The Monsoon Bassoon
Encyclopedia
The Monsoon Bassoon were a British independent rock band active between 1995 and 2001, notable for their exceptionally complex and energetic music. During their lifespan, the band won the NME
's Single Of The Week award three times (for three consecutive single releases). They were an integral part of the “London math-rock” scene of the late 1990s and had a passionate underground following, particularly inspiring other bands.
or math rock
(the band themselves sometimes used the tongue-in-cheek term "lysergic
funk
"). Their music drew on a variety of other sources including British and American art-rock, heavy metal
, folk music
, avant-garde
music, New York minimalism
and progressive rock
.
Although the results sounded chaotic or confusing to some ears, the music was in fact carefully planned. Bass player Laurie Osbourne has commented “every note was very worked out and there wasn’t much repetition.” Kavus Torabi asserts "The music was co-written (by me) with Dan Chudley, and although we pretty much knew how we wanted the tunes to go before they were presented to the rest of the group, the songs would always be open to a few arrangement changes when we all worked on them."
The band were all highly skilled and disciplined musicians capable of precise and detailed performances, which enabled them to play highly complex material. Regular features of Monsoon Bassoon songs were male and female harmony vocals, swapping of the lead singer role, woodwind parts, polyrhythm
ic sections, time changes and unusual scales
. At times, all of the band might appear to be playing in different timings, before locking into a crescendo. Another feature of the band was the use of stylistic shifts within songs and sudden changes in direction or mood. For example, their third single "The King of Evil" started as a gentle folk song
, but ended with all three singers shouting in chorus over a death metal
guitar part.
The band cited a broad range of influences including Henry Cow
, Cardiacs
, Shudder To Think
, XTC
and Steve Reich
. However, Osbourne has commented “we loved… all kinds of experimental rock; but we always really wanted to make pop music, experimental pop music.” The band’s output was notably melodic, and catchy enough for their singles to receive attention and outright praise.
, Devon
, UK and first worked together in 1988 in the psychedelic thrash-metal band Die Laughing, in which the two developed a tightly-integrated and interlocking guitar style. After Die Laughing split in 1993, Chudley formed the band Squid Squad in which he played with singing flute player/clarinettist Sarah Measures and drummer Jamie Keddie.
, East London
in 1994 and formed The Monsoon Bassoon. Early gigs and recordings brought them to the attention of Organ magazine and Org Records, who issued their first release - the cassette EP Redoubtable – in 1995. The band briefly went into hiatus later that year following the departure of Jamie Keddie (he would spend some time drumming for eccentric Britpop
group Octopus
). However, he was persuaded to return in early 1996 and the band began a new lease of life.
In 1997, The Monsoon Bassoon began recording material for their debut album, with Tim Smith (Cardiacs) as producer. Several of these tracks were released in early 1998 on a demo cassette called In Bold Gardens which received limited circulation and a handful of reviews. By this time the band were developing a strong reputation on the London underground scene thanks to their powerful live act, now focussed into tighter songs, and had played on concert bills with Nub and Sidi Bou Said
.
. Laurie Osbourne later recalled “we had a really trendy moment where for some reason the NME started getting into progressive music. There was a writer called Simon Williams who runs Fierce Panda who discovered Coldplay
, Super Furry Animals
and so on, and he was really into us, so we had a moment of strange trendiness in amidst eight years of terminal untrendiness, you know?”
Kavus Torabi remembers "It really kick-started an interest in the band. I love that it was completely on our own terms, it doesn't sound like anything else. It's such an improbable song, but it couldn't have been any other way. When it really started to come together in rehearsals there was a total feeling of magic between the five members of the band. I think we couldn't believe we had harnessed a song that good. I hope that doesn't sound too arrogant. It was a really potent time. I think it was one of those rare moments I felt truly alive and in the here and now. I still get a funny knot in my stomach when I hear it."
