Stockholm Monsters were 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, formed in

Burnage Burnage is an area of Manchester, in Greater Manchester, England, south of the city centre and bisected by Kingsway. The population at the 2011 census was 15,227. It lies within the Greater Manchester Metropolitan area, in the historic count ...

, a suburb of the city of

Manchester Manchester () is a city and the metropolitan borough of Greater Manchester, England. It had an estimated population of in . Greater Manchester is the third-most populous metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, with a population of 2.92&nbs ...

in 1980. They recorded for

Factory Records Factory Records was a Manchester-based British independent record label founded in 1978 by Tony Wilson and Alan Erasmus. The label featured several important acts on its roster, including Joy Division, New Order (band), New Order, A Certain Ra ...

between 1981 and 1987.

History

The band formed in Manchester in 1980 with a line-up of Tony France (vocals, guitar), Karl France (bass guitar, keyboards), Ged Duffy, and Shan Hira (drums).Strong, Martin C. (2003) ''The Great Indie Discography'',

Canongate The Canongate is a street and associated district in central Edinburgh, the capital city of Scotland. The street forms the main eastern length of the Royal Mile while the district is the main eastern section of Edinburgh's Old Town. David ...

, , p. 524-5 They were later joined by Lita Hira (keyboards), John Rhodes and trumpeter (and later keyboardist) Lindsay Anderson.Mason, Stewart " The Stockholm Monsters Biography,

AllMusic AllMusic (previously known as All-Music Guide and AMG) is an American online database, online music database. It catalogs more than three million album entries and 30 million tracks, as well as information on Musical artist, musicians and Mus ...

, retrieved 2010-10-10 The band's debut release was the "Fairy Tales" 7-inch single on Factory Records in September 1981, produced by

Martin Hannett James Martin Hannett (31 May 1948 – 18 April 1991) was an English record producer, musician and an original partner/director at Tony Wilson's Factory Records. Hannett produced music by artists including Joy Division, the Durutti Column, A Cert ...

, known for his work with

Joy Division Joy Division were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Salford in 1976. The group consisted of vocalist, guitarist and lyricist Ian Curtis, guitarist and keyboardist Bernard Sumner, bassist Peter Hook and drummer Stephen Morris (musici ...

. The single reached number 43 on the

UK Independent Chart The UK Independent Singles Chart and UK Independent Albums Chart are charts of the best-selling independent singles and albums, respectively, in the United Kingdom. Originally published in January 1980, and widely known as the indie chart, the ...

.Lazell, Barry (1998) ''Indie Hits 1980-1989'', Cherry Red Books, , p. 218 Two further singles followed before the release of their only studio album, ''

Alma Mater Alma mater (; : almae matres) is an allegorical Latin phrase meaning "nourishing mother". It personifies a school that a person has attended or graduated from. The term is related to ''alumnus'', literally meaning 'nursling', which describes a sc ...

'', in 1984. Produced by

Peter Hook Peter Hook (born 13 February 1956) is an English musician. He was the bassist and co-founder of the post-punk band Joy Division and its successor New Order. He often used the bass as a lead instrument, playing melodies on the high strings wi ...

of New Order, it was described by

as "a terribly satisfying record that was all but ignored at the time of its release but sounds absolutely prescient in hindsight".Mason, Stewart " ''Alma Mater'' Review,

, retrieved 2010-10-10 Several EPs and singles followed, including "How Corrupt Is Rough Trade?", an attack on Factory's then distributor,Mason, Stewart " "How Corrupt Is Rough Trade?" Review,

, retrieved 2010-10-10 which reached number 47 on the UK indie chart, and the

-produced "Partyline", before the band broke up in 1987. In 2002

Noel Gallagher Noel Thomas David Gallagher (born 29 May 1967) is an English musician, singer and songwriter. Gallagher is the primary songwriter, lead guitarist and a co-lead vocalist of the rock band Oasis (band), Oasis. After leaving Oasis, he formed Noel ...

Oasis In ecology, an oasis (; : oases ) is a fertile area of a desert or semi-desert environment the Smiths The Smiths were an English Rock music, rock band formed in Manchester in 1982, composed of Morrissey (vocals), Johnny Marr (guitar), Andy Rourke (bass) and Mike Joyce (musician), Mike Joyce (drums). Morrissey and Marr formed the band's songwrit ...

and then the toneRoses and then the appyMondays - and then you start your own band." Three CD collections by Stockholm Monsters were released in 2001 by LTM Records. In 2014 a double vinyl edition featuring their singles and the ''Alma Mater'' studio album was issued by US label

Captured Tracks Captured Tracks is an American independent record label based in Brooklyn, New York. The label was founded in 2008 by Mike Sniper. About Current flagship artists include: Craft Spells, DIIV and Wild Nothing. Captured Tracks has reissued reco ...

. Shan Hira later worked as an audio engineer and record producer and ran Suite 16 studio in

Rochdale Rochdale ( ) is a town in Greater Manchester, England, and the administrative centre of the Metropolitan Borough of Rochdale. In the United Kingdom 2021 Census, 2021 Census, the town had a population of 111,261, compared to 223,773 for the wid ...

, formerly Cargo Studios.

Discography

Studio albums * ''

'' (1984), Factory Compilation albums * ''The Last One Back (Archive 1980–1987)'' (2001), LTM * ''All at Once (Singles 1981–1987)'' (2001), LTM Singles and EPs * "Fairy Tales" (1981), Factory – '' UK Indie #43'' * "Happy Ever After" (1982), Factory * "Miss Moonlight" (1983), Factory Benelux * "All at Once" (1984), Factory * "How Corrupt Is Rough Trade?" (1984), Factory Benelux – '' UK Indie #47'' * ''Greetings Two'' EP (1987), Materiali Sonori * "Partyline" (1987), Factory

References

External links

Stockholm Monsters biography at LTM
* * * {{Authority control English post-punk music groups English synth-pop groups English new wave musical groups English synth-pop new wave groups Musical groups established in 1980 Musical groups disestablished in 1987 Factory Records artists Musical groups from Manchester Factory Benelux artists