Sons of Alpha Centauri (sometimes abbreviated to SOAC) is an English

instrumental rock Instrumental rock is rock music that emphasizes musical instruments and features very little or no singing. Examples of instrumental rock can be found in practically every subgenre of rock, often from musicians who specialize in the style. Instru ...

band based in

Swale Swale or Swales may refer to: Topography * Swale (landform), a low tract of land ** Bioswale, landform designed to remove silt and pollution ** Swales, found in the formation of Hummocky cross-stratification Geography * River Swale, in North Yo ...

, Kent. Founded in 2001 by Nick Hannon and Marlon King, the band has developed and borrowed from a range of styles from the 1970s through to the 1990s including

stoner rock Stoner rock, also known as stoner metal or stoner doom, is a rock music fusion genre that combines elements of doom metal with psychedelic rock and acid rock. The genre emerged during the early 1990s and was pioneered foremost by Kyuss and Sleep ...

, desert rock,

post-metal Post-metal is a music genre rooted in heavy metal but exploring approaches beyond metal conventions. It emerged in the 1990s with bands such as Neurosis and Godflesh, who transformed metal texture through experimental composition. In a way simil ...

and the

New wave of British heavy metal The new wave of British heavy metal (commonly abbreviated as NWOBHM) was a nationwide musical movement that started in England in the mid-1970s and achieved international attention by the early 1980s. Journalist Geoff Barton coined the term i ...

, as well as British artists as

Black Sabbath Black Sabbath were an English rock band formed in Birmingham in 1968 by guitarist Tony Iommi, drummer Bill Ward, bassist Geezer Butler and vocalist Ozzy Osbourne. They are often cited as pioneers of heavy metal music. The band helped de ...

and

Pink Floyd Pink Floyd are an English rock band formed in London in 1965. Gaining an early following as one of the first British psychedelic groups, they were distinguished by their extended compositions, sonic experimentation, philosophical lyrics an ...

. Sons of Alpha Centauri are mostly noted for their ongoing collaborations and aversion to public performances, having performed under 20 gigs since their formation in 2001, of which six have been at the

Camden Underworld Camden Underworld is a music venue in Camden Town, London, England. The venue is a part of the World's End pub, situated in the basement of the building. It has a capacity of 500 people. History Over the years The Underworld has become the ...

in London. Their eponymously titled debut studio album '' Sons of Alpha Centauri'' was released in 2007, with common themes for the band including

outer space Outer space, commonly shortened to space, is the expanse that exists beyond Earth and its atmosphere and between celestial bodies. Outer space is not completely empty—it is a near-perfect vacuum containing a low density of particles, pred ...

World War III World War III or the Third World War, often abbreviated as WWIII or WW3, are names given to a hypothetical worldwide large-scale military conflict subsequent to World War I and World War II. The term has been in use since at ...

and

environmental preservation Environmentalism or environmental rights is a broad philosophy, ideology, and social movement regarding concerns for environmental protection and improvement of the health of the environment, particularly as the measure for this health seek ...

Etymology

The band name "Sons of Alpha Centauri" is aligned on identity with

Alpha Centauri Alpha Centauri ( Latinized from α Centauri and often abbreviated Alpha Cen or α Cen) is a triple star system in the constellation of Centaurus. It consists of 3 stars: Alpha Centauri A (officially Rigil Kentaurus), Alpha Centau ...

, the closest star system to the

Solar System The Solar System Capitalization of the name varies. The International Astronomical Union, the authoritative body regarding astronomical nomenclature, specifies capitalizing the names of all individual astronomical objects but uses mixed "Solar ...

, and that "sons" can be interpreted as "suns" to give additional meaning.

History

2001–2007: Formation and ''Sons of Alpha Centauri''

Sons of Alpha Centauri was formed by Nick Hannon and Marlon King on 27 July 2001 in

Faversham Faversham is a market town in Kent, England, from London and from Canterbury, next to the Swale, a strip of sea separating mainland Kent from the Isle of Sheppey in the Thames Estuary. It is close to the A2 road (Great Britain), A2, which foll ...