The next single, In The Iceman’s Back Garden, was another NME Single of the Week and was received with similar enthusiasm in the underground press. Reviewing it, Robots And Electronic Brains described the Monsoon Bassoon as “the kind of band that Organ
were calling pronk
all those years ago: proggy
bombast and stylistic excess welded to punk
energy, thrill and speed. No two consecutive bars are the same, the total antithesis of bands like Tortoise
or Mogwai
, there's loads of fiddly bits, a fidgetful beat, tons of influences and an archly British, eccentric theatrical edge… It's a beauteous noise and an education your ears will thank you for.”
The third Monsoon Bassoon single, The King Of Evil, was NME Single of the Week once again. Reviewing it, NME’s Stevie Chick concluded “Slightly hamstrung by more than a few things, notably the fact that they don't live in Glasgow
, they aren't on Digital Hardcore
, they look like Club Dog roadies, they are completely and utterly skint and they have the lumpiest band name since Frottage Bunion, the fivesome nevertheless persist in making the most amazing alternative music…the most gorgeous, grotesque, explosive outbursts of noise witnessed since the madder bits of 'Come on Die Young
' came round and ruined our woofers. Key words? Psychotic. Lunging. Lithe. Panthers in the back garden. Hair-raising, in every sense of the word.”
The band rounded off their most successful year to date by supporting their longtime heroes Cardiacs
at the Garage, London, on December 4, followed by a concert with Rothko, Nightnurse and an embryonic Snow Patrol
at the Camden Underworld on December 15 and a support slot for The Clint Boon Experience on December 17 at the Bull and Gate, Kentish Town.
, Rothko
, Nub, Delicate AWOL
, Geiger Counter (later Foe) and The Shrubbies,
plus affiliated acts such as the Oxford-based Nought and developing indie acts such as Seafood
.
The band’s first (and only) album, I Dig Your Voodoo, arrived in 1999. Like the singles, it was released on Weird Neighbourhood Records. It received reviews in the mainstream press in publications as disparate as The Guardian
, Heat
, and NME
. The latter, giving the album eight points out of ten, said “it is with longing arms that we clutch The Monsoon Bassoon close to our heavy bosom. They have come with a malicious intent to bludgeon all musical preconceptions into mush. And they will, ultimately, tug hard on your heartstrings in ways that you won't quite understand. It's all in the delivery. I Dig Your Voodoo… is psychedelic pop that has been hung, drawn and quartered only to be dipped into an acid pickle and served with a liberal helping of punk rock
angst… Every spurt of sonic agitation is brimful of intent.” Comparing the music to Nomeansno
, Cocteau Twins
’ Liz Fraser
and Cardiacs
, the review concluded that the album was “one fuck-off cosmic rock'n'roll sensation, with scant regard for the songwriting rulebook. Truly, it's a world of unfathomable prog
-new-wave
wonders. Pop music, then, but not as those in their right mind know it.”
The band gigged persistently in and around London during this year, playing once again with Snow Patrol
in July.
and Wall Of Suss 2 was a collaboration with Max Tundra
.
In mid-2001, The Monsoon Bassoon provided three tracks for the “Summer 2001” box-set release in Day Release Records’ “Four Seasons Singles Club” series (alongside Defeat The Young
and The Naysayer). Robots And Electronic Brains commented “Monsoon Bassoon offer up a blast of their patented blueprint of acid-powered sax abuse and corrugated rock. It's Morphine
trying some rather less stuporific narcotics. On “God Bless The Monsoon Bassoon” they reprise the Cardiacs-folk of Sidi Bou Said
...”
In October 2001, via the Skippy's Cage website, Sarah Measures publicly announced that the band had split up. Her statement said:
Many recordings from the band’s last years remain unreleased, including a planned EP called My Kill Hand Never Felt So Good and the initial tracks for a second album provisionally entitled I Am The Master And You Are Coming With Me To Hell.
