This Mortal Coil was a
gothicGothic 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...
dream popDream pop is a subgenre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom in the mid-1980s, when bands like The Passions, Dif Juz, Lowlife and A.R. Kane began fusing post-punk and ethereal experiments with bittersweet pop melodies into dreamy, sensual soundscapes. The term was almost...
supergroupIn the late 1960s, the term supergroup was coined to describe "a rock music group whose performers are already famous from having performed individually or in other groups"....
led by
Ivo Watts-RussellIvo Watts-Russell was joint-founder with Peter Kent of the English indie record label 4AD. He has also produced several records, himself preferring to use the term "musical director" to explain his role in the creation....
, founder of the British record label
4AD4AD is a British independent record label that was started in 1979 by Ivo Watts-Russell and Peter Kent, funded by Beggars Banquet Records, and is still active today...
. Although Watts-Russell and
John FryerJohn Fryer is an English record producer. Best known for his production work, he also branched out as a musician as one of only two constant members of This Mortal Coil , providing keyboards, strings and synthesizer sequencing for the band, and its offshoot, The Hope Blister.- Career :Starting out...
were technically the only two official members, the band's recorded output featured a large rotating cast of supporting artists, many of whom were signed to, or otherwise associated with, 4AD. About half of the songs released were
cover versionIn popular music, a cover version or cover song, or simply cover, is a new performance or recording of a contemporary or previously recorded, commercially released song or popular song...
s, often of 1960s and 1970s
psychedelicPsychedelic rock is a style of rock music that is inspired or influenced by psychedelic culture and attempts to replicate and enhance the mind-altering experiences of psychedelic drugs. It emerged during the mid 1960s among folk rock and blues rock bands in United States and the United Kingdom...
and
folkFolk rock is a musical genre combining elements of folk music and rock music. In its earliest and narrowest sense, the term referred to a genre that arose in the United States and the UK around the mid-1960s...
acts, which displayed those two genres' place in the history and formation of dream pop. On each of the band's three LPs, at least one song would also be a cover of a 4AD artist, and most of the original songs were
instrumentalAn instrumental is a musical composition or recording without lyrics or singing, although it might include some non-articulate vocal input; the music is primarily or exclusively produced by musical instruments....
s.
Quoting the
4AD website
This Mortal Coil was not a band, but a unique collaboration of musicians recording in various permutations, the brainchild of 4AD kingpin Ivo Watts-Russell. The idea was to allow artists the creative freedom to record material outside of the realm of what was expected of them; it also created the opportunity for innovative cover versions of songs personal to Ivo.
The name 'This
Mortal CoilMortal coil is a poetic term that means the troubles of daily life and the strife and suffering of the world. It is used in the sense of a burden to be carried or abandoned, most famously in the phrase "shuffle[d] off this mortal coil" from Shakespeare's Hamlet...
' is taken from Shakespeare's
HamletThe Tragical History of Hamlet, Prince of Denmark, or more simply Hamlet, is a tragedy by William Shakespeare, believed to have been written between 1599 and 1601...
.
Background
Watts-Russell had founded 4AD in 1980, and the label quickly established itself as one of the key labels in the British
post-punkPost-punk is a rock music movement with its roots in the late 1970s, following on the heels of the initial punk rock explosion of the mid-1970s. The genre retains its roots in the punk movement but is more introverted, complex and experimental...
movement. One of the label's earliest signings was
Modern EnglishModern English are an English rock band best remembered for their songs "I Melt with You", "Hands Across the Sea", and "Ink and Paper". The group disbanded for a period in 1991, but later recorded in 1995 and 2002 with new members...
. In 1983, Watts-Russell suggested that the band re-record two of their earliest songs, "Sixteen Days" and "Gathering Dust," as a medley. At the time, the band was closing its set with this medley, and Watts-Russell felt it was strong enough to warrant a re-recording. When the band rebuffed the idea, Watts-Russell decided to assemble a group of musicians to record the medley:
Elizabeth FraserElizabeth Davidson Fraser is a Scottish singer best known as the vocalist for the pioneer alternative rock group Cocteau Twins...
and
Robin GuthrieRobin Guthrie is a musician best known as co-founder of the Cocteau Twins. During his career Guthrie has played guitar, bass guitar, keyboards, drums and other musical instruments, in addition to programming, sampling and sound processing...
of Cocteau Twins;
Gordon SharpGordon Sharp is a Scottish singer, musician and producer who has led several music projects over the last 33 years.-Biography:...
of
CindytalkCindytalk is an experimental music group fronted by Gordon Sharp, a Scottish performer who has been the only constant member since its inception in 1982.-History:...
