Artery are a British post-punk band from Sheffield, that was founded in 1978. They were commonly known and often confused as 'The'. In 1985, they split up after several changes in the line-up and the release of a total of four albums. They reformed in 2007 after being invited by Jarvis Cocker to perform at the Meltdown Festival.
Artery | |
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Origin | Sheffield, England |
Genres | Post-punk |
Years active | 1978–1985, 2007–present |
Labels | Red Flame, Golden Dawn, Phantom Power |
Members | Mark Gouldthorpe Garry Wilson James Bacon Simon Barfield Murray Fenton |
Past members | Toyce Ashley Neil MacKenzie Mick Fidler Simon Hinkler John White Christopher Hendrick David Hinkler Tony Perrin John Clayton |
Artery evolved from earlier punk band named 'The' in 1978, with an original lineup of Mark Gouldthorpe (guitar), Toyce Ashley (vocals, guitar), Neil McKenzie (bass) and Garry Wilson (drums).[1][2][3] After a self-financed single in 1979, the band released a second in 1980 on the Aardvark label, after which Mick Fidler (vocals, guitar, saxophone) was added.[1][4] Two further singles followed in 1981, before Ashley left, with Gouldthorpe taking over on vocals and Simon Hinkler (formerly of TV Product) joining on keyboards and guitar.[1] They received support from John Peel, for whom they recorded their first session for his BBC Radio 1 show in July 1981, recording a second early the following year.[5] They signed to the Red Flame label in 1982, releasing a single and the Dale Griffin-produced mini-LP Oceans that year.[1] Their track "Into the Garden" reached number nine in the 1982 Festive Fifty.[5] They were often compared to Joy Division, although Gouldthorpe stated "We never listened to Joy Division – they were never an influence".[6] Further lineup changes followed, with John White replacing Fidler, who was sacked for missing rehearsals, Christopher Hendrick replacing MacKenzie, and David Hinkler joining on keyboards.[1][2] The band was reduced to a trio of Gouldthorpe, Wilson, and Hendrick by the time of the release of their second album, One Afternoon in a Hot Air Balloon (1983), with White leaving to form UV Pop and Simon Hinkler moving into production.[1] Simon and David Hinkler and Garry Wilson all played in Pulp around 1983.[1] In 1984 Hendrick left, with MacKenzie returning, and the band moved on to the Golden Dawn label, adding Murray Fenton to the lineup.[1][7] A third album, The Second Coming, was released in 1984. Simon Hinkler briefly returned, with band manager Tony Perrin added on bass. A live album was released in 1985, by which time the band had split up, after Fenton had joined The Batfish Boys.[1]
Gouldthorpe and Simon Hinkler collaborated on a further album, Flight Commander Solitude & the Snake in 1986, and Hinkler went on to join The Mission.[1] They collaborated on a second album, A Room Full of This, in 1992, working together under the name The Flight Commander.[8]
A compilation of demos, live tracks and interviews, Afterwards, was released in 1985 on the Pleasantly Surprised label.[7]
Gouldthorpe moved away from music to run his own hair salon, stating in 2009 "I lost it with music for a bit and went into dark corners".[9]
The band reformed in 2007 after being invited to perform at the Meltdown Festival by long-time fan Jarvis Cocker, and recorded a session for Marc Riley's BBC 6 Music show.[10][11] The band stayed together, releasing the Standing Still EP in 2009.[8][12] In 2010 they decided to split up again after David Hinkler decided to leave, but continued after recruiting James Bacon to replace him.[13] A new album, Civilisation, was released in October 2011.
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