The first of these was Miss Helsinki, which surfaced in 2003 (with Richard Larcombe of Stars In Battledress
) playing bass and Keddie providing drums when available). The sound of the group was similar to that of The Monsoon Bassoon, but minus the woodwind/reeds and with considerably simpler song structures. The group only ever released one track ("I Felt Your Arms Around Me", which appeared on the Useless In Bed Volume 1 released by the tiny independent label House of Stairs) and only played one short gig.
In 2005, Chudley and Torabi reunited with Jamie Keddie again, as a new rock band called Authority. The lineup was completed by bass player Craig Fortnam
(a former member of The Shrubbies and Lake Of Puppies
, but by then better known as the leader of contemporary chamber ensemble North Sea Radio Orchestra
). The band played several London concerts over the next two years and recorded several songs (available on their MySpace page), but folded in 2007 due to the members’ other commitments.
From the mid-2000s Torabi, Chudley and Sarah Measures also reunited as members of the occasional folk group Admirals Hard. This band is made up of members of the London math rock and alt.folk scenes and mostly play re-workings of sea shanties
(although their sense of humour and outside musical interests are evident in their sea-shantified cover of Iron Maiden's Stranger In A Strange Land). The full line-up is Andy Carne (lead vocals), Kavus Torabi (mandolin
, guitar and vocals), Dan Chudley (bass and vocals), Sarah Measures (flute and vocals), Stars In Battledress
members Richard Larcombe (guitar, harmonium
, vocals) and James Larcombe (harmonium
, melodeon
, hurdy-gurdy, vocals), Paul Westwood (ex-Geiger Counter and Foe, hammered dulcimer
, harmonium
, vocals) and Becky Jacobs (vocals, also in Tunng
). The group is currently in hiatus due to the other commitments and geographical separation of the various members.
(whom he joined in 2004). He joined avant-rock group Guapo
in 2006 and has toured extensively with the band, although he is yet to feature on any recordings. He also sings for the chorus of North Sea Radio Orchestra
and has played with Mediaeval Baebes and Spider Stacy (The Pogues
). He has a solo project, Knifeworld, which released a debut album called Buried Alone: Tales Of Crushing Defeat on CD, vinyl and download via Believers Roast Records in August 2009.
Dan Chudley has relocated to Cornwall with his family and now produces electronic music under the project name of The Don And Only.
Chudley and Torabi have continued their musical collaboration via the psychedelic mainly-acoustic project Hatchjaw and Bassett, although they have not yet released any of the material.
Laurie Osbourne now writes, records and performs within the dubstep
dance-music genre under the name Appleblim.
NME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
's Single Of The Week award three times (for three consecutive single releases). They were an integral part of the “London math-rock” scene of the late 1990s and had a passionate underground following, particularly inspiring other bands.
Sound
The Monsoon Bassoon's music (largely created by guitarists Kavus Torabi and Dan Chudley) can be described as psychedelic rockPsychedelic rock
Psychedelic 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...
or math rock
Math rock
Math rock is a rhythmically complex guitar-based style of experimental rock that emerged in the 1980s and that was very influenced by progressive rock like King Crimson, Frank Zappa, Henry Cow - and 20th century composers such as Steve Reich and John Cage...
(the band themselves sometimes used the tongue-in-cheek term "lysergic
LSD
Lysergic acid diethylamide, abbreviated LSD or LSD-25, also known as lysergide and colloquially as acid, is a semisynthetic psychedelic drug of the ergoline family, well known for its psychological effects which can include altered thinking processes, closed and open eye visuals, synaesthesia, an...
funk
Funk
Funk is a music genre that originated in the mid-late 1960s when African American musicians blended soul music, jazz and R&B into a rhythmic, danceable new form of music. Funk de-emphasizes melody and harmony and brings a strong rhythmic groove of electric bass and drums to the foreground...
"). Their music drew on a variety of other sources including British and American art-rock, heavy metal
Heavy metal music
Heavy metal is a genre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s, largely in the Midlands of the United Kingdom and the United States...
