Blade Runner (soundtrack)

The Blade Runner soundtrack was composed by Vangelis for Ridley Scott's 1982 film Blade Runner. It is mostly a dark, melodic combination of classical composition and synthesizers which mirrors the futuristic film noir envisioned by Scott. Since the première of the film, two official albums have been released containing music omitted from the film and also new compositions featuring a similar style. An orchestral rendition of part of the soundtrack was released in 1982 by the New American Orchestra. However, the original soundtrack album (1994) features vocal contributions from Demis Roussos and the sax solo by Dick Morrissey on "Love Theme" (In the credits on page 3 of the 1994 Atlantic CD, Dick's last name is misspelled as "Morrisey"). The track "Memories of Green" from Vangelis' 1980 album See You Later was also included. A new release made in 2007 includes a disc of new music inspired by the film.
The film also features "Ogi No Mato" ("The Folding Fan as a Target" on Traditional Vocal and Instrumental Music from Nonesuch Records) by the Japanese group Ensemble Nipponia, and harpist Gail Laughton's "Pompeii 76 A.D." (from Harps of the Ancient Temples).
The original soundtrack release was delayed for over a decade, until 1994, despite the music being well-received by fans and critically acclaimed—nominated in 1983 for a BAFTA and Golden Globe as best original score. Also, there was the promise of a soundtrack album from Polydor Records in the film's end titles. The 1989 compilation Themes included some tracks from the film, but it was not until two years after the 1992 Director's Cut of the film that the score saw an official release.

Releases

Initial releases

The first official release (on LP, tape and CD) was a reinterpretation by the New American Orchestra in 1982. Billed as an "orchestral adaptation of music composed for the motion picture by Vangelis", this release consisted of jazz-inspired, orchestrated renditions of the major tracks from the film, but not the original score tracks.

 

New American Orchestra
1. Love Theme (4:12)
2. Main Title (5:01)
3. One More Kiss, Dear (4:00)
4. Memories of Green (4:50)
5. End Title (4:17)
6. Blade Runner Blues (4:38)
7. Farewell (3:10)
8. End Title Reprise (3:08)
Total disc time: 33:16

In 1989, Vangelis released Themes, a compilation album featuring unreleased music from several of his film scores, as well as material from non-film-related albums. The album includes the "End Titles", "Memories of Green" and "Love Theme" from Blade Runner, as the first appearance of the original versions of those tracks.

Official Vangelis score

1994 release

In 1994, an official recording of Vangelis' score was released by East West (Warner Music) in the UK and by Atlantic Records in the US. The album reached the top 20 in the UK album charts.
This release contained a twelve-page booklet consisting mainly of stills from the film. On page 3 there is a list of credits and the following by Vangelis:

Most of the music contained in this album originates from recordings I made in London in 1982, whilst working on the score for the film BLADE RUNNER. Finding myself unable to release these recordings at the time; it is with great pleasure that I am able to do so now. Some of the pieces contained will be known to you from the Original Soundtrack of the film, whilst others are appearing here for the first time. Looking back at RIDLEY SCOTT's powerful and evocative pictures left me as stimulated as before, and made the recompiling of this music, today, an enjoyable experience. (VANGELIS Athens, April 1994)^[3]

While most of the tracks on the album are from the film, a number were composed by Vangelis but were ultimately not used in the film itself. Other compositions that appear in the film were not included on this release.

Official Vangelis score
1. Main Titles (3:42)
2. Blush Response (5:47)
3. Wait for Me (5:27)
4. Rachel's Song (4:46)
5. Love Theme (4:56)
6. One More Kiss, Dear (3:58)
7. Blade Runner Blues (8:53)
8. Memories of Green (5:05)
9. Tales of the Future (4:46)
10. Damask Rose (2:32)
11. Blade Runner (End Titles) (4:40)
12. Tears in Rain (3:00)
Total disc time: 57:53

2007 release

Blade Runner Trilogy, 25th Anniversary

A 3-CD set was released in 2007 to coincide with the 5-DVD release to mark the 25th anniversary of the film. It includes the 1994 official CD along with two bonus CDs, both compiled from original material by Vangelis. The second disc includes some previously officially unreleased material, but is still not complete, omitting the Main Title track, for example. The third disc contains new material inspired by Blade Runner.

