Cardiacs

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Cardiacs prior to the 2004 London Astoria show.
Cardiacs prior to the 2004 London Astoria show.

Cardiacs are an English band formed in 1977. Combining the excitement and energy of punk rock with the intricacies and technical cleverness of early British progressive rock, a combination sometimes referred to as pronk, although singer Tim Smith prefers the description psychedelic, their sound is unique, varied, complex and intense.

Contents

[edit] History so far

Cardiacs were formed by Tim Smith in suburban Kingston upon Thames, Surrey, in 1977. Since then the band line-up has remained fluid, undergoing numerous line-up changes, with Tim's brother Jim Smith being the only other surviving original member, and many previous members appearing now and again for live performances or to help out backstage (and vice versa).

Starting off as Cardiac Arrest, then settling on Cardiacs by the end of 1980. Early releases followed the punk DIY ethic, and included limited runs of the cassette albums The Obvious Identity, Toy World, and The Seaside.

The band's line-up was whittled down throughout 1983 from eight to six (Tim, Jim, Sarah, Bill, Dom, and Tim, the line-up that would remain for the rest of the 1980s). Tim and Sarah got married in July 1983.

In 1984, Cardiacs supported Marillion at the personal request of Marillion’s lead singer Fish. While the tour gave Cardiacs some overdue publicity, Marillion's fanbase took an aversion to them resulting in the band being pelted with a variety of makeshift missiles (including - but not limited to - bottles, batteries and lit cigarettes) on stage. A handful of the current Cardiacs Chatlist regulars were at these early shows and speak unhappily of the reception they were given, especially when someone attempted to set fire to the safety curtain at the Manchester show.

In March 1987 the British tabloid newspaper the Sunday Sport ran a story 'exposing' the supposedly incestuous relationship between Tim and Sarah, mistaking the couple for brother and sister, "In the bizarre world of music.. anything goes - even INCEST." Much of the misunderstanding was perpetuated by Tim himself.

The release of Is This The Life in 1988 saw brief chart success and the attention of a wider audience, as the single reached the Indie top ten in the UK. By the end of 1990, the band had slimmed down to a four piece, using a backing tape for live shows. In 1995 much of the Cardiacs back catalogue was re-released on CD.

For several years, Cardiacs have been playing a regular annual gig in London. This usually takes place towards the end of the year and is regarded as a major Cardiacs event, attended by fans of all ages (as most long-standing Cardiacs fans now have children of their own) from all over the world.

The last official release of new Cardiacs material was in 1999 with the album Guns. According to the Cardiacs official website, a new album is in preparation - a track from which was included on the 2002 Greatest Hits compilation. A two volume set of recordings from the three shows at the Highbury Garage in November 2003 was released in the beginning of September 2005, and is available from All My Eye and Betty Martin Music (along with other recordings from the likes of William D Drake and Spratleys Japs).

The band has enjoyed a quiet renaissance lately thanks to YouTube where the bizarre 1987 video for "Tarred and Feathered" - shot for Channel 4's music show The Tube, and strikingly similar to the surreal comedy of Channel 4's own comedy show Absolutely - has become a popular attraction along with other past Cardiacs and associates' clips (including "Is This The Life?")

[edit] Quotations

"..we are not a progressive rock band, progressive rock bands usually tend to have a particular style to them, however individual the bands sound is, there is usually a flavour there which is the prog flavour. We are a pop group...We are as punky as nothing. God forbid if anyone thought that we were a crazy ‘fusion’ of punk and prog. If a word is needed then I would use “psychedelic” if anything."

- Tim Smith, interviewed in Harmonie Magazine 2000.

"Everything we play is written, right down to the last drumbeat. It's chaos, but it's ordered chaos - everything is really. Look out of the window."

- Tim Smith, interviewed by Mat Smith in Melody Maker.

"There's nothing wrong with any kind of band in the world. Whatever they play. Musical prejudice is the worst thing in the world."

- Tim Smith, interviewed in Organ No.1 (a fanzine) 1986.

"We wouldn’t deliberately not do anything. The chords and tunes we use sound pretty to us, certain key changes make your tummy go funny, the ones we use make our tummies go funny."

- Tim Smith, interviewed in Harmonie Magazine 2000.