; and a few members of Modern English. An EP,
Sixteen Days/Gathering DustSixteen Days/Gathering Dust in an EP released by This Mortal Coil, a supergroup on the 4AD label, headed up by label founder and president Ivo Watts-Russell. It was released in 1983, after Ivo had tried to convince Modern English to record a medley of "Sixteen Days" and "Gathering Dust," two of...
, resulted from these sessions.
Recorded as a
B-sideA-side and B-side originally referred to the two sides of gramophone records on which singles were released beginning in the 1950s. The terms have come to refer to the types of song conventionally placed on each side of the record, with the A-side being the featured song , while the B-side, or...
for the
EPAn EP is a musical recording which contains more music than a single, but is too short to qualify as a full album or LP. The term EP originally referred only to specific types of vinyl records other than 78 rpm standard play records and LP records, but it is now applied to mid-length Compact...
was a cover of
Tim BuckleyTimothy Charles Buckley III was an American vocalist, and musician. His music and style changed considerably through the years; his first album was mostly folk oriented, but over time his music incorporated jazz, psychedelia, funk, soul, avant-garde and an evolving "voice as instrument," sound...
's "
Song to the Siren"Song to the Siren" is a song written by Tim Buckley and his writing partner Larry Beckett and was first released on Buckley's 1970 album Starsailor...
", performed by Fraser and Guthrie alone. Pleased with the results, Watts-Russell decided to make this the A-side of the 7" single version of the EP, and the song quickly became an underground hit, leading Watts-Russell to pursue recording a full album under the This Mortal Coil moniker.
In June 1998 Watts-Russell released another album in a similar vein to his TMC projects,
...Smile's OK, under the name
The Hope BlisterThe Hope Blister was an ambient band founded by Ivo Watts-Russell, head of the 4AD Records label. The band was something of a continuation of the This Mortal Coil project, but with a fixed line-up on ...smile's OK and focusing on cover versions...
.
Albums
- It'll End in Tears
It'll End in Tears was an album released in 1984 by 4AD using the name This Mortal Coil as an umbrella title for a loose grouping of guest musicians and vocalists brought together by label boss Ivo Watts-Russell. When released in late 1984, the album reached #38 on the UK Albums Chart...
(CAD 411 - October 1984)
- Filigree & Shadow
Filigree & Shadow is an album released in 1986 by Ivo Watts-Russell's supergroup, This Mortal Coil. The supergroup consists primarily of artists attached to the 4AD label, of which Ivo was the co-founder and the owner and president...
(DAD 609 - September 1986)
- Blood (DAD 1005 - April 1991)
- 1983-1991 (Warner Bros
Warner Bros. Records Inc. is an American record label. It was the foundation label of the present-day Warner Music Group, and now operates as a wholly owned subsidiary of that corporation. It maintains a close relationship with its former parent, Warner Bros. Pictures, although the two companies...
45135 - March 1993)
Singles and EPs
- "Sixteen Days/Gathering Dust
Sixteen Days/Gathering Dust in an EP released by This Mortal Coil, a supergroup on the 4AD label, headed up by label founder and president Ivo Watts-Russell. It was released in 1983, after Ivo had tried to convince Modern English to record a medley of "Sixteen Days" and "Gathering Dust," two of...
" EP (AD 310 - September 1983)
- "Kangaroo"/"It'll End in Tears" EP (AD 410 - August 1984)
- "Come Here My Love"/"Drugs" (limited 10" single release - BAD 608 - September 1986)
Contributions
- Lonely Is An Eyesore
Lonely Is an Eyesore is a compilation of music by artists on the 4AD label released in June 1987. The album was produced by Ivo Watts-Russell and recorded at Blackwing Studios, London. The album was engineered and mixed by John Fryer...
(4AD compilation albumA compilation album is an album featuring tracks from one or more performers, often culled from a variety of sources The tracks are usually collected according to a common characteristic, such as popularity, genre, source or subject matter...
, 1987 "Acid, Bitter and Sad")
The Hope Blister
- ...Smile's OK (July 1998)
- Underarms (April 1999)
- Underarms And Sideways
-Disc 1 :# Sweet Medicine # Friday Afternoon # Iota # Dagger Strings # White On White # Sweet Medicine 2 # Happiness Strings -Disc 2 :# Sideways One # Sideways Two...
(January 2006)
External links
- This Mortal Coil on 4AD
4AD is a British independent record label that was started in 1979 by Ivo Watts-Russell and Peter Kent, funded by Beggars Banquet Records, and is still active today...
website
- [ This Mortal Coil at allmusic.com]