Danse Society
Encyclopedia
The Danse Society are a positive punk (the precursory term for gothic rock
) group from Barnsley
, England
, active from 1981 to 1987. They achieved moderate fame during their short career. Their line-up included Steve Rawlings (voice), Paul Nash (guitar), Lyndon Scarfe (keyboards), Tim Wright (bass) and Paul Gilmartin (drums). Lyndon Scarfe was replaced by David Whitaker (formerly of Music for Pleasure) after the Heaven is Waiting Album.
In 1980, they recorded and released their first single
, "Clock," on their own newly formed record label
, Society Records.
Their most well known album, Heaven is Waiting, was released in December, 1983 by Arista
. The album contained a cover of The Rolling Stones
song, "2000 Light Years from Home
", also edited in 1984 as a 12" single and as a limited edition double single. In 1986, the other band members left to form Johnny In The Clouds, after releasing their final album as Danse Society International, Looking Through. Rawlings later reappeared in 1987 as Society with the single, "Saturn Girl."
After 1987, Rawlings continued to pursue his path in music with the electronic
dance music
act, Meridian Dream.
A recent campaign on Facebook
(The Danse Society Reformation Plot) has brought most of the band back together, and they are currently working on a new project "Change of Skin' to be released in July 2011 featuring former founder of Blooding Mask vocalist Maethelyiah.
All three original albums have been recently re-issued on CD with bonus tracks
Gothic rock
Gothic rock is a musical subgenre of post-punk and alternative rock that formed during the late 1970s. Gothic rock bands grew from the strong ties they had to the English punk rock and emerging post-punk scenes...
) group from Barnsley
Barnsley
Barnsley is a town in South Yorkshire, England. It lies on the River Dearne, north of the city of Sheffield, south of Leeds and west of Doncaster. Barnsley is surrounded by several smaller settlements which together form the Metropolitan Borough of Barnsley, of which Barnsley is the largest and...
, England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
, active from 1981 to 1987. They achieved moderate fame during their short career. Their line-up included Steve Rawlings (voice), Paul Nash (guitar), Lyndon Scarfe (keyboards), Tim Wright (bass) and Paul Gilmartin (drums). Lyndon Scarfe was replaced by David Whitaker (formerly of Music for Pleasure) after the Heaven is Waiting Album.
In 1980, they recorded and released their first single
Single (music)
In music, a single or record single is a type of release, typically a recording of fewer tracks than an LP or a CD. This can be released for sale to the public in a variety of different formats. In most cases, the single is a song that is released separately from an album, but it can still appear...
, "Clock," on their own newly formed record label
Record label
In the music industry, a record label is a brand and a trademark associated with the marketing of music recordings and music videos. Most commonly, a record label is the company that manages such brands and trademarks, coordinates the production, manufacture, distribution, marketing and promotion,...
, Society Records.
Their most well known album, Heaven is Waiting, was released in December, 1983 by Arista
Arista Records
Arista was an American record label. It was a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment and operated under the RCA Music Group. The label was founded in 1974 by Clive Davis, who formerly worked for CBS Records...
. The album contained a cover of The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones
The Rolling Stones are an English rock band, formed in London in April 1962 by Brian Jones , Ian Stewart , Mick Jagger , and Keith Richards . Bassist Bill Wyman and drummer Charlie Watts completed the early line-up...
song, "2000 Light Years from Home
2000 Light Years from Home
"2000 Light Years From Home" is a song from The Rolling Stones' 1967 psychedelic rock album Their Satanic Majesties Request. Written by Mick Jagger and Keith Richards, it also appeared as the B-side to the U.S. single "She's a Rainbow". Jagger reportedly wrote the lyrics in Brixton prison following...
", also edited in 1984 as a 12" single and as a limited edition double single. In 1986, the other band members left to form Johnny In The Clouds, after releasing their final album as Danse Society International, Looking Through. Rawlings later reappeared in 1987 as Society with the single, "Saturn Girl."
After 1987, Rawlings continued to pursue his path in music with the electronic
Electronic music
Electronic music is music that employs electronic musical instruments and electronic music technology in its production. In general a distinction can be made between sound produced using electromechanical means and that produced using electronic technology. Examples of electromechanical sound...
dance music
Dance music
Dance music is music composed specifically to facilitate or accompany dancing. It can be either a whole musical piece or part of a larger musical arrangement...
act, Meridian Dream.
A recent campaign on Facebook
Facebook
Facebook is a social networking service and website launched in February 2004, operated and privately owned by Facebook, Inc. , Facebook has more than 800 million active users. Users must register before using the site, after which they may create a personal profile, add other users as...
(The Danse Society Reformation Plot) has brought most of the band back together, and they are currently working on a new project "Change of Skin' to be released in July 2011 featuring former founder of Blooding Mask vocalist Maethelyiah.
Albums
- Seduction (September 1982 - Society Records) (UK IndieUK Indie ChartThe UK Independent Chart or Indie Chart is a chart of the best-selling independent record releases in the UK.- History :In the wake of punk, small record labels began to spring up, as an outlet for artists that were unwilling to sign contracts with major record companies, or were not considered...
#3) - Heaven Is Waiting (1983 Arista - reprint in 2002) UK Albums ChartUK Albums ChartThe UK Albums Chart is a list of albums ranked by physical and digital sales in the United Kingdom. It is compiled every week by The Official Charts Company and broadcast on a Sunday on BBC Radio 1 , and published in Music Week magazine and on the OCC website .To qualify for the UK albums chart...
#39 - Looking Through (1986)
- Change of Skin (2011)
Compilation albums
- The Danse Society (1983)
- Demos, Vol. 1 (2011)
All three original albums have been recently re-issued on CD with bonus tracks
Singles
| Month | Year | Title | UK Singles Chart UK Singles Chart The UK Singles Chart is compiled by The Official Charts Company on behalf of the British record-industry. The full chart contains the top selling 200 singles in the United Kingdom based upon combined record sales and download numbers, though some media outlets only list the Top 40 or the Top 75 ... |
UK Indie Chart UK Indie Chart The UK Independent Chart or Indie Chart is a chart of the best-selling independent record releases in the UK.- History :In the wake of punk, small record labels began to spring up, as an outlet for artists that were unwilling to sign contracts with major record companies, or were not considered... |
Record Label |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| September | 1980 | "Clock" / "Continent " | - | #11 | Society Records |
| March | 1981 | "There Is No Shame In Death" | - | #26 | PAX Records |
| May | 1981 | "Womans Own" | - | - | PAX Records |
| December | 1982 | "Somewhere" | - | #2 | Society Records |
| March | 1983 | "Somewhere" (re-issue) | - | - | Arista Records Arista Records Arista was an American record label. It was a wholly owned subsidiary of Sony Music Entertainment and operated under the RCA Music Group. The label was founded in 1974 by Clive Davis, who formerly worked for CBS Records... |
| July | 1983 | "We're So Happy" | - | #22 | Society Records |
| August | 1983 | "Wake Up" / "Seduction" | #61 | - | Arista Records |
| October | 1983 | "Heaven Is Waiting" | #60 | - | Arista Records |
| March | 1984 | "2,000 Light Years From Home" | - | - | Arista Records |
| July | 1985 | "Say It Again" | - | - | Arista Records |
| February | 1986 | "Hold On (To What You've Got)" | - | - | Arista Records |
| August | 1987 | "Saturn Girl" (as Society) | - | #48 | Big Life |
| November | 1987 | "Love It" (as Society) | - | #19 | Big Life |