"I'm not going to say any more after this... except for, it makes me want to get me dopper out! And do it to one of those bloody great fish that come out the river, yeah?"

- Tim Smith, between songs at Reading Festival 1986, where Cardiacs were invited to perform on mainstage.

"The songs that I come up with are thought up first in my head. I used to score it all out on reams and reams of paper like a twat, but nowadays I limit myself to one bit of paper just as reminders (as my memory is crap)."

- Tim Smith, interviewed in Harmonie Magazine 2000.

"We’ve no idea who is running it, last time we dropped in to where we thought the place was, all we found were a load of tiny ants. (and a muddy puddle)."

- Tim Smith, talking about the Alphabet Business Concern, interviewed in Margen Magazine April 2001.

[edit] Influences

Influences the band have cited include Gong, Gentle Giant, early Genesis, and Frank Zappa.

[edit] Present line-up

  • Tim Smith - lead vocals, guitar, keyboards.
  • Jim Smith - bass, backing vocals.
  • Kavus Torabi - guitar, backing vocals.
  • Bob Leith - drums, backing vocals.

[edit] Members past and present A-Z by surname

  • Ralph Cade aka Raphel Cadd - saxophone (1978-1979)
  • Mark Cawthra aka Little Bobby Shattocks - drums then Mini Korg (1979-1983)
  • William D. Drake - keyboards(1983-1990) (after Bill left it was decided not to replace him and at all subsequent gigs the keyboard parts have been pre-recorded)
  • Sharron Fortnam (née Saddington) vocals (1999-present, only appears when "Will Bleed Amen" is performed)
  • Cathy Harabaras - backing vocals and percussion (2000-present)
  • Christian Hayes aka Bic - guitar, vocals (1989-1990)
  • Marguerite Johnson - saxophone (1982- 1983)
  • Clare Lemmon - backing vocals, and lead vocal on "Dog Like Sparky" (1999-present)
  • Dominic Luckman - drums (1983-1994)
  • Colvin Mayers aka Max Cat (1978-1981)
  • Jon Poole - guitar, keyboards, vocals (1991-2004)
  • Bob Leith - drums (1994-present)
  • Michael Pugh aka Peter Boker - vocals (1977-?)
  • Tim Quy - percussion (1980-1990) (who is not dead, despite the ominous dedication at the end of the Mare's Nest video - "Dedicated to Tim Quy, who left our world 30/6/90". This was simply the date of his last show with Cardiacs, not his last day on earth. Tim Quy is alive and well.)
  • Graham Simmonds - guitar (1982-1983)
  • Tim Smith aka Philip Pilf - lead vocals, guitar, keyboards (1977-present)
  • Jim Smith aka Patty Pilf - bass, vocals (1977-present)
  • Sarah Smith (née Sarah Cutts, now Sarah Jones) - saxophone (1980-1989)
  • Peter Tagg aka Mr Richard Targett - drums (1977-1979)
  • Dawn Staple - backing vocals and percussion (2000-present)
  • Kavus Torabi - guitar, vocals (2003-present)
  • Melanie Woods - backing vocals and percussion (2000-present)

