Seefeel

All Music Guide:

Halfway between the often connected worlds of British indie rock and experimental techno, Seefeel continued the guitar-effects exploration of rock's My Bloody Valentine but set the whole in a framework of electronic beats and loops. Begun as a standard rock band in early 1992, the quartet soon grew bored within the restraints of normal musical forms and started working with loops and programs rather than lyrics and choruses; after the release of two albums, Seefeel began to diversify, adding project names such as Disjecta, Aurobindo, and Scala -- many recorded with the aid of close partner Mark Van Hoen (aka Locust).

Guitarist Mark Clifford and drummer Justin Fletcher met up at a London college, and by 1992 the duo had recruited vocalist Sarah Peacock and bassist Darren Seymour. Seefeel began auditioning songs and was ready to record their first single for Too Pure Records, but experienced a change of heart that caused the resulting EP More Like Space to owe more of a debt to Aphex Twin than alternative rock. The band then recorded the Pure, Impure EP, which increased the distance from most rock acts, and acknowledged the gap with the addition of two Aphex Twin remixes.

In 1993, Seefeel released their debut album Quique, an even colder document of ambient indie techno than the previous EPs had predicted. The album was hailed -- mostly in rock circles -- as a techno album which indie kids could listen to, and it received an American release that same year on the dance label Astralwerks. During 1994, Astralwerks compiled the two early EPs as Polyfusia, and Seefeel made the leap from rock to techno via a contract with the British electronic label Warp Records. The group played with techno acts Autechre and µ-Ziq, and released the Starethrough EP -- their most electronic work yet -- later that year.

The resulting album, 1995's Succour, was something of a disappointment; similar to Aphex Twin's supposed major-label breakthrough one year earlier, the LP was a bit too skeletal for most rock critics or music fans. It failed to earn a stateside release and caused the temporary breakup of the group in 1996, when Mark Clifford's Disjecta project became his main occupation (with a style more oriented to experimental audiences). Peacock, Fletcher, and Seymour in turn joined Mark Van Hoen (aka Locust) for an EP and album of indie/trip-hop recorded as Scala. Though Seefeel returned in late 1996 with their third proper LP, Ch-Vox, the group took an open-ended hiatus after its release. Peacock and Seymour continued to record as Scala, while Clifford recorded an EP for Warp as Woodenspoon and later surfaced as Sneakster.

In 2010, almost fifteen years after their last new recording, Seefeel reunited to play at Warp's 20th-anniversary celebration, and a new lineup coalesced around Clifford and Peacock plus bassist/DJ Shigeru Ishihara and drummer Iida Kazuhisa aka EDA (the latter from the Boredoms). An EP followed later that year, and the studio album Seefeel was released on Warp in early 2011.

Wikipedia:

Seefeel are a British electronic/post-rock band formed in the early 1990s. They are currently signed to Warp Records.

Biography [edit]

Seefeel formed during 1992 in London, England; with Mark Clifford on guitar, Mark Van Hoen on bass, Justin Fletcher on drums and Sarah Peacock on vocals and guitar. During 1992, Mark Van Hoen was replaced by Daren Seymour on bass. They released their first EPs and first album on the British independent label Too Pure in 1993. Seefeel's music was stylistically situated at the intersection of dream pop/shoegaze and ambient techno/IDM. The band signed with electronic label Warp Records in 1994, after which point Seefeel's music became much darker and more abstract. Seefeel's third album, (CH-VOX), was released in 1996 on Rephlex. Following (CH-VOX) Seefeel went on an extended hiatus from releasing new material until the reissue of their first album, Quique, in 2007 which included formerly unreleased material. Seefeel performed their last live concert with the original lineup in October 1997 alongside Boards of Canada.

In 2008 Mark Clifford and Sarah Peacock relaunched Seefeel and were joined by Shigeru Ishihara (DJ Scotch Egg) and former Boredoms drummer Iida Kazuhisa (E-Da) who filled in the bass and percussive sections respectively. Daren Seymour and Justin Fletcher were not able to be a part of the reunion due to prior commitments and living outside the UK. On September 20, 2010 Seefeel released the Faults EP (their first new recording in 14 years) followed shortly after by an eponymous LP on January 31, 2011; both on Warp Records.

Seefeel-Related Projects [edit]

In 1996, Scala was formed by Fletcher, Seymour and Peacock, along with Mark Van Hoen. Peacock later contributed slide guitar, keys and backing vocals on the band January's albums, I Heard Myself in You and Motion Sickness. She has been gigging with Simon Breed and The Mighty Shimmering Beasts and The Gemma Ray Ritual before linking back up with Mark Clifford to re-form Seefeel.

Clifford has been releasing solo work since 1995 as Disjecta and Woodenspoon, and formed Sneakster with Sophie Hinkley in 1999. He has done remixes for the Cocteau Twins, among others. He has also collaborated with Mira Calix as Cliffordandcalix.

In 2003, a remix of "Spangle" (from the Starethrough EP) by Autechre was released on the Polyfusia label. AFX has done two mixes of "Time To Find Me" (from the More Like Space EP); one of these mixes appeared on the Aphex Twin compilation, 26 Mixes for Cash.