Blancmange
Blancmange
From Blancmange’s original bio:
BLANCMANGE started life early in 1979 as the culmination of various musical liaisons between NEIL ARTHUR and STEPHEN LUSCOMBE.
After being involved with improvised and experimental music for around six years, and the demise of this workshop group MIRU, Stephen joined Neil’s band L360 as a keyboard player, although the association lasted but a few weeks. The eventual decline of L360, and also of Neil’s garage band, the VIEWFINDERS, led to the foundation of the BLANCMANGE one wet January afternoon in Stephen’s flat, where, with no more than a handful of kitchen utensils, a few battered instruments and, and a couple of cassette recorders, the duo worked on the first series of oddities and aural distractions that were to form the basis of a series of semi-improvised performances through 1979. The release in April 1980 of the EP ‘IRENE AND MAVIS - THE BLANCMANGE’, universally ignored by the press and public alike and finding its way into the bargain bins with a speed hitherto unparalleled, marked a change of direction for the duo. Although maintaining the style and uniqueness of the earlier piece, the emphasis became on songs rather than sound experiments. The first performance of the new music was in July 1980 at a self-organised concert with three other bands at the Centro Iberico, West London.
A performance in September at the Bridge House, Canning Town led to the beginning of the association with the infamous Stevo, and ultimately inclusion of the track ‘Sad Day’ on the ‘Some Bizarre’ album released in January 1981. Further concerts in and around London increased audience exposure and contacts and in February 1981 BLANCMANGE embarked on their own mini-tour of the north, and inclusion on the 2002 review in March.
The February dates included a meeting with Martyn Ware of BEF, and led to his production of demo tapes in May following the signing of a publishing deal with Cherry Red Music in the same month. The demo tape was completed at Mekon Studios, Brixton with Robert Doran in June 1981.
Updated bio available here: http://www.blancmange.co.uk/about