, folk music
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
, avant-garde
Avant-garde
Avant-garde means "advance guard" or "vanguard". The adjective form is used in English to refer to people or works that are experimental or innovative, particularly with respect to art, culture, and politics....
music, New York minimalism
Minimalism
Minimalism describes movements in various forms of art and design, especially visual art and music, where the work is set out to expose the essence, essentials or identity of a subject through eliminating all non-essential forms, features or concepts...
and progressive rock
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
.
Although the results sounded chaotic or confusing to some ears, the music was in fact carefully planned. Bass player Laurie Osbourne has commented “every note was very worked out and there wasn’t much repetition.” Kavus Torabi asserts "The music was co-written (by me) with Dan Chudley, and although we pretty much knew how we wanted the tunes to go before they were presented to the rest of the group, the songs would always be open to a few arrangement changes when we all worked on them."
The band were all highly skilled and disciplined musicians capable of precise and detailed performances, which enabled them to play highly complex material. Regular features of Monsoon Bassoon songs were male and female harmony vocals, swapping of the lead singer role, woodwind parts, polyrhythm
Polyrhythm
Polyrhythm is the simultaneous sounding of two or more independent rhythms.Polyrhythm in general is a nonspecific term for the simultaneous occurrence of two or more conflicting rhythms, of which cross-rhythm is a specific and definable subset.—Novotney Polyrhythms can be distinguished from...
ic sections, time changes and unusual scales
Musical scale
In music, a scale is a sequence of musical notes in ascending and descending order. Most commonly, especially in the context of the common practice period, the notes of a scale will belong to a single key, thus providing material for or being used to conveniently represent part or all of a musical...
. At times, all of the band might appear to be playing in different timings, before locking into a crescendo. Another feature of the band was the use of stylistic shifts within songs and sudden changes in direction or mood. For example, their third single "The King of Evil" started as a gentle folk song
Folk music
Folk music is an English term encompassing both traditional folk music and contemporary folk music. The term originated in the 19th century. Traditional folk music has been defined in several ways: as music transmitted by mouth, as music of the lower classes, and as music with unknown composers....
, but ended with all three singers shouting in chorus over a death metal
Death metal
Death metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal. It typically employs heavily distorted guitars, tremolo picking, deep growling vocals, blast beat drumming, minor keys or atonality, and complex song structures with multiple tempo changes....
guitar part.
The band cited a broad range of influences including Henry Cow
Henry Cow
Henry Cow were an English avant-rock group, founded at Cambridge University in 1968 by multi-instrumentalists Fred Frith and Tim Hodgkinson. Henry Cow's personnel fluctuated over their decade together, but drummer Chris Cutler and bassoonist/oboist Lindsay Cooper were important long-term members...
, Cardiacs
Cardiacs
Cardiacs are an English alternative rock/psychedelic pop band formed in 1977 and led by Tim Smith. Noted for their complex, varied and intense compositional style and for their eccentric, theatrical stage shows, they have been hailed as an influence by bands as diverse as Blur, Faith No More and...
, Shudder To Think
Shudder to Think
Shudder to Think is an American indie rock group. Formed in 1986, they released three albums on the Washington, D.C.-based label Dischord Records and were a post-hardcore band, although they drew upon a wide range of stylistic influences, including pop....
, XTC
XTC
XTC were a New Wave band from Swindon, England, active between 1976 and 2005. The band enjoyed some chart success, including the UK and Canadian hits "Making Plans for Nigel" and "Senses Working Overtime" , but are perhaps even better known for their long-standing critical success.- Early years:...
and Steve Reich
Steve Reich
Stephen Michael "Steve" Reich is an American composer who together with La Monte Young, Terry Riley, and Philip Glass is a pioneering composer of minimal music...
. However, Osbourne has commented “we loved… all kinds of experimental rock; but we always really wanted to make pop music, experimental pop music.” The band’s output was notably melodic, and catchy enough for their singles to receive attention and outright praise.
Prehistory (1988-1993)
Kavus Torabi and Dan Chudley (both guitarists and singers) met in their mutual hometown of PlymouthPlymouth
Plymouth is a city and unitary authority area on the coast of Devon, England, about south-west of London. It is built between the mouths of the rivers Plym to the east and Tamar to the west, where they join Plymouth Sound...