25th Anniversary Disc #2	25th Anniversary Disc #3
1. Longing (1:58)	1. Launch Approval (1:54)
2. Unveiled Twinkling Space (1:59)	2. Up and Running (3:09)
3. Dr. Tyrell's Owl (2:40)	3. Mail from India (3:27)
4. At Mr. Chew's (4:47)	4. BR Downtown (2:27)
5. Leo's Room (sic) (2:21)[5]	5. Dimitri's Bar (3:52)
6. One Alone (bonus track) (2:23)	6. Sweet Solitude (6:56)
7. Deckard and Roy's Duel (6:16)	7. No Expectation Boulevard (6:44)
8. Dr. Tyrell's Death (3:11)	8. Vadavarot (4:14)
9. Desolation Path (bonus track) (5:45)	9. Perfume Exotico (5:19)
10. Empty Streets (6:16)	10. Spotkanie z matką (5:09)
11. Mechanical Dolls (2:52)	11. Piano in an Empty Room (3:37)
12. Fading Away (3:32)	12. Keep Asking (1:29)
Total disc time: (46:17)	Total disc time: (44:00)

Although this release claims to be the "complete" score, there is still some music heard in the film that is missing (in sequential order):

1. Longer-length track: "Main Titles", with prologue
2. Heard in scene: Leon's Voight-Kampff test
3. Heard in scene: Deckard meets Rachael for the first time (starting with the owl)
4. Longer-length track: "Blade Runner Blues"
5. Heard in scene: Deckard's dream, before, during and after the unicorn appears (1992 and 2007 film releases)
6. Heard in scene: Deckard's dream (1984 US film release), actually an alternate recording of "Love Theme"
7. Heard in scene: Deckard meets the snake guy, at the Snakepit/Taffey Lewis club
8. Full track: before the "Love Theme" (called "I Am the Business" on the Esper Edition)
9. Full track: when Batty walks around JF Sebastian's apartment (called "Morning at the Bradbury" on the Esper Edition)
10. Missing prelude: "The Prodigal Son Brings Death"
11. Heard in scene: Deckard enters the Bradbury and walks up the stairs
12. Longer-length track: "Deckard and Roy's Duel" (which is an abbreviated version of "Dangerous Days" plus "Wounded Animals")
13. Longer-length track: "End Titles"

The second disc, of previously unreleased music, contains additional music not present in the film, including two bonus tracks, one of which, "Desolation Path", is a slightly different version of "Alternate Love Theme/I Dreamt Music".^[6] This track was originally used in the workprint version of the film, during the Deckard/Rachel love scene.

Bootlegs

The delays and poor reproductions of the Blade Runner score led to the production of many bootleg recordings over the years. A bootleg tape surfaced in 1982 at science fiction conventions and became popular given the delay of an official release of the original recordings, and in 1993 "Off World Music, Ltd." created a bootleg CD that would prove more comprehensive than Vangelis' official CD in 1994. A disc from "Gongo Records" features most of the same material, but more of it. The Deck Definitive Edition came about in 2001, with 27 tracks. In 2003, two other bootlegs surfaced, the "Esper Edition", closely preceded by "Los Angeles – November 2019". The double-disc "Esper Edition" combined tracks from the official release, the Gongo boot and the film itself. Finally "2019" provided a single-disc compilation almost wholly consisting of ambient sound from the film, padded out with some sounds from the Westwood game Blade Runner.

Studio tape

The first release of the Blade Runner score in any form was a tape suspected of coming from a sound engineer during the film's mixing. It was popular, despite subpar audio quality, given there were no plans to release a Vangelis score.^[7]

Bootleg tape (1982)
Side A	Side B
1. Los Angeles, November 2019 (1:46)	9. Tales of the Future (4:46)
2. Leon's Interrogation (1:12)	10. Dangerous Days (1:02)
3. Lift-Off (1:10)	11. Wounded Animals (10:58)
4. Deckard Meets Rachael (1:29)	12. Tears in Rain (2:41)
5. One More Kiss, Dear (4:00)	13. End Titles (7:24)
6. Blade Runner Blues (10:19)
7. Love Theme (4:57)
8. The Prodigal Son Brings Death (3:35)
Total tape time: (55:19)

Off World Music

A second bootleg Original Motion Picture Soundtrack: Blade Runner appeared in 1993 by "Off World Music, Ltd." on CD, which was of high quality and actually more comprehensive than the official release by Vangelis in 1994. This release includes a 1939 recording by R&B group The Ink Spots. "If I Didn't Care" which originally appeared in an early workprint of Blade Runner, but was replaced by the Don Percival cut "One More Kiss, Dear" in the final version.

Off World Music Bootleg
1. Ladd Company Logo (0:24) John Williams
2. Main Titles and Prologue (4:03)
3. Los Angeles, November 2019 (1:46)
4. Deckard Meets Rachael (1:29)
5. Bicycle Riders (2:05) Gail Laughton
6. Memories of Green (5:39)
7. Blade Runner Blues (10:19)
8. Deckard's Dream (1:12)
9. On the Trail of Nexus 6 (5:30)
10. If I Didn't Care (3:03) Jack Lawrence [WP only]
11. Love Theme (4:57)
12. The Prodigal Son Brings Death (3:35)
13. Dangerous Days (1:02)
14. Wounded Animals (10:58)
15. Tears in Rain (2:41)
16. End Titles (7:24)
17. One More Kiss Dear (4:00) Skellern & Vangelis
18. Trailer and Alternate Main Titles (1:39) Robert Randles
Total disc time: 72:42

