Cranes (band)
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
| The Cranes | |
|---|---|
| Origin | Portsmouth |
| Country | England |
| Years active | 1980s-current |
| Genres | Alternative rock Gothic rock |
| Labels | Manifesto/Dadaphonic/Lolo |
| Members | Alison Shaw Jim Shaw Paul Smith Ben Baxter (bass guitar) Jon Callender (drums) |
| Past members | Mark Francombe (guitar) Matt Cope (bass guitar) Manu Ross (drums) |
Cranes are a British band, often described as gothic rock or shoegazers. Formed in the mid 1980s in Portsmouth, England, they are best known for the soft, high-pitched vocals of lead singer Alison Shaw, memorably likened by the NME to "a beautiful siren being slowly strangled on a spiral staircase of hammer-horror guitars". Cranes took their name from the innumerable mechanical cranes around Portsmouth docks. Cranes saw an increase in popularity in 1992 when they toured with The Cure. The band fell silent for a period of about four years after 1997 but, as Jim and Alison Shaw are brother and sister, they never truly broke up. Thus, they began writing music again to release Future Songs and a few years later Particles and Waves. These albums signified a change in the overall style of their music, tending to a more ambient, ethereal sound. However, despite heading in a more electronic direction, the band maintained their signature sound, mainly revolving around Alison Shaw's child-like vocals.
Contents |
[edit] Discography
[edit] Albums
- Fuse (MC, 1986)
- Self-Non-Self (1989)
- Wings of Joy (1991)
- Forever (1993)
- Forever Remixes (1993)
- Loved (1994)
- La tragédie d'Oreste et Électre (1996)
- Population 4 (1997)
- EP Collection, Vol. 1 & 2 (1997)
- Future Songs (2001)
- Live in Italy (2003)
- Particles and Waves (2004)
[edit] EPs
- Inescapable (1990)
- Espero (1990)
- Adoration (1991)
- Tomorrow's Tears (1991)
- Jewel (1993)
- Shining Road (1994)
- Can't Get Free (1997)
- The Moon City/It's a Beautiful World (7", 2002)
- Submarine (2002)
[edit] Notes
The track Astronauts from the 2004 album Particles and Waves has been used as music for the American Express commercial with actress Kate Winslet.
[edit] External links
- Cranes Fan Forum. Retrieved on 2006-09-10.
- Dadaphonic. Retrieved on 2006-09-10.
- Non-official Cranes resource. Retrieved on 2006-09-10.
- Laurence, Alexander (June 2002). Cranes - An Interview with Alison Shaw. Free Williamsburg. Retrieved on 2006-09-10.
- Nesset, Kirk. The Cranes: An Interview With Ali Shaw. Legends Magazine Online. Retrieved on 2006-09-10.
- Cranes tabs chords and sheet music. guitar-music-tabs.com. Retrieved on 2006-09-10.
- Interview by Alexander Laurence (The Portable Infinite) © 2006