, Devon
Devon
Devon is a large county in southwestern England. The county is sometimes referred to as Devonshire, although the term is rarely used inside the county itself as the county has never been officially "shired", it often indicates a traditional or historical context.The county shares borders with...
, UK and first worked together in 1988 in the psychedelic thrash-metal band Die Laughing, in which the two developed a tightly-integrated and interlocking guitar style. After Die Laughing split in 1993, Chudley formed the band Squid Squad in which he played with singing flute player/clarinettist Sarah Measures and drummer Jamie Keddie.
Early days, Redoubtable and In Bold Gardens (1994-1997)
Torabi, Chudley, Measures and Keddie (along with bass player Laurie Osbourne) all relocated to LeytonLeyton
Leyton is an area of north-east London and part of the London Borough of Waltham Forest, located north east of Charing Cross. It borders Walthamstow and Leytonstone; Stratford in Newham; and Homerton and Lower Clapton in the London Borough of Hackney....
, East London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
in 1994 and formed The Monsoon Bassoon. Early gigs and recordings brought them to the attention of Organ magazine and Org Records, who issued their first release - the cassette EP Redoubtable – in 1995. The band briefly went into hiatus later that year following the departure of Jamie Keddie (he would spend some time drumming for eccentric Britpop
Britpop
Britpop is a subgenre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom. Britpop emerged from the British independent music scene of the early 1990s and was characterised by bands influenced by British guitar pop music of the 1960s and 1970s...
group Octopus
Octopus (band)
Octopus were a Britpop band from Shotts, Lanarkshire, Scotland formed in 1995. They had three hit singles before splitting up in 1997.-History:...
). However, he was persuaded to return in early 1996 and the band began a new lease of life.
In 1997, The Monsoon Bassoon began recording material for their debut album, with Tim Smith (Cardiacs) as producer. Several of these tracks were released in early 1998 on a demo cassette called In Bold Gardens which received limited circulation and a handful of reviews. By this time the band were developing a strong reputation on the London underground scene thanks to their powerful live act, now focussed into tighter songs, and had played on concert bills with Nub and Sidi Bou Said
Sidi Bou Said (band)
Sidi Bou Said were a London based rock band, who existed during the 1990s. Their music combined an indie rock/folk sound with complex arrangements and literate lyrics. They were often compared to Throwing Muses and the Pixies, with whom they shared a taste for sometimes uncomfortable lyrical themes...
.
The year of breakthrough singles (1998)
Monsoon Bassoon manager John Fowers had now set up Weird Neighbourhood Records in order to issue Monsoon Bassoon recordings. The label’s first release was the debut Monsoon Bassoon single, the double A-side Wise Guy/28 Days In Rocket Ship. Much to the band’s astonishment, this was awarded Single of the Week in New Musical ExpressNME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
. Laurie Osbourne later recalled “we had a really trendy moment where for some reason the NME started getting into progressive music. There was a writer called Simon Williams who runs Fierce Panda who discovered Coldplay
Coldplay
Coldplay are a British alternative rock band formed in 1996 by lead vocalist Chris Martin and lead guitarist Jonny Buckland at University College London. After they formed Pectoralz, Guy Berryman joined the group as a bassist and they changed their name to Starfish. Will Champion joined as a...
, Super Furry Animals
Super Furry Animals
Super Furry Animals are a Welsh rock band that lean towards psychedelic rock and electronic experimentation. Since their formation in Cardiff, Wales in 1993, the band has consisted of Gruff Rhys , Huw Bunford , Guto Pryce , Cian Ciaran and Dafydd Ieuan Super Furry Animals are a Welsh rock band...
and so on, and he was really into us, so we had a moment of strange trendiness in amidst eight years of terminal untrendiness, you know?”
