Gaye Bykers on Acid
Encyclopedia
Gaye Bykers On Acid were an English
psychedelic
rock
band
from Leicester
, and one of the founder members of the Grebo music scene. They later released both thrash punk and dance music
albums under various aliases.
in Leicester in mid-1985.
Their first releases - the single Everything's Groovy Baby and the Nosedive Karma EP - were both recorded in Leeds
with Jon Langford
of The Mekons, and released on the InTape label. They then signed to Virgin Records
releasing the albums Drill Your Own Hole and Stewed To The Gills. The vinyl version of Drill Your Own Hole was pressed without a hole in the centre, so it was necessary to literally drill your own hole in order to play it. The album spent one week at number 95 in the UK Albums Chart
in November 1987.
They also played gigs (dressed in women's clothing) under the name 'Lesbian Dopeheads on Mopeds', supporting themselves, and thus getting paid twice. They also performed as a fictitious East German
thrash punk band "Rektüm" (they claimed to have jumped over the Berlin Wall
), recording an LP Sakredanus and an EP Real Horror Show under the name.
However management problems and poor sales meant that they were dropped by Virgin in 1989. They subsequently released the album Cancer Planet Mission on their own record label
, Naked Brain. They also recycled and used the band name 'The Purple Fluid Exchange' (PFX) to release their dance cross-over material. It was at this time that Rocket Ronnie joined the band as DJ
, sample
player and dance advisor.
In 1990 they released Pernicious Nonsense, their last studio album, recorded with Jon Langford at the Stone Room Studios and at Alaska St. Studios with house engineer Chelo Zambelli. After difficult tours in the U.S.
and UK
the band broke up, the final blow being when the label Rough Trade
, who distributed their Naked Brain recordings, went bankrupt
owing them and many other bands considerable amounts of cash.
Two compilation album
s were subsequently released on the Receiver record label, From the Tomb of the Near Legendary… (1992) and Gaye Bykers On Acid (1993). A further bootleg
compilation of Virgin records studio demo's was sold by their ex-manager (Tracy Lamott) to Cherry Red
Records - Everything's Groovy (2001).
The groups Total Anthology On DVD is available from Robber Byker at their official site and via their MySpace page (see external links below).
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...
psychedelic
Psychedelic music
Psychedelic music covers a range of popular music styles and genres, which are inspired by or influenced by psychedelic culture and which attempt 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 the...
rock
Rock music
Rock music is a genre of popular music that developed during and after the 1960s, particularly in the United Kingdom and the United States. It has its roots in 1940s and 1950s rock and roll, itself heavily influenced by rhythm and blues and country music...
band
Musical ensemble
A musical ensemble is a group of people who perform instrumental or vocal music. In classical music, trios or quartets either blend the sounds of musical instrument families or group together instruments from the same instrument family, such as string ensembles or wind ensembles...
from Leicester
Leicester
Leicester is a city and unitary authority in the East Midlands of England, and the county town of Leicestershire. The city lies on the River Soar and at the edge of the National Forest...
, and one of the founder members of the Grebo music scene. They later released both thrash punk and 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...
albums under various aliases.
Personnel
- Mary Byker (Ian Garfield Hoxley) - vocals
- Tony Horsfall - guitarGuitarThe guitar is a plucked string instrument, usually played with fingers or a pick. The guitar consists of a body with a rigid neck to which the strings, generally six in number, are attached. Guitars are traditionally constructed of various woods and strung with animal gut or, more recently, with...
- Paul Sampson - ViolinViolinThe violin is a string instrument, usually with four strings tuned in perfect fifths. It is the smallest, highest-pitched member of the violin family of string instruments, which includes the viola and cello....
- Robber Byker AKA (Ian Reynolds) - bass guitarBass guitarThe bass guitar is a stringed instrument played primarily with the fingers or thumb , or by using a pick....
- Kevin Hyde - drumsDrum kitA drum kit is a collection of drums, cymbals and often other percussion instruments, such as cowbells, wood blocks, triangles, chimes, or tambourines, arranged for convenient playing by a single person ....
- Rocket Ronnie (William Samuel Ronald Morrow) - turntablistTurntablismTurntablism is the art of manipulating sounds and creating music using phonograph turntables and a DJ mixer.The word 'turntablist' was coined in 1995 by DJ Babu to describe the difference between a DJ who just plays records, and one who performs by touching and moving the records, stylus and mixer...