Esper Edition

In 2002 a bootleg – Blade Runner: Esper Edition by "Esper Productions" – was created, providing a comprehensive Blade Runner soundtrack. It contains some background music that has never been released.^[8]

Esper Edition Bootleg
Disc One	Disc Two
1. Prologue and Main Titles (3:54)	1. Deckard's Dream (1:10)
2. Leon's Voight Kampff Test (1:09)	2. Thinking of Rachael (1:18)
3. Sushi Bar – Damask Rose (2:46)	3. Esper Analysis (2:34)
4. Spinner Ascent (1:21)	4. Animoid Row (2:34)
5. Blush Response (5:43)	5. Taffey Lewis Night Club (2:02)
6. Wait for Me (5:12)	6. Salome's Dance (1:23)
7. Deckard Meets Rachael (1:36)	7. Zhora's Retirement (1:42)
8. Rachael's Song (4:20)	8. I Am the Business (2:29)
9. Tales of the Future (4:53)	9. Love Theme (4:58)
10. Bicycle Riders (2:10)	10. I Dreamt Music (4:32)
11. Chew's Eye Lab (1:15)	11. Morning at the Bradbury (3:46)
12. Memories of Green (5:35)	12. The Prodigal Son Brings Death (4:07)
13. Blade Runner Blues (10:01)	13. Deckard Enters the Bradbury (3:37)
14. Pris Meets J.F. Sebastian (1:47)	14. Dangerous Days (0:57)
15. One More Kiss, Dear (4:04)	15. Wounded Animals (10:53)
	16. Tears in Rain (2:51)
	17. Rachael Sleeps (2:08)
	18. End Titles (4:06)
Total disc time: 55:46	Total disc time: 57:07

Esper Edition notes:

• Original music composed and performed by Vangelis
• "Harps of the Ancient Temples" written and performed by Gail Laughton
• Performed on tracks 3, 9 (disc I) and track 5 (disc II) by Demis Roussos
• Performed on "Rachael's Song" by Mary Hopkin
• Saxophone on tracks 2 and 9 (disc II) by Dick Morrissey
• Lyrics and vocals on "One More Kiss‚ Dear" by Don Percival (Note: the official 1994 release credits the vocals to Don Percival but the lyrics to English singer/composer Peter Skellern)

The Esper bootleg edition has since been updated in 2007 to be called the 'Retirement' Edition consisting of 6 discs (5 CD-DA + 1 DVD-ROM). It has incorporated the missing tracks from the trilogy release.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

 

Dead Son Rising

Dead Son Rising is the 16th studio album by the British musician Gary Numan, released on 15 September 2011.

On 12 August 2011, The Quietus debuted a radio edit of the song "Dead Sun Rising" on their website.^[1] On 28 August 2011, the official Gary Numan website debuted a short "promo edit" of the video for the first single, "The Fall". After the album's release it spent only one week on the UK album charts, entering at number 87.^[2] The Album also reached as high as number 5 in the German alternative albums chart.

Track listing

All lyrics written by Gary Numan; all music composed by Gary Numan and Ade Fenton.

1. "Resurrection" – 3:24
2. "Big Noise Transmission" – 4:20
3. "Dead Sun Rising" – 4:57
4. "When the Sky Bleeds, He Will Come" – 4:47
5. "For the Rest of My Life" – 5:03
6. "Not the Love We Dream Of" – 5:10
7. "The Fall" – 4:19
8. "We Are the Lost" – 5:09
9. "For the Rest of My Life (Reprise)" – 5:44
10. "Into Battle" – 5:05
11. "Not the Love We Dream Of (Piano Version)" – 4:52
12. "Dead Sun Rising (Early Version)" (Bonus Track - Digital Only) – 5:53

Song notes

Big Noise Transmission had the live working titles of "Captured Underground Noise Transmission" and "Zulu" (the latter on the North American Pleasure Principle Tour in 2010).
Dead Sun Rising is a reworked version of "What Have I Become" from the 2006 Jagged sessions, and featured on the "Small Black Box" tour audio programme.
When The Sky Bleeds, He Will Come had the live working title of "Dragging Loop".
For The Rest Of My Life is a reworked version of "Always" from the 2000 Pure sessions, and featured on the "Purified" tour audio programme.
The Fall is a reworked version of "Look" from the 2000 Pure sessions, and featured on the "Purified" tour audio programme. It has existed in a variety of different mixes since it first debuted live several years ago.
We Are The Lost is a reworked version of "Mercy" from the 2006 Jagged sessions, and featured on the "Small Black Box" tour audio programme.

Super Deluxe Edition

The album was released in three different formats.