Kavus Torabi remembers "It really kick-started an interest in the band. I love that it was completely on our own terms, it doesn't sound like anything else. It's such an improbable song, but it couldn't have been any other way. When it really started to come together in rehearsals there was a total feeling of magic between the five members of the band. I think we couldn't believe we had harnessed a song that good. I hope that doesn't sound too arrogant. It was a really potent time. I think it was one of those rare moments I felt truly alive and in the here and now. I still get a funny knot in my stomach when I hear it."
The next single, In The Iceman’s Back Garden, was another NME Single of the Week and was received with similar enthusiasm in the underground press. Reviewing it, Robots And Electronic Brains described the Monsoon Bassoon as “the kind of band that Organ
Organ (magazine)
Organ is an independent music magazine based in London, covering a variety of rock, alternative, punk, progressive, metal and experimental music. The magazine was founded in 1986 as a handmade fanzine and has evolved many times over the last 20 years...
were calling pronk
Pronk
Pronk may refer to:* Pronking, or "stotting", a behavior of gazelles involving leaping straight up during pursuit by a predatorMusic* An alternative name for Progressive punkPeople* Travis Hafner, a baseball player with that nickname...
all those years ago: proggy
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
bombast and stylistic excess welded to punk
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
energy, thrill and speed. No two consecutive bars are the same, the total antithesis of bands like Tortoise
Tortoise
Tortoises are a family of land-dwelling reptiles of the order of turtles . Like their marine cousins, the sea turtles, tortoises are shielded from predators by a shell. The top part of the shell is the carapace, the underside is the plastron, and the two are connected by the bridge. The tortoise...
or Mogwai
Mogwai
The word mogwai is the transliteration of the Cantonese word 魔怪 meaning "monster", "evil spirit", "devil" or "demon".-Mogwai/Mogui in Chinese culture:...
, there's loads of fiddly bits, a fidgetful beat, tons of influences and an archly British, eccentric theatrical edge… It's a beauteous noise and an education your ears will thank you for.”
The third Monsoon Bassoon single, The King Of Evil, was NME Single of the Week once again. Reviewing it, NME’s Stevie Chick concluded “Slightly hamstrung by more than a few things, notably the fact that they don't live in Glasgow
Glasgow
Glasgow is the largest city in Scotland and third most populous in the United Kingdom. The city is situated on the River Clyde in the country's west central lowlands...
, they aren't on Digital Hardcore
Digital hardcore
Digital hardcore is a subgenre of hardcore punk incorporating influences from electronic music. Digital hardcore fuses elements of hardcore punk with various forms of electronic music...
, they look like Club Dog roadies, they are completely and utterly skint and they have the lumpiest band name since Frottage Bunion, the fivesome nevertheless persist in making the most amazing alternative music…the most gorgeous, grotesque, explosive outbursts of noise witnessed since the madder bits of 'Come on Die Young
Come On Die Young
Come On Die Young , is the second full-length studio album by the Scottish post-rock band Mogwai, released on 29 March 1999 by Chemikal Underground.-Overview:...
' came round and ruined our woofers. Key words? Psychotic. Lunging. Lithe. Panthers in the back garden. Hair-raising, in every sense of the word.”
The band rounded off their most successful year to date by supporting their longtime heroes Cardiacs
Cardiacs
Cardiacs are an English alternative rock/psychedelic pop band formed in 1977 and led by Tim Smith. Noted for their complex, varied and intense compositional style and for their eccentric, theatrical stage shows, they have been hailed as an influence by bands as diverse as Blur, Faith No More and...
at the Garage, London, on December 4, followed by a concert with Rothko, Nightnurse and an embryonic Snow Patrol
Snow Patrol
Snow Patrol are an alternative rock band from Bangor, County Down, Northern Ireland. Formed at the University of Dundee in 1994 as an indie rock band, the band is now based in Glasgow...
at the Camden Underworld on December 15 and a support slot for The Clint Boon Experience on December 17 at the Bull and Gate, Kentish Town.
I Dig Your Voodoo (1999)
The Monsoon Bassoon