History
Gaye Bykers On Acid were formed in late 1984 by Ian Reynolds (Robber) and Ian Hoxley (Mary). They were later joined by guitarist and art student Tony Horsfall and drummer Kevin Hyde. Their first gig was at the Princess CharlotteThe Charlotte
The Charlotte was a live music venue in Leicester, England, on the edge of the City Centre, on Oxford Street, opposite De Montfort University. The venue finally closed on March 13th 2010....
in Leicester in mid-1985.
Their first releases - the single Everything's Groovy Baby and the Nosedive Karma EP - were both recorded in Leeds
Leeds
Leeds is a city and metropolitan borough in West Yorkshire, England. In 2001 Leeds' main urban subdivision had a population of 443,247, while the entire city has a population of 798,800 , making it the 30th-most populous city in the European Union.Leeds is the cultural, financial and commercial...
with Jon Langford
Jon Langford
Jon Langford born October 11, 1957, Newport, Monmouthshire is a Welsh-born musician and artist who is presently based in Chicago. He is the younger brother of science-fiction author and critic David Langford...
of The Mekons, and released on the InTape label. They then signed to Virgin Records
Virgin Records
Virgin Records is a British record label founded by English entrepreneur Richard Branson, Simon Draper, and Nik Powell in 1972. The company grew to be a worldwide music phenomenon, with platinum performers such as Roy Orbison, Devo, Genesis, Keith Richards, Janet Jackson, Culture Club, Lenny...
releasing the albums Drill Your Own Hole and Stewed To The Gills. The vinyl version of Drill Your Own Hole was pressed without a hole in the centre, so it was necessary to literally drill your own hole in order to play it. The album spent one week at number 95 in the UK Albums Chart
UK Albums Chart
The 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...
in November 1987.
They also played gigs (dressed in women's clothing) under the name 'Lesbian Dopeheads on Mopeds', supporting themselves, and thus getting paid twice. They also performed as a fictitious East German
German Democratic Republic
The German Democratic Republic , informally called East Germany by West Germany and other countries, was a socialist state established in 1949 in the Soviet zone of occupied Germany, including East Berlin of the Allied-occupied capital city...
thrash punk band "Rektüm" (they claimed to have jumped over the Berlin Wall
Berlin Wall
The Berlin Wall was a barrier constructed by the German Democratic Republic starting on 13 August 1961, that completely cut off West Berlin from surrounding East Germany and from East Berlin...
), recording an LP Sakredanus and an EP Real Horror Show under the name.
However management problems and poor sales meant that they were dropped by Virgin in 1989. They subsequently released the album Cancer Planet Mission on their own 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,...
, Naked Brain. They also recycled and used the band name 'The Purple Fluid Exchange' (PFX) to release their dance cross-over material. It was at this time that Rocket Ronnie joined the band as DJ
Disc jockey
A disc jockey, also known as DJ, is a person who selects and plays recorded music for an audience. Originally, "disc" referred to phonograph records, not the later Compact Discs. Today, the term includes all forms of music playback, no matter the medium.There are several types of disc jockeys...
, sample
Sampling (music)
In music, sampling is the act of taking a portion, or sample, of one sound recording and reusing it as an instrument or a different sound recording of a song or piece. Sampling was originally developed by experimental musicians working with musique concrète and electroacoustic music, who physically...
player and dance advisor.
In 1990 they released Pernicious Nonsense, their last studio album, recorded with Jon Langford at the Stone Room Studios and at Alaska St. Studios with house engineer Chelo Zambelli. After difficult tours in the U.S.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
and UK
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
the band broke up, the final blow being when the label Rough Trade
Rough Trade Records
Rough Trade Records is an independent record label based in London. It was formed in 1978 by Geoff Travis who had opened a record store off Ladbroke Grove...
, who distributed their Naked Brain recordings, went bankrupt
Bankruptcy
Bankruptcy is a legal status of an insolvent person or an organisation, that is, one that cannot repay the debts owed to creditors. In most jurisdictions bankruptcy is imposed by a court order, often initiated by the debtor....
owing them and many other bands considerable amounts of cash.