[edit] Musical relations A-Z by band name

  • Ad Nauseum (Jon Poole and Bob Leith – prior to joining Cardiacs)
  • Authority (Kavus Torabi with Craig Fortnam, also James Keddie and Dan Chudley from The Monsoon Bassoon)
  • Blurt (Bob Leith)
  • Katherine in a Cupboard (Bob Leith, Jim Smith)
  • Dark Star (Christian Hayes - after leaving Cardiacs and Levitation)
  • The Goddamn Whores (Jon Poole - after leaving Cardiacs) MySpace site
  • Lake of Puppies (Bill Drake - after leaving Cardiacs, and Sharron Fortnam)
  • Levitation (Christian Hayes - after leaving Cardiacs)
  • Mice (Dominic Luckman and Christian Hayes - after leaving Cardiacs)
  • Mikrokosmos (Christian Hayes solo project)
  • The Monsoon Bassoon (Kavus Torabi - prior to joining Cardiacs)
  • Mr and Mrs Smith and Mr Drake (Tim Smith, Sarah Smith, and Bill Drake)
  • north sea radio orchestra - (Sharron Fortnam, with Kavus Torabi, william d drake, Melaine Woods, )album produced by mark cawthra
  • Panixphere Mk1 1982-1984(Christian Hayes, Flat Hat, Little Hicky (became Cardiacs roadie))
  • Panixphere Mk2 1991-1993(Christian Hayes, Tim Smith, Jon Poole, Dave Francolini)
  • Ponce (Jim Smith and Melanie Woods)
  • Ring (Christian Hayes - prior to joining Cardiacs)
  • Sidi Bou Said (Melaine Woods and Clare Lemmons band who toured extensively with Cardiacs in the early 1990s, before Tim asked the girls to do backing vocals on the "Guns" album
  • The Sea Nymphs (Tim Smith, Sarah Smith and Bill Drake)
  • The Shrubbies (Dominic Luckman - after leaving Cardiacs)
  • Tim Smith's OceanLandWorld (Tim Smith's solo project)
  • The Sound (Colvin Mayers - after leaving Cardiacs)
  • Spratley's Japs (Tim Smith) - label's site
  • The Trudy (Peter Tagg and Ralph Cade - after leaving Cardiacs) Official site , Fansite, MySpace site
  • The Wildhearts (Jon Poole - after leaving Cardiacs)
  • Also listen out for Tim Smith's production for Sidi Bou Said (Bodies on Ultimate, 1995) and other bands too (eg. Eat's 'Epicure', Fiction 1993)
  • Also listen for Jon Pooles production on Sidi Bou Said followup album "Obsessive"
  • north sea radio orchestra - (Sharron Fortnam, with Kavus Torabi, william d drake, Melaine Woods )album produced by mark cawthra

[edit] Discography

[edit] Studio albums

[edit] Compilations

  • Archive Cardiacs Cassette (1989) ALPH 000 (This is a compilation of tracks from 'Toy World' and 'The Obvious Identity'. It was originally released in about 1989 as a cassette available only to members of Cardiacs' information service (known as The youseletter Family). It was later available on general release on CD)
  • Songs for Ships and Irons (1991) ALPH 014 (a Compilation including the tracks from the 'Big Ship' and 'Too Many Irons in the Fire' eps, plus some b-sides and one previously unreleased track)
  • Sampler (1995) ALPH 019
  • Greatest Hits (2002) ALPH 029

[edit] Singles and EPs

  • A Bus for a Bus on the Bus 7" (1979) TOR 002
  • Seaside Treats 12" EP (1985) ALPH 002
  • Big Ship Mini Album (1986) ALPH 004
  • There's Too Many Irons In The Fire 12" EP (1987) ALPH 006
  • Is This The Life 7" and 12" (1988) ALPH 008
  • Susannah's Still Alive 7" and 12" (1988) ALPH 009
  • Baby Heart Dirt 7" and 12" (1989) ALPH 011
  • Day Is Gone 12" and CD (1991) ALPH 015
  • Manhoo (1995) ALPH 025
  • Bellyeye (1995) ORGAN011
  • Odd Even ALPH 026
  • Signs (1999) ALPH 028

[edit] Live albums

  • Rude Bootleg (1987) recorded live at the Reading Festival 1986 ALPH 005
  • Cardiacs Live recorded live at The Paradiso, Amsterdam (1988) ALPH 010
  • All that Glitters is a Mares Nest ALPH 018
  • The Special Garage Concerts Vol I & II (2005) ALPH CD030 & ALPH CD031

[edit] Videos

  • Surbiton Assembly Rooms (1985) -semi-official
  • Seaside Treats (1985)
  • Maresnest, live at Salisbury Arts Centre 30 June 1990.

[edit] Related releases

  • Mr and Mrs Smith and Mr Drake Cassette ALPH 003
  • The Sea Nymphs Cassette (1992)
  • Tim Smith's Extra Special OceanLandWorld (1995) ALPH 020
  • Cardiacs and Affectionate Friends (2001) ORG228

[edit] References

No official Cardiacs histories or biographies have been published. The ORGAN fanzine produced a Cardiacs anthology of interviews and reviews in 1993. In November 2006 The Organ announced that they would be putting together a book incorporating the previous anthology, interviews and features that been in Organ since that anthology was published and contributions from fans.

[edit] External links

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