Bonemachine (2)

bonemachine were originally formed in 1999, and grew out of the UK south coast city of Portsmouth, which enjoyed a vividly creative, but still fledgling dance/electronic scene at the time. There were five members upfront with sung and spoken vocals, guitars, harmonica, fretless bass, synths and a knackered old PC and CRT monitor playing old house loops and spoken word samples. They pumped out a heavy diet of industrial beats. In a music scene dominated by rock, punk and ska, bonemachine confused everyone. The band have shared stages with a range of artists from 65 Days Of Static, Lo Fidelity Allstars, The Mission, Sigue Sigue Sputnik and The Damage Manual. During early live shows they sold unique self-made cds at every gig, each with its own artwork, track versions and mixes. This constant graft eventually reached the ears of the short lived cult independent record company Hackpen Records, who signed them in 2004. Their first official album ‘Vent’ was released on Hackpen in 2004, and received positive reviews from press (Guardian, Drowned in Sound, Logo, Rant etc.) They continued to build their reputation of as a strong live act, supported by an eclectic backdrop of videos, including slowmo space launches, nighttime cityscapes, looped 50’s showreels and Will Hay films, all overlaid by lyrics, statements or comments received from press or fans. The first single, ‘Another Day Over’, was released by Hackpen followed by a remix by cult 80’s band Sigue Sigue Sputnik (aided by DJ Simon Heartfield) on Oxford’s Shifty Disco record label. After the release of their second album ‘Why Can’t We Catch The Liars’ on Hackpen Records in 2006, bonemachine began an extended period of ‘doing something else’, which meant occasionally releasing tracks and playing live with side projects such as Music to Drive Tanks To. The tug of the original idea proved too strong though and original members Graves, Ost and Barrett recruited the fresh voice of Rendle - this eponymous new album is the result.