Mark Ellis (record producer)
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Mark Ellis a.k.a Flood (born 1960) is a British post punk/alternative rock record producer whose work often blends synthetic and organic elements.
Some of his most well-known collaborations include U2, Depeche Mode, The Smashing Pumpkins, Nine Inch Nails, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Erasure, Curve, Nitzer Ebb, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, The Killers, and PJ Harvey.
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[edit] Biography
Not much is publicly known about Flood's personal life[citation needed], although he was born in Manchester UK in 1960.
[edit] Nom de Plume
Several rumors describe the origin of Ellis' ubitquitous pseudonym, "Flood." Two are worth mentioning:
1. It was given to him when he was a studio assistant due to his strategy of keeping studio hands and musicians awake through the "constant brewing" of tea. [1]
2. Future Music Magazine stated in 1994 that it was because he constantly spilled tea in the studio.
[edit] Career
Flood's music career began in the late 1970's. In 1978, he got a job as a runner at London's Morgan Studios.
In September 1980, he was guitarist for the band 'Seven Hertz', who recorded, produced and released a cassette album under the title 'Forbidden Frequency'. The album comprised seven original songs and was originally scheduled to also feature a cover version of The Velvet Underground's song White Light/White Heat. Permission from the publishers to include this was not however obtained.
In 1981, Flood went on to work solo, scoring his first major studio project as an assistant audio engineer on New Order's debut Movement. He went on to work alongside Soft Cell, Psychic TV, and Cabaret Voltaire before helming his first true production project with Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds on The Firstborn Is Dead and Kicking Against the Pricks and with Erasure on Wonderland (1986), The Circus (1987).
1987 saw Flood's first big commercial break when he engineered U2's The Joshua Tree alongside producer Brian Eno. From there, he worked with The Silencers on A Blues for Buddha, Nine Inch Nails on Pretty Hate Machine, Depeche Mode on Violator, and Pop Will Eat Itself on This is the Day, This is the Hour, This is This. He then went on to work again with U2 on Achtung Baby.
1992 saw Ellis producing the The Charlatans on their sophomore album, Between 10th And 11th. Meeting a lukewarm reception when released, the album is now seen in a different light and is generally much more appreciated.
In 1993, Flood graduated from engineering U2's albums to producing them, sharing duties with Brian Eno on Zooropa; this same year he also reunited with Depeche Mode on their Songs of Faith and Devotion album.
In 1994, he worked again with Nine Inch Nails, this time on the ground-breaking The Downward Spiral.
In 1995 Flood worked with two very successful bands, The Smashing Pumpkins with Mellon Collie and the Infinite Sadness, and PJ Harvey with To Bring You My Love - albums that were smash hits that year. Shortly thereafter, he assisted producer Nellee Hooper on The Sneaker Pimps's Becoming X.
In 1997, Flood teamed up with U2 once again to produce Pop. The next year, he assisted Billy Corgan and Brad Wood on The Smashing Pumpkins's Adore and co-produced PJ Harvey's album Is This Desire?.
In 2000, he co-produced Machina/The Machines of God, by The Smashing Pumpkins, with Corgan. He also co-produced Erasure's Loveboat with the members of Erasure.
In 2002, he co-produced I To Sky, by JJ72.
Summer 2005 saw him mixing a-ha's eighth album, Analogue, which was released in November 2005.
In late 2005 and early 2006, Flood also worked on mixing Placebo's new album, Meds, which was released in March 2006.
In 2006, he co-produced The Killers' new album, Sam's Town with fellow English producer/engineer Alan Moulder. Sam's Town was released in the United Kingdom on October 2, 2006 and in North America on October 3, 2006.
[edit] References
- Ackney, Jason. Flood. Music.com. 18 June 2004. Accessed 12 April 2005. [2].
- Beyda, Adam. Flood. Interview with Mark Ellis, excerpted from Music Producers. 2nd Edition. Accessed 12 April 2005. [3]
