Martyn P. Casey

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Martyn Casey
Background information
Birth name Martyn Paul Casey
Also known as Daubney Carshott
Born 10 July 1960 (1960-07-10) (age 47)
Chesterfield, Derbyshire, England
Genre(s) Rock Music
Occupation(s) musician, bassist, singer
Instrument(s) bass guitar
Years active 1982–present
Label(s) Hot Records, Island Records, Mute Records
Associated acts The Triffids, Blackeyed Susans, Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, Grinderman
Notable instrument(s)
Fender Precision Bass
Fender Jazz Bass

Martyn Paul Casey (born July 10, 1960) is an Australian rock bass guitarist. He is best known as a member of The Triffids and Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds. He is also a member of Nick Cave's new band, Grinderman. Casey plays either his Fender Precision Bass or Fender Jazz Bass.

Contents

[edit] Biography

Martyn Casey was born in Chesterfield, Derbyshire, England and has a twin brother Mark. Casey's original band was called The Nobodies with Matthew De La Hunty

[edit] The Triffids

Main article: The Triffids

Casey joined The Triffids in 1983 (replacing Will Akers - who left as a result of drug related convictions), following which the band released its second EP, Bad Timing and Other Stories (April, 1983), the group then having saved up money from support slots with the Hoodoo Gurus, The Church and Hunters and Collectors, went on to record and release their debut 12-inch vinyl album, Treeless Plain, for Hot Records, a Sydney independent label.

In late 1984 The Triffids moved to London, and recorded the EP Field of Glass. The band's line up stablised with the addition of 'Evil' Graham Lee on pedal steel guitar. In August, 1985 they recorded their second album, Born Sandy Devotional, with Gil Norton (Echo and the Bunnymen). The group were hailed by the British media, were featured on the John Peel show and supported Echo and the Bunnymen.

In 1986 with delays in releasing Born Sandy Devotional the Triffids returned to Western Australia where they built an eight-track machine inside a shearing shed on the McComb family's farming property and recorded their third album In The Pines. Born Sandy devotional was eventually released in march, 1986, it reached # 27 on the UK charts and #64 in Australia. On their return to the UK, they signed a three record deal with Island Records. In 1987 armed with the considerable budget of £125,000, and the production skills of Gil Norton, David McComb and a new recruit, Adam Peters, concocted the lush orchestrations of the poignant "Bury Me Deep in Love" and the melancholic wide-screen atmosphere of the subsequent Calenture album. Despite the release of another two tracks from the album as singles, "Trick of the Light" and "Holy Water", Calenture didn't have the impact expected of it.

In 1989, the "Goodbye Little Boy" single featured in the Australian TV soap opera Neighbours. 1989 also saw the Triffids record their last studio album, The Black Swan in England, with producer Stephen Street. Despite being well received, the album wasn't an overwhelming success, which disappointed David and the rest of the band to the point where they decided to dissolve the band. In order to fulfill their contractural obligations with Island Records a live album recorded in Stockholm, Stockholm was released in 1990 the year after the Triffids split up.

[edit] The Blackeyed Susans

Main article: The Blackeyed Susans

In 1989 Casey joined Bottomless Schooners of Old (made up of former Triffids and members of Chad's Tree), a precusor to the The Blackeyed Susans.[1] He replaced Phil Kakulas who left for Sydney to play with Martha's Vineyard. Casey however did not appear on any of the band's recorded material and departed shortly after to join Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds.

[edit] Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds

Casey joined Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds in 1992 replacing Mick Harvey, who took on the guitarist role with the band following the departure of Kid Congo Powers (The Cramps, The Gun Club). The line up of Nick Cave, Harvey, Blixa Bargeld, Conway Savage, Casey and Thomas Wydler then produced the 1992 album Henry's Dream. The next album was Live Seeds, released in Spetember, 1993, which reproduced many of the Henry's Dream songs in a more raw setting.

The Bad Seeds' went onto to produce Let Love In (April, 1994) which contained classic tracks such as "Do You Love Me?", "Red Right Hand", and "Loverman". This was followed by band's biggest commercial success to date, Murder Ballads (February, 1996), which was a culmination of Cave's long-time fascination with "the language of violence" and allowed for further bold experimentation in musical style. Collaborations with Kylie Minogue and PJ Harvey on the singles "Where The Wild Roses Grow" and "Henry Lee" respectively led to mainstream chart success and The Bad Seeds widest exposure ever. This album also saw the addition of two new Bad Seeds, Warren Ellis (The Dirty Three) on violin, and Jim Sclavunos on percussion.

March, 1997 saw the release of The Bad Seeds' tenth studio album, The Boatman's Call, one of the most critically acclaimed releases by the Bad Seeds'. The following year saw the release of The Best of Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds, a collection that spanned the group's entire history. Over the next two years Nick Cave spent working on a variety of projects, with the Bad Seeds going into hiatus.

In 2000 the band entered London's Abbey Road Studios, resulting in the April 2001 release of No More Shall We Part]]. The next album Nocturama was released in February 2003 to moderate critical success. The fourteenth studio album, Abattoir Blues/The Lyre of Orpheus (September, 2004) was a double CD. It was the first album by the band in which Blixa Bargeld did not take part (Bargeld leaving the band to devote more time to Einstürzende Neubauten), drumming duties were split for the two albums, having Thomas Wydler and Jim Sclavunos drum on each CD.

In March 2008, the band released their 14th studio album, titled Dig, Lazarus, Dig!!!, inspired by the Biblical story of the resurrection of Lazarus of Bethany by Jesus Christ.

[edit] Grinderman

Main article: Grinderman

After heavy touring throughout 2005 with The Bad Seeds in support of Abattoir Blues/The Lyre of Orpheus, Nick Cave began writing songs on guitar, an instrument he'd rarely played. His rudimentary playing gave the new material a rawer feel than much of the Bad Seeds' output.

The group entered the Metropolis Studios in London to record the original Grinderman demos and it was this material that would eventually become the basis for the band's debut album Grinderman. The album was recorded with producer Nick Launay in April at the RAK studios, London and mixed in October at the Metropolis Studios.[2]

Grinderman was released in March 2007. The band made their live debut at the All Tomorrow's Parties Festival in Somerset the following month. This was followed by a one-off show at The Forum in London on the 20th of June.[3]

Grinderman opened for The White Stripes at their Madison Square Garden show on July 24th 2007, followed by several of their own American tour dates.[4] The band then embarked on a theatre tour of Australia, opening for a Nick Cave 'solo' set, which consisted of the same band members.[5]

[edit] Side Projects

When not touring he lives in Perth with his wife and children, where he has played with bands such as Kevin Smith and the Seven Storey Jumpers.[6]

[edit] Discography

[edit] The Triffids (1983-1990)

[edit] The Blackeyed Susans

no recorded output

[edit] Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds (1992-present)

[edit] Grinderman (2006-2007)

[edit] References

[edit] External links


Persondata
NAME Casey, Martyn P.
ALTERNATIVE NAMES
SHORT DESCRIPTION Australian musician
DATE OF BIRTH 10 July 1960
PLACE OF BIRTH Chesterfield, Derbyshire, England
DATE OF DEATH
PLACE OF DEATH