loup GarouX
*2021: ''Strangerlands'' (album)
References
External links
Official Gorillaz websiteOfficial Penguin Cafe websiteSenseless Things websiteLoup GarouX website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Browne, Cass
1971 births
Living people
English rock drummers
Writers from London
Musicians from London
21st-century drummers
Penguin Cafe members
Gorillaz members