Two compilation album
Compilation album
A 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...
s were subsequently released on the Receiver record label, From the Tomb of the Near Legendary… (1992) and Gaye Bykers On Acid (1993). A further bootleg
Bootleg recording
A bootleg recording is an audio or video recording of a performance that was not officially released by the artist or under other legal authority. The process of making and distributing such recordings is known as bootlegging...
compilation of Virgin records studio demo's was sold by their ex-manager (Tracy Lamott) to Cherry Red
Cherry Red
Cherry Red is a London-based independent record label formed in 1978.-History:Cherry Red grew from the rock promotion company founded in 1971 to promote rock concerts at the Malvern Winter Gardens...
Records - Everything's Groovy (2001).
The groups Total Anthology On DVD is available from Robber Byker at their official site and via their MySpace page (see external links below).
Afterwards
- Kevin Hyde formed the band G.R.O.W.T.H. and released an LP and 12" single.
- Tony returned to painting and sculpting. He now lives and works in Central America.
- Robber now works as an underground DJ and film-maker. He records under the names Robber Byker and Surfin'Bernard (Robber Byker & Zoe Reynolds),They have released several Wonky Techno records on Shed Records, and remixes on Miditone.
- Mary has sung in the bands PigfacePigfacePigface is an industrial rock supergroup formed in 1990 by Martin Atkins and William Rieflin.-History:Pigface was formed from Ministry's The Mind is a Terrible Thing to Taste tour, which produced the In Case You Didn't Feel Like Showing Up live album and video. For the tour, Al Jourgensen brought...
, Hyperhead, Apollo 440Apollo 440Apollo 440 are an English band formed in Liverpool in 1990. Apollo 440 have written, recorded and produced four albums, collaborated with and produced other artists, remixed as Apollo 440 and as ambient cinematic alter-ego Stealth Sonic Orchestra, and created music for film, television,...
, and Maximum Roach. His current group is called "The Jungle". He also composes music for TV adverts. In 2011 it was announced that he was joining a new incarnation of Pop Will Eat ItselfPop Will Eat ItselfPop Will Eat Itself are an English alternative rock band, originally formed in Stourbridge in 1986, with members from Birmingham, Coventry and the Black Country. Initially known as a Grebo act, their style changed to incorporate sample driven indie and industrial rock...
, replacing original member Clint MansellClint MansellClinton Darryl "Clint" Mansell, is an English musician, composer, and former lead singer and guitarist of the band Pop Will Eat Itself....
. - A tribute bandTribute bandA tribute act is a music group, singer, or musician who specifically plays the music of a well-known music act - sometimes one which has disbanded, ceased touring or is deceased. Probably the largest class of tributes acts are Elvis impersonators, individual performers who mimic the songs and style...
called Lesbian Dope Heads on Mopeds occasionally plays biker events.
Singles
| Year | Title | Format | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | "Everythang's Groovy" | 7-inch and 12-inch single | InTape |
| 1987 | "Nosedive Karma" | 7-inch, 10-inch and 12-inch single | InTape |
| 1987 | "Git Down (Shake Your Thang)" | 7-inch, box set and 12-inch single | Virgin |
| 1987 | "All Hung Up" | 7-inch, 12-inch, and 2x12-inch with Picture Disc | Virgin |
| 1989 | "Hot Thing" | 7-inch, 10-inch and 12-inch single | Virgin |
| 1991 | "S.P.A.C.E." (as PFX) | 12-inch single | Naked Brain |
| 1991 | "Killer Teens in New Orleans" (as PFX) | 12-inch single | Naked Brain |
EPs
| Year | Title | Format | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1998 | The BBC Sessions | EP | Strange Fruit |
| 1989 | Real Horror Show (as Rektüm) | 12-inch EP | Manic Ears |
Albums
| Year | Title | Format | Label |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1987 | Drill Your Own Hole | LP/CS/CD and Video album | Virgin |
| 1989 | Stewed to the Gills | LP/CS/CD album | Virgin |
| 1989 | GrooveDiveSoapDish | LP/CD album | Bleed |
| 1990 | Cancer Planet Mission | LP/CS/CD album | Naked Brain |
| 1990 | Sakredanus (as Rektüm) | LP/CS/CD album | PSI |
| 1990 | Pernicious Nonsense (as PFX) | LP/CS/CD album | Naked Brain |
| 1992 | Gaye Bykers On Acid | CD album | Receiver |
| 1993 | From The Tomb of the Near Legendary... | CD album | Receiver |
| 2001 | Everything's Groovy | CD album | Cherry Red |