The Super Deluxe Edition of Dead Son Rising

CD/DVD/VINYL
Same contents as CD, plus:
DVD

1. The Fall Promo Video
2. Behind The Scenes Footage and Interview
3. Exclusive Dead Son Rising interview
4. Slideshow
5. Gallery

12" Vinyl remixes

1. The Fall (Motor Alternative Mix)
2. The Fall (South Central Bad Trip Mix)
3. The Fall (Motor Club Mix)

• Dead Son Rising CD
• DVD with 'The Fall' promo video, interviews, exclusive behind-the-scenes footage, gallery and slide show.
• 48 Page 'Art book' each page is 315mm x 310mm. It has a 7mm spine.
• Each copy is numbered
• Signed Gary Numan Print
• Gatefold Vinyl of Album (excludes Not the Love We Dream of Piano Version)
• Exclusive 12 inch single containing remixes of The Fall by Motor and South Central

Personnel

Production

• Gary Numan – producer
• Ade Fenton – producer

References

1. ^ Gary Numan's 'Dead Sun Rising'
2. ^ UK Chartstats.com (Gary Numan - Dead Son Rising)
3. ^ http://wp1091379.vwp0778.webpack.hosteurope.de/dac/dac/index_album.php

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Fields Of The Nephilim - The Nephilim

Fields of the Nephilim is the creation of vocalist and front man Carl McCoy, a seeker of the greater truth, who sprang from humble beginnings in south London. Brought up in a religious environment, Carl became familiar with the stories of the Watchers and Nephilim at a very early age. Unquestionably, this influenced his decision to pursue a creative career in art and music which embraced the world of the occult and portrayed it through his own apocalyptic fusion of Victorian underworld meets Sergio Leone Spaghetti Western, Fields of the Nephilim’s emerging brand of dark aural delights - expressed in tracks such as ‘Trees come down’, ‘Power’, ‘Preacher Man’ and ‘Dawnrazor’.
But it also helped define the band’s unique appearance, both on and off stage. Wide-brimmed hats, long duster coats and cowboy boots, usually black and smothered in white flour as a substitute for dust, became its trade mark in a world where designer label clothes were fast becoming the street style of the era. Fields of the Nephilim’s distinctive appearance, meant that they quickly became noticed by the music world, ensuring a growing fascination that enabled the band to achieve moderate success with their early singles and develop a loyal fan-base throughout Europe.

Little by little that success was built upon until the release in 1987 of their single ‘Blue Water’, which with its chaotic video propelled it into the bottom reaches of the UK pop chart. This was followed in 1988 with the release of the band’s seminal classic ‘Moonchild’, named after a magical novel by controversial English occultist Aleister Crowley. It rocketed into the charts at number 28, forcing TOP OF THE POPS to play its heavily-occult inspired video. It shocked the nation, but also helped propel Fields of the Nephilim into the realm of a major league rock band.

The sequel, ‘Psychonaut’, a title inspired by a magical grimoire by chaos magician Pete Carroll, was even more shocking. Although it received next to no national airplay in Britain (save for the concerted efforts of liberal Radio One DJ Annie Nightingale), it found its way into the charts at number 35, allowing a limited exposure to its mind-altering, Grainy video which featured a Sioux sundance ritual in which the candidate is hurled up into the air by claw-hooks affixed to his bare chest. Interspersed between its constantly shifting scenes, cut up in a style similar to news reels of the Edwardian era, were brief, almost subliminal flashes of war and destruction in the Middle East, as well as Christian religious images, which blended to express an apocalyptic vision of coming times.

Then there was the release of the band’s uncompromising albums, including the awe-inspiring ‘Elizium’, released by Beggars Banquet in 1990. It remains arguably one of The Nephilim’s most seminal soundscapes to date, invoking the energy of the Watchers and Nephilim and acknowledging them as the gods and demons of a mountain-like heaven towering above the Fertile Crescent, on which the civilisations of Sumer and Babylon evolved. Two highly evocative tracks, ‘For her light’ and ‘Sumerland’, appeared as singles, and each shared in chart success despite, once again, virtually no airplay on national radio.

Fields of the Nephilim’s remarkable success story was aided perhaps by the manifestation among global youth culture during the late 1980s and early 1990s of all things black and gothic. Indeed, the band’s deep, dusky music style became the soundtrack of their lives. The band’s distinctive T-shirts and sweat shirts, adorned with occult-influenced designs, were virtually signs of recognition among many thousands of fans with a like mind. Furthermore, the Nephilim’s evocative soundscapes unquestionably inspired several talented people in their own particular lines of interest.

Among those who might credit The Nephilim’s music for their own creativity include Richard Stanley, the writer and producer of science fantasy films such as ‘Hardware’, which featured Carl McCoy’s acting debut as the ‘zone tripper’. Writers of graphics novels who have admitted listening to Nephilim music include Warren Ellis - the main character of his HELLSTORM stories, ‘Daimon Hellstorm’, being based directly on Carl’s enigmatic persona, on and off stage. Other graphic novels such as FAUST, LOVE OF THE DAMNED and GUNFIGHTERS FROM HELL, all with artwork by Tim and Joe Vigil, as well as their ‘Macabre Erotica Series’, published by Rebel Studios, owe a debt to The Nephilim, as do some of the Watcher-inspired works by Storm Constantine. Her Grigori Trilogy (Grigori is Latin for Watchers) pays its respect to the music of The Nephilim.

