Bivouac were a British alternative rock

Alternative rock

Alternative rock is a genre of rock music and a term used to describe a diverse musical movement that emerged from the independent music underground of the 1980s and became widely popular by the 1990s...

 band from Derby

Derby

Derby , is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands region of England. It lies upon the banks of the River Derwent and is located in the south of the ceremonial county of Derbyshire. In the 2001 census, the population of the city was 233,700, whilst that of the Derby Urban Area was 229,407...

 who were active in the 1990s. They released two albums on the independent label Elemental, before being signed by DGC/Geffen

Geffen Records

Geffen Records is an American record label, owned by Universal Music Group, and operated as one third of UMG's Interscope-Geffen-A&M label group.-Beginnings:...

 for the 1995 album Full Size Boy.

History

The band was originally a trio of Paul Yeadon (vocals, guitar), Granville Marsden (bass guitar), and Antony Hodgkinson

Antony Hodgkinson

Antony Hodgkinson was the drummer for the indie rock band Bivouac. He has also played drums in several bands such as Punish the Atom, , and now writes and performs with Julian Cope & also his Black Sheep . Hodgkinson is best known for dancing on stage for Nirvana's 1992 Reading Festival...

 (drums). They were signed by Workers Playtime

Workers Playtime

Workers Playtime is a 1988 album by Billy Bragg. Originally released on the Go! Discs label, it is his fourth release but third full length album...

 sub-label Elemental, releasing their debut EP

Extended play

An 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...

 in May 1992. Their sound was reminiscent of the grunge

Grunge

Grunge is a subgenre of alternative rock that emerged during the mid-1980s in the American state of Washington, particularly in the Seattle area. Inspired by hardcore punk, heavy metal, and indie rock, grunge is generally characterized by heavily distorted electric guitars, contrasting song...

 bands emerging from the United States, and they had support slots on tours by Fugazi and The Jesus Lizard

The Jesus Lizard

The Jesus Lizard was an American alternative rock and noise rock band formed in 1987 in Austin, Texas. They were "a leading noise rock band in the American independent underground…[who] turned out a series of independent records filled with scathing, disembowelling, guitar-driven pseudo-industrial...

. Debut album Tuber was released in 1993, and they went on to sign for DGC, with Keith York

Keith York

Keith York is a professional session drummer who has toured and sessioned throughout the world and worked with a range of bands, including Pitchshifter, The Lightning Seeds, Bivouac, Ladytron, and Esoteric, Bentley Rhythm Ace , Broadcast and Love Amongst Ruin...

 (formerly of Dr Phibes & the House of Wax Equations

Dr Phibes & the House of Wax Equations

Dr Phibes and the House of Wax Equations were a psychedelic rock band based in the north west of England in the early to mid 1990s. They were regulars in the UK Indie Chart and had some links with other local bands in the North West....

) joining the band to replace Hodgkinson. Full Size Boy was released in July 1995, and despite good reviews, the album did not sell well, and the band were dropped from their label and disbanded soon afterwards.

Yeadon has since turned to music production group The Moot group, which has produced bands such as Send More Paramedics

Send More Paramedics

Send More Paramedics were a horror film-influenced crossover thrash band from Leeds in the north of England.-Biography:The name is a reference to the 1985 horror/comedy Return of the Living Dead...

, as well as forming the UK band The Wireless Stores, releasing an EP and an album in 2003 and 2006. Along with second drummer Keith York

Keith York

Keith York is a professional session drummer who has toured and sessioned throughout the world and worked with a range of bands, including Pitchshifter, The Lightning Seeds, Bivouac, Ladytron, and Esoteric, Bentley Rhythm Ace , Broadcast and Love Amongst Ruin...

, Yeadon has also played with other bands including Pitchshifter

Pitchshifter (band)

Pitchshifter are a British five-piece electronic-metal band from Nottingham, United Kingdom formed in 1989. The band was started by bassist and vocalist Mark Clayden, lead guitarist and programmer Johnny A...

. Original drummer Antony Hodgkinson

Antony Hodgkinson

Antony Hodgkinson was the drummer for the indie rock band Bivouac. He has also played drums in several bands such as Punish the Atom, , and now writes and performs with Julian Cope & also his Black Sheep . Hodgkinson is best known for dancing on stage for Nirvana's 1992 Reading Festival...

 (Tony The Interpretative Dancer) danced on stage for Nirvana; he now plays in Julian Cope

Julian Cope

Julian Cope is a British rock musician, author, antiquary, musicologist, poet and cultural commentator...

's band.

Albums

• Derby and Joan (1993), Elemental - tracks from the ABC EP and the "Slack" 12"
• Tuber (1994), Elemental
• Full Size Boy (1995), Geffen

Singles and EPs

• ABC EP (1992), Elemental
• "Slack" 12" (1992), Elemental
• "Good Day Song" (1993), Elemental
• "The Bell Foundry" (1993), Elemental
• Marked and Tagged EP (1994), Elemental
• "Thinking" (1995), Geffen
• "Monkey Sanctuary" (1995), Geffen