PragVEC was a

post-punk Post-punk (originally called new musick) is a broad genre of punk music that emerged in the late 1970s as musicians departed from punk's traditional elements and raw simplicity, instead adopting a variety of avant-garde sensibilities and non-r ...

band from

London London is the capital and List of urban areas in the United Kingdom, largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary dow ...

, England, formed in 1978. The band name was a contraction of the two words "pragmatism" and "vector", chosen at random.

History

PragVEC were formed in February 1978 by ex- Derelicts members Susan Gogan (vocals, synthesizer) and John Studholme guitar, synthesizer, along with David Boyd (bass) and Nicholas Cash (drums).Gimarc, George (1994) ''Punk Diary: The Ultimate Trainspotter's Guide to Underground Rock, 1970-1982'', Vintage, , p. 113Strong, Martin C.: ''The Great Alternative & Indie Discography'', 1999, Canongate, On 16 October 1978, they released their debut EP, the four-song 7" ''Bits'', on their own Spec Records label. It was followed on 10 July 1979 by the "Expert" single. Both records were compiled on an eponymous 12" EP issued on the French label

Celluloid Records Celluloid Records, a French/American record label, founded by Jean Georgakarakos (sometimes shortened to Jean Karakos) operated from 1976 to 1989 in New York City, and produced a series of eclectic and ground-breaking releases, particularly in the ...

. PragVEC played concerts during 1978 and 1979, opening for bands such as Cabaret Voltaire,

Scritti Politti Scritti Politti are a British band, originally formed in 1977 in Leeds, England, by Welsh singer-songwriter Green Gartside. He is the only member of the band to have remained throughout the group's history. Beginning as a punk-inspired collect ...

the Psychedelic Furs The Psychedelic Furs are a post-punk band founded in London in February 1977. Led by lead vocalist Richard Butler and his brother Tim Butler on bass guitar, the Psychedelic Furs are one of the many acts spawned from the British post-punk scen ...

the Monochrome Set The Monochrome Set are an English post-punk/ new wave band, originally formed in London in January 1978. The most recent line-up consists of Bid, Andy Warren, Athen Ayren and Stephen Gilchrist. History Original band: 1978–1985 The Monoc ...

Au Pairs The Au Pairs were a British post-punk band that formed in Birmingham in 1978 and continued until 1983. They produced two studio albums and three singles. Their songs were said to have "contempt for the cliches of contemporary sexual politic ...

, Magazine, Chelsea,

Stiff Little Fingers Stiff Little Fingers are a punk rock band from Belfast, Northern Ireland. They formed in 1977 at the height of the Troubles, which informed much of their songwriting. They started out as a schoolboy band called Highway Star (named after the D ...

and

the Teardrop Explodes The Teardrop Explodes were an English post-punk/ neo-psychedelic band formed in Liverpool in 1978. Best known for their Top Ten UK single " Reward", the group originated as a key band in the emerging Liverpool post-punk scene of the late 1970s. ...

. During their short existence, they also recorded a total of three sessions for the

John Peel John Robert Parker Ravenscroft (30 August 1939 – 25 October 2004), known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey (DJ) and radio presenter. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly fr ...

programme.Pragvec
, ''Keeping It Peel'',

BBC #REDIRECT BBC Here i going to introduce about the best teacher of my life b BALAJI sir. He is the precious gift that I got befor 2yrs . How has helped and thought all the concept and made my success in the 10th board exam. ...

, retrieved 2011-12-19 The last of these showed them moving away from the guitar-based sound of the first EP towards the use of the

Wasp A wasp is any insect of the narrow-waisted suborder Apocrita of the order Hymenoptera which is neither a bee nor an ant; this excludes the broad-waisted sawflies (Symphyta), which look somewhat like wasps, but are in a separate suborder. Th ...

, a battery-powered portable synthesizer with a built-in speaker. Two of the songs, "Rural Erotic" and "Third Person", were re-recorded for the ''No-Cowboys'' album, released in December 1980. Packaged in a polythene bag, the record was presented as a compilation by various bands, although all of the material was recorded by PragVEC. The band split in 1981, with Cash joining

Fad Gadget Francis John Tovey (8 September 1956 – 3 April 2002), known also by his stage name Fad Gadget, was a British avant-garde electronic musician and vocalist. He was a proponent of both new wave and early industrial music, fusing pop-structured ...

and the Lines. Gogan joined the Atoms. Jim Thirlwell, who had contributed Wasp synth to ''No-Cowboys'', went on to form

Foetus A fetus or foetus (; plural fetuses, feti, foetuses, or foeti) is the unborn offspring that develops from an animal embryo. Following embryonic development the fetal stage of development takes place. In human prenatal development, fetal develo ...

. Studholme, who had co-written many of the band's songs with Gogan, died in November 2005 after a long illness. Around the time of his death, he, Gogan and Cash had been working with

Mute Records Mute Records is a British independent record label owned and founded in 1978 by Daniel Miller (music producer), Daniel Miller. It has featured several prominent musical acts on its roster such as Depeche Mode, Erasure, Einstürzende Neubauten, ...

to compile a reissue of PragVEC material.

In popular culture

Half Man Half Biscuit Half Man Half Biscuit are an English rock band, formed in 1984 in Birkenhead, Merseyside. Known for their satirical, sardonic, and sometimes surreal songs, the band comprises lead singer and guitarist Nigel Blackwell, bassist and singer Neil ...

recorded a song "Prag VEC at the

Melkweg Melkweg (Dutch for "Milky Way") is a popular music venue and cultural centre in Amsterdam, Netherlands. It is located on Lijnbaansgracht, near Leidseplein, a prime nightlife square of Amsterdam. It is housed in a former dairy and is divided in ...

", on their 1991 album '' McIntyre, Treadmore and Davitt''.

Personnel

;Former members *Susan Gogan – vocals, synthesizer *John Studholme – guitar, synthesizer *David Boyd – bass *Nick Cash – drums ;Guest studio members *John Glyn - tenor sax *Art Moran - alto sax * Jim Thirlwell - synthesizer, vocals

Discography

Studio albums

* ''No-Cowboys'' (1980, Spec Records)

Singles and EPs

* ''Bits'' 7" EP (1978, Spec Records) * "Expert" 7" single (1979, Spec Records) * ''PragVEC'' 12" EP (1979,

)

References

External links

Unofficial bandsite
{{Authority control English rock music groups Musical groups from London English post-punk music groups