In non-fiction, ancient mystery writer and psychic questing pioneer Andrew Collins acknowledges enveloping himself in The Nephilim’s spectral soundscape during the writing of his scholarly work FROM THE ASHES OF ANGELS, published in 1996. It tells the story of the origins, history and latter-day influences of the Watchers and Nephilim of Enochian tradition. He concludes that they were flesh and blood beings who once walked the earth and initiated the Neolithic revolution that culminated with the creation of the world’s first civilisations.

In the mid 1990s that which was Fields of the Nephilim underwent necessary transformations. With changes in the band’s line-up - leaving Carl McCoy as its sole full time member - and a shortening of its name to, simply. ‘The Nefilim’, it now created an aural assault on the senses with the release in 1996 of its morphogenic offering entitled ‘Zoon’, a deep, dark industrial album tainted by the death metal genre of music. It was a statement of great intent, a transition, that enabled Carl to conquer oblivion, and pass beyond that world into the one that faces the band today.

Copyright 2011 Sheerfaith / Fields of the Nephilim. All rights reserved
Sourced from the official  Fields Of The Nephilim website:
http://www.fields-of-the-nephilim.com

Kairos (album)

Kairos is the 12th studio album by Brazilian heavy metal band Sepultura. It was released on June 24, 2011 by independent German record label Nuclear Blast Records. This is the band's first release on the label, marking their first album not released on SPV/Steamhammer since 2001's Nation. Kairos would prove to be Sepultura's last album recorded with drummer Jean Dolabella, as he left the band five months after its release.

Background and recording

On July 6, 2010, it was announced that Sepultura were signed with Nuclear Blast Records, and would release their first album for the label in 2011.^[1] By the end of 2010, the band had begun writing new material and entered the studio to begin recording their twelfth album with producer Roy Z (Judas Priest, Halford, Iron Maiden's Bruce Dickinson, Helloween).^[2][3][4] Recording sessions for Kairos took place from December 2010 to March 2011 at Trama Studios in São Paulo, Brazil, the same studio where its 2009 predecessor A-Lex was recorded.
On March 1, 2011, it was announced that Sepultura had completed recording their album, which was tentatively due in May 2011.^[5] Days after the album was finished, Sepultura announced on March 4, 2011 that the album would be called Kairos and would be released around that late spring or early summer.^[6]

Concept

Speaking of how the band came up with the Kairos title, Andreas Kisser said:

The whole theme of the album is the concept of the time, and the title reflects that — it's like one concept of time which is not chronological, from one to two; it's like a an instant in time, it's a special time of change... Everyone's life is written by [their] choices — you have many 'kairos' moments, like if you go [from] point A [to point] B [to point] C, you are driven by your choices or your guidance; you have to go either one way or the other. And that's the kind of time we talked about — not about aging or getting old or going back [in time]; it's just [about those important] moments that can change everything.

According to the guitarist, the concept had to do with Sepultura's 26-year-old history and the changes inside and outside the band. "It's a collection of 'kairos' that [got us] here. It's being inspired by our own biography, but mostly [focusing] on what Sepultura is today," he added.^[7]

Reception

Kairos has been well-received by music critics and fans. Kairos sold over 2,500 copies in the United States in its first week of release^[21] and topped the CMJ Loud Rock chart for three weeks.^[22] The album charted in Germany, Austria and Switzerland.^[23]

Track listing

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Spectrum"	4:03
2.	"Kairos"	3:37
3.	"Relentless"	3:36
4.	"2011"	0:30
5.	"Just One Fix" (Ministry cover)	3:33
6.	"Dialog"	4:57
7.	"Mask"	4:31
8.	"1433"	0:31
9.	"Seethe"	2:27
10.	"Born Strong"	4:40
11.	"Embrace the Storm"	3:32
12.	"5772"	0:29
13.	"No One Will Stand"	3:17
14.	"Structure Violence (Azzes)"	5:39
15.	"4648"	0:28

Deluxe Edition
No.	Title	Writer(s)	Length
16.	"Firestarter" (The Prodigy cover)		4:28
17.	"Point of No Return"		3:27

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

Garbage (album)

Garbage is the debut album by Scottish/American alternative rock group Garbage. It was released in the late summer and autumn of 1995 worldwide, following critical acclaim and promising chart positions for their debut single "Vow", which entered the Billboard Hot 100.
Garbage eventually spent over a year on both the US and UK charts, reaching the top 20 on charts worldwide and receiving multi-platinum certification in numerous territories. The album's success was helped by the band promoting it on a year-long tour, including playing on the European festival circuit and supporting the Smashing Pumpkins throughout 1996, as well as by a run of increasingly successful singles culminating with "Stupid Girl" which in 1997 was nominated for Grammy Awards for Best Rock Song and Best Rock Performance by a Duo or Group.
Garbage was considered innovative for its fusion of pop melodies with alternative rock, trip-hop and electronica genres and its use of loops and sampling including, amongst other things, The Clash's "Train in Vain", the sound of torn sheets of metal, an air conditioning unit and a broken tape deck.