, Kent. The duo formed the band after becoming dissatisfied with a band called Pariah, which they were a part of at the time, and wrote a number of tracks together before inviting Stevie B. and Blake, who had previously worked together in a band called Negative Noise Orchestra, to join the group in 2004. Tracks were composed as numbers (to correspond with their chronological order) and were instrumental from the outset, with the band describing themselves as "not-for-profit equal opportunities". Critics have traced this back to the instrumental rock band

Karma to Burn Karma to Burn, commonly abbreviated as K2B, is a desert rock/stoner rock band from Morgantown, West Virginia. The band are noted for their uncompromising, mostly instrumental sound. Their name comes from a sleevenote on Bob Dylan's 1976 album ...

and their influence on the band's work. A two-track demo released in 2004 saw very limited distribution (only 13 copies), and from 2004 to 2007, Sons of Alpha Centauri sporadically performed around Kent with fellow Kent-based band Bossk. In 2005 and 2006, the band also collaborated with Australian photographer and artist

Seldon Hunt Seldon Hunt (born 1969, in Melbourne and migrated to New York in 2006, (now residing in Brooklyn) is an artist best known for his photography and his graphic artwork (on album covers and promotional poster) for rock musicians. Hunt's photograph ...

. In 2007, the band released its debut studio album, entitled '' Sons of Alpha Centauri'', through Sound Devastation Records on 26 November 2007.

2008–present: Collaborations and second studio album

Since 2008, Sons of Alpha Centauri have largely been involved in collaborative projects, but since 2014 have stated that they would not be involved in any more until after the release of their second album. In September 2012, the band announced that "Phase II" would be "coming soon"; press notes for the third Karma to Burn/Sons of Alpha Centauri vinyl release stated that the band had completed their "six vinyl release" that they were "moving from Phase I to Phase II". The band has denied on multiple occasions that the project is stuck in

development hell Development hell, development purgatory, and development limbo are media and software industry jargon for a project, concept, or idea that remains in development for an especially long time, often moving between different crews, scripts, game en ...

. On 1 April 2018 the band released a teaser trailer that announced a new project. This was later confirmed on the 14 April as the band's second album, entitled ''Continuum''. The album was released on 1 June 2018 by H42 Records. A third album, ''Push'' was released in August 2021 and saw the band depart from their trademark instrumental sound with the addition of guest vocalist

Jonah Matranga Jonah Rzadzinski Matranga (born Jonah Sonz Matranga, August 11, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist who has released a variety of solo material under his own name and onelinedrawing, and has previously been part of the bands ...

( Far,

onelinedrawing Jonah Rzadzinski Matranga (born Jonah Sonz Matranga, August 11, 1969) is an American singer, songwriter and guitarist who has released a variety of solo material under his own name and onelinedrawing, and has previously been part of the bands ...

Gratitude Gratitude, thankfulness, or gratefulness is from the Latin word ''gratus,'' which means "pleasing" or "thankful." Is regarded as a feeling of appreciation (or similar positive response) by a recipient of another's kindness. This can be gifts, h ...

) alongside

Will Haven Will Haven is a noise metal band from Sacramento, California. Formed in 1995, the group issued albums through many labels and have toured with acts such as Deftones and Soulfly before going on a hiatus in 2002. They would regroup in 2005 and con ...

drummer, Mitch Wheeler.

Band members

;Current members * Nick Hannon – bass (2001 – present) * Marlon King – guitar (2001 – present) * Blake – textures (2004 – present) * Stevie B. – drums (2004 – present)

Discography

;Studio albums * '' Sons of Alpha Centauri'' (2007) * '' Last Day of Summer'' (2009) * ''Continuum'' (2018) * ''Push'' (2021) ;Compilations * '' Karma to Burn/Sons of Alpha Centauri: The Definitive 7" Trilogy'' (2017) ;Split singles * " Sons of Alpha Centauri/A Death Cinematic" (2010) * " WaterWays/Sons of Alpha Centauri/Hotel Wrecking City Traders" (2012)

References

External links

* * * {{Authority control British instrumental musical groups British post-rock groups Post-metal musical groups English space rock musical groups English stoner rock musical groups British ambient music groups Musical groups established in 2001