Neu Electrikk are a British

experimental music Experimental music is a general label for any music or music genre that pushes existing boundaries and genre definitions. Experimental compositional practice is defined broadly by exploratory sensibilities radically opposed to, and questioning of, ...

group that were based in

Croydon Croydon is a large town in South London, England, south of Charing Cross. Part of the London Borough of Croydon, a Districts of England, local government district of Greater London; it is one of the largest commercial districts in Greater Lond ...

, England, and who formed in 1978.

Band history

Neu Electrikk stood apart from many of the synth dominated bands of that era. Their inventive approach touched on many different styles and genres, including, industrial music,

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 ...

, new wave. Neu Electrikks’ influences were

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 ...

Neu! Neu! (; German for "New!"; styled in block capitals) were a West German krautrock band formed in Düsseldorf in 1971 by Klaus Dinger and Michael Rother following their departure from Kraftwerk. The group's albums were produced by Conny Plank, w ...

David Bowie David Robert Jones (8 January 194710 January 2016), known as David Bowie ( ), was an English singer, songwriter and actor. Regarded as one of the most influential musicians of the 20th century, Bowie was acclaimed by critics and musicians, pa ...

and

John Cage John Milton Cage Jr. (September 5, 1912 – August 12, 1992) was an American composer and music theorist. A pioneer of indeterminacy in music, electroacoustic music, and Extended technique, non-standard use of musical instruments, Cage was one ...

. The band consisted of Derek Morris (vocals, guitar, and lyrics), Steve Parry (guitars, electronics, keyboards, and other instruments), Steve James Sherlock (Saxophone, flute, other devices), Nicholas Chamberlain Hunt (bass), and Barry Deller (drums, percussion). Neu Electrikk released 2 single/eps on the Synethesia label - Lust of Berlin/Distractions (1979) and Cover Girl/Practically Isolate/Hand/Converse of Tapes (1980). Having attracted a reasonable cult following on the London

music circuit

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 Contemporary hit radio, current chart hits throughout the day. The station provides alternative genres at night, including ...

John Peel John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), better known as John Peel, was an English radio presenter and journalist. He was the longest-serving of the original disc jockeys on BBC Radio 1, broadcasting regularly from ...

regularly featured them on his show.

Stevo Pearce Stephen John Pearce, commonly known as Stevo (born 26 December 1962), is a British record producer and music industry executive, best known as the owner of indie record label Some Bizzare Records. Biography He was born in Haverhill, Suffolk. He ...

founder and manager of

Some Bizzare Records Some Records was a British independent record label owned by Stevo Pearce. The label was founded in 1981, with the release of '' Some Bizzare Album'', a compilation of unsigned bands including Depeche Mode, Soft Cell, The The, Neu Electrik ...

discovered the band via an advert in ''Sounds'' magazine and contacted the band via their distributor

Rough Trade Records Rough Trade Records is an independent record label based in London, England. It was formed in 1976 by Geoff Travis, who had opened a record store off Ladbroke Grove. It is currently run by co-managing directors Travis and Jeannette Lee and ...

. Stevo would play Neu Electrikk during his DJ/club nights and included their records in his ''Sounds'' magazine music chart. The version of "Lust of Berlin" on the ''

Some Bizzare Album ''Some Bizzare Album'' is the first compilation album issued by Some Bizzare Records. It was released in January 1981 as a sampler of the label's musical ethos. The acts were not signed exclusively to the label at the time. Information The album c ...

'' is a later recording made at ARK Studios,

Kingston upon Thames Kingston upon Thames, colloquially known as Kingston, is a town in the Royal Borough of Kingston upon Thames, south-west London, England. It is situated on the River Thames, south-west of Charing Cross. It is an ancient market town, notable as ...

. Neu Electrikk gigged extensively, notably with

The The are an English rock band from London, formed in 1979 by singer-songwriter Matt Johnson, the only constant member, and often the sole member. achieved critical acclaim and commercial success in the UK, with 15 chart singles, seven reaching ...

at the Bridge house in

Canning Town Canning Town is a town in the London Borough of Newham, East London, England, north of the Royal Victoria Dock. Its urbanisation was largely due to the creation of the dock. The area was part of the ancient parish and County Borough of West Ham, ...

with Stevo as DJ. Live concerts were often erratic events consisting of long passages of improvisation, silence and noise. Neu Electrikk often took to the stage to the sound of a pre-recorded tape consisting of the voice of Frank Sinatra accompanied by bird song and the sound of an industrial hammer.

Legacy

Further to Neu Electrikk disbanding, Steve Sherlock joined

the The are an English rock band from London, formed in 1979 by singer-songwriter Matt Johnson, the only constant member, and often the sole member. achieved critical acclaim and commercial success in the UK, with 15 chart singles, seven reaching ...

and joined

Marc Almond Peter Mark Almond (born 9 July 1957) is an English singer-songwriter and musician. He is the lead vocalist of the synth-pop/ new wave duo Soft Cell. He has a distinctive soulful voice and androgynous image. He has had a diverse career as a ...

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 ...

, Nicholas Chamberlain Hunt continues to collaborate as a musician and producer on hi
Horizontal Records
label, most noticeably with singer Christine Ann Leach (

Baby Fox Baby Fox were a 1990s British trip hop Trip hop is a musical genre that has been described as a psychedelic music, psychedelic fusion of hip hop music, hip hop and electronica with slow tempos and an atmospheric sound. The style emerged as a m ...

William Orbit William Mark Wainwright (born 15 December 1956),"William Orbit." ''Contemporary Musicians''. Vol. 30. Farmington Hills, MI: Gale, 2000. Retrieved via ''Biography in Context'' database, 7 May 2017. Available onlinvia ''Encyclopedia.com'' known ...

, co-writer of the song "Ray of Light"), on projects ALF, the Acoustic Lounge Freaks, Insensibility, Dr Ono Ishido, Hikkaduwa, Ni Kidogo, Fumihito Watanabe. Steve Parry has released numerous recordings as a solo artist and as hwyl nofio (an avant-garde music ensemble of which Parry is the only permanent member).

References

{{Reflist

External links

* Allmusi
Allmusic

discogs

Some Bizzare records
English new wave musical groups English post-punk music groups Musical groups established in 1978 1978 establishments in England