Background

In 1983, Vig and Marker founded Smart Studios in Madison and Vig's production work brought him to the attention of Sub Pop. Spooner reunited in 1990 and released another record, but disbanded in 1993 as Vig and Marker's career as producers gained strength.^[1] In 1994, as Vig become "kind of burned out on doing really long records," he got together with Erikson and Marker, and they started doing remixes for acts such as U2, Depeche Mode, Nine Inch Nails and House of Pain, featuring different instrumentation, and often highlighting new guitar hooks and bass grooves. The experience inspired the three men to form a band, where they "wanted to take that remix sensibility and somehow translate it into all of the possibilities of a band setup."^[2] An early comment that their work sounded "like garbage" inspired the band's name.^[3]
Manson had been performing with the Edinburgh rock band Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie since 1984.^[4] In 1993, several band members, including Manson, changed their name to Angelfish. Their only release, the self-titled Angelfish, did not do any better than the preceding albums by Goodbye Mr. Mackenzie, selling only 10,000 copies.^[5]
Initial sessions with Vig on vocals, and the member's past work with all-male groups led to the band's desire for a woman on lead.^[6] Marker was watching 120 Minutes when he saw the music video for Angelfish's "Suffocate Me". He showed the video to Erikson and Vig while their manager Shannon O'Shea tracked Manson down. When Manson was contacted, she didn't know who Vig was and was urged to check the credits on Nevermind, the popular Nirvana album which Vig produced. On April 8, Manson met Erikson, Marker and Vig for the first time in London. Later that evening Vig was informed of Kurt Cobain's suicide.^[3] Garbage was put on hold, until Angelfish were touring North America in support of Live.^[7] Erikson, Marker and Vig attended the Metro Chicago date; and Manson was invited to Madison to audition for the band. The audition did not go well, but Manson socialized with the men while there and they found they had a similar taste in music. Angelfish disbanded at the end of the Live tour. Manson called O'Shea and asked to audition again feeling that "it would work out".^[3]

Recording

In her return to Smart Studios, Manson began to work on the then-skeletal "Queer" and "Vow" (ad-libbing the lyric "like Joan of Arc coming back for more").^[8] While looking for a record deal to put the album out, Garbage sent out demo tapes with no bio, to avoid a bidding war over Vig's production history.^[9] Garbage signed with Mushroom U.K. worldwide and to Jerry Moss's label Almo Sounds for North America.^[5] Manson's contribution was licensed to both Mushroom and Almo by her label Radioactive.^[10]
Garbage continued to work on the album throughout the start of 1995, being delayed by Vig's work producing Soul Asylum's Let Your Dim Light Shine album and the songs being "piecemealed together in the studio".^[11] Some of the songs were completely reworked, with "As Heaven is Wide" going from "a big rock track" to a techno song with Tom Jones-inspired beats, only keeping Erikson's fuzz bass and Manson's vocals from the original recording.^[12] A major part of the work was Manson rewriting the song lyrics, which Vig said the band attempted to "write from a woman's perspective and I think, initially, some of them were a little pretentious. But as soon as Shirley came on board she simplified the lyrics so that they were a lot more subtle and worked better as songs."^[6]

Composition

Garbage has an experimental alternative rock sound that "tr[ied] to incorporate different styles and genres, throw it all into a big melting pot and see what would happen", according to Vig.^[6] Vig explained that as in the mid-Nineties "the most exciting bands are those who incorporate all incorporate all those elements of punk, funk, techno, hip hop, etc." Garbage would attempt to do the same and "take those influences and make them work in the context of a pop song.”^[13] The band went overboard with experimentation, with Erikson adding that throughout they liked to include “sounds that we found accidentally, like Steve’s sample of a tape deck backing up, or the bit in ‘Stupid Girl’ that was initially a mistake, but when we slowed it down, actually fit the timbre and pace of the song and became the hook.”^[12]
The lyrics on the record were described by the bandmembers as "a collaborative psycho-therapy session wherein personal demons of various sizes and importance are exorcised, vilified, taken revenge upon and laid to rest." Vig said they tried to deal with "dark themes that I think a lot of people can relate to in some way or another", which included voyeurism, hedonism, perversion, obsession and "the art of self-destruction."^[12]

Album release and promotion

In United States, the album was preceded at alternative radio by "Vow", which peaked at #26 on the Modern Rock Tracks chart^[14] and at the end of July, spent two weeks at #97 on the Hot 100.^[15] Despite not being able to actively promote the single, Almo Sounds issued Garbage on August 15, on CD, cassette and double-vinyl. The album debuted at #29 on the developing artists Top Heatseekers album chart.^[16] Four weeks later, the album debuted at #193 on the Billboard 200,^[17] as "Queer" impacted at Modern Rock.^[18] In November, Garbage launched their first North American tour,^[19] which drove "Queer" to #12 on the Modern Rock chart^[20] and Garbage to climb to #127 on the album chart^[21] and spend four weeks at #5 on the Heatseekers chart.^[22] The album dropped off the Billboard 200 at the start of December.^[23] At the start of January 1996, "Only Happy When It Rains" was serviced to alternative radio;^[24] as Garbage re-charted on the Billboard 200 at #183.^[25] At the start of March, Garbage peaked at #2 on the Heatseeker chart.^[26] A week later, the album broke into the top half of Billboard 200 for the first time,^[27] as "Only Happy When It Rains" peaked at #16 at alternative radio.^[28] The album had sold 238,000 units by this point.^[29] "Only Happy..." peaked at #55 on the Hot 100 at the start of May^[30] as Garbage was certified Gold by the RIAA for shipping half a million units.^[31] A week later, the album reached #47 on the Billboard 200^[32] before dropping to #73 in June^[33] as "Stupid Girl" impacted Modern Rock.^[34] At the end of the month "Stupid Girl" reached the top ten at Modern Rock^[35] while Garbage ascended into the top forty of the Billboard 200 for the first time.^[36] At the end of July, Garbage was certified platinum for shipping a million units,^[37] and a week later peaked at #20 on the album chart.^[38] "Stupid Girl" peaked at #24 on the Hot 100 in September;^[39] by which time Garbage had doubled its weekly sales to shifting around 40,000 units^[40] and remained in the top thirty of the Billboard 200 for two months.^[41] Almo serviced "Supervixen" to alternative^[42] before releasing "Milk" as the last single from the album; however alternative radio picked up on "#1 Crush", which was licensed to a movie soundtrack, and sent it to #1 at the end of the year.^[43] Garbage dropped to #78 in December,^[44] before rebounding to #47 at the start of February 1997^[45] on the back of the success of "#1 Crush".^[46] Garbage clocked up its 81st and last week on the Billboard 200 at the start of May 1997 when it bowed out at #191.^[47]
In Australia, Garbage debuted at #5 on the ARIA album chart. In New Zealand, Garbage debuted at #11.^[48] On September 23 the band's record labels issued a 'Tour Edition' of the album containing a bonus disc of remixes and b-side "Alien Sex Fiend".^[49] Eleven months after release, Garbage topped the New Zealand albums chart and peaked at #4 in Australia.
In the United Kingdom, Garbage was preceded by the single "Only Happy When It Rains" which charted at #29. Mushroom Records issued the album on CD, cassette, double-vinyl and a limited edition 7" box set. Garbage debuted on the UK Album Chart at #12 with first week sales of 9,409 copies. A week later the album dropped to #26 before falling out of the Top 40. The album re-entered the album chart at the start of 1996 and climbed steadily as "Stupid Girl" hit #4 on the UK Singles Chart at the end of March. The album subsequently peaked at #6 ^[50] and remained in the top ten until May.^[51] Garbage left the Top 40 in October, and recharted at #34 at the end of the year. Garbage was issued on the MiniDisc format on March 20, 2000^[52] and re-charting in the UK for the final time in July of that year.^[53] As of May 2012, the album has sold over 700,000 copies in the United Kingdom.^[54]

World tour

See also: Garbage tour

Vig stated that the band had no initial plans to tour as "not going on the road would really free us up to record tons of stuff". As the bandmembers realized "that if we were going to have a successful record we'd have to go out on tour and promote it",^[2] and enjoyed playing live to record the "Vow" video, they decided ^[29]
On February 24, 1996, Garbage set off on a 17-date headline tour of North America.^[55] Garbage then joined Smashing Pumpkins as support on their North American arena tour from June 25, although the support slot was cut short due to the death of Pumpkin's keyboardist Jonathan Melvoin on July 12. Garbage returned to Europe on August 3 promoting Garbage with a month of shows around the festival circuit.^[55] Garbage then headed south to Asia and Australia to promote the album, beginning with shows in Singapore on September 28 and ending in Osaka, Japan on October 18.^[55] Garbage returned to the US to give Garbage a final push by rejoining the Smashing Pumpkins rescheduled tour from October 23.^[55]

Track listing

All songs written and composed by Garbage, except where noted.

No.	Title	Length
1.	"Supervixen"	3:55
2.	"Queer"	4:36
3.	"Only Happy When It Rains"	3:56
4.	"As Heaven Is Wide"	4:44
5.	"Not My Idea"	3:41
6.	"A Stroke of Luck"	4:44
7.	"Vow"	4:30
8.	"Stupid Girl" (Strummer, Jones)	4:18
9.	"Dog New Tricks"	3:56
10.	"My Lover's Box"	3:55
11.	"Fix Me Now"	4:43
12.	"Milk"	3:53

Reviews, accolades and nominations

Garbage was certified silver^[60] by the BPI on January 1, 1996 and gold one month later.^[60] Garbage became platinum-certified for UK sales of 300,000 on May 1.^[60] Garbage was certified gold by the RIAA on January 5^[61] and certified platinum for one million US sales on July 30.^[61] The ARIA certified Garbage platinum, with sales of over 210,000 units.
Garbage had also been certified double platinum in Canada, Australia ^[62] and New Zealand and gold in France, Denmark, Ireland and Singapore.^[63] Garbage was certified platinum in the UK for the second time on October 16, 1998,^[60] and in the US for the second time on February 24, 1999.^[61] It was also certified gold in the Philippines on June 20.^[63]
Album track "As Heaven is Wide" was included on the 1998 PS1 racing game Gran Turismo.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

 

Nox Arcana

Nox Arcana is an American Neoclassical darkwave/dark ambient musical duo, formed in 2003 by Joseph Vargo and William Piotrowski. Nox Arcana specializes in concept albums based on gothic fiction and classic horror literature. Such literary references include H. P. Lovecraft, The Brothers Grimm, Ray Bradbury, and Edgar Allan Poe.^[1] Some of their albums also make reference to medieval themes and ancient mythology.^[2]
Their Winter's Knight album, released in 2005, ranked as high as #8 on the Billboard chart for Top Holiday Albums.^[3] Their music is used by theme parks such as Busch Gardens, Knott's Scary Farm and Universal Studios during Halloween for scenes and haunted houses based upon Nox Arcana album themes.^[4][5] Nox Arcana's music was featured exclusively on the television show America Haunts for the Travel Channel throughout the Halloween weekend 2009.^[6][7][8]

Musical characteristics

Nox Arcana is influenced by New Age, classical, ambient music, rock music, and film soundtracks, citing other composers such as John Carpenter, Danny Elfman, AC/DC, Wojciech Kilar, Enya, Loreena McKennitt, Beethoven, Jerry Goldsmith, and Hans Zimmer.^{[4][9][10][11]}
Nox Arcana's music is melodic and moody, focusing on a dominant melody line. Instrumentation varies with each album as appropriate to the theme or time period of the album concept, and typically includes piano, bells, violin, pipe organ, harpsichord, timpani drums and other percussion.^[12] Some albums also include cymbals, lutes, acoustic guitars, bagpipes and glockenspiel, depending on the theme of a given album. Enforcing the theme and the narrative is the use of sound effects, such as, for instance, a door creaking or a pendulum swinging on the Poe-inspired Shadow of the Raven.^[13] Vocals and narratives are also used sparingly to help relate a story or serve as introduction to a musical piece, for example, the voice of "Jonathan Harker" and whispered female voices of "Dracula's brides" that beckon to the listener, a carnival barker with the indistinct sounds of an audience in the distance, or "Edgar Allan Poe" and a voice calling out from the grave after being prematurely buried, the gravelly voice of a "witch" casting a spell, and a variety of low Gregorian-style chanting and ethereal choirs.^[12]

Discography

Year	Album details	Billboard peak
		US
2003	Darklore Manor Released: December 15, 2003 Label: Monolith
2004	Necronomicon Released: October 10, 2004 Label: Monolith
2005	Winter's Knight Released: July 10, 2005 Label: Monolith	8
	Transylvania Released: October 21, 2005 Label: Monolith
2006	Carnival of Lost Souls Released: June 6, 2006 Label: Monolith
	Blood of Angels (with Michelle Belanger) Released: October 13, 2006 Label: Monolith
	Blood of the Dragon Released: November 27, 2006 Label: Monolith
2007	Shadow of the Raven Released: July 20, 2007 Label: Monolith
2008	Grimm Tales Released: April 30, 2008 Label: Monolith
	Phantoms of the High Seas Released: October 13, 2008 Label: Monolith
2009	Blackthorn Asylum Released: June 21, 2009 Label: Monolith
	Zombie Influx (with Buzz-Works) Released: September 15, 2009 Label: Monolith
	Winter's Eve Released: November 27, 2009 Label: Monolith
2010	Theater of Illusion Released: July 15, 2010 Label: Monolith
	House of Nightmares (with Buzz-Works) Released: October 1, 2010 Label: Monolith
2011	The Dark Tower Released: September 30, 2011 Label: Monolith

History

Joseph Vargo is a renowned gothic-fantasy artist who has created an extensive portfolio of work ranging from album covers and books to posters, music cds, and other products that are distributed through his publishing company Monolith Graphics.^[14][15][16] Before forming Nox Arcana in 2003, Joseph Vargo produced two albums for Midnight Syndicate^[17] but left the band in 2000 to co-write Tales From The Dark Tower, a book that follows the exploits of a vampire during the First Crusade.^[18] He later published Dark Realms magazine and released a best-selling card deck, The Gothic Tarot.^[19] William Piotrowski had previously written the score for a video production entitled "Ghosts of Ohio",^[17][20] a video documentary about Mary Ann Winkowski, a medium who inspired the CBS television show Ghost Whisperer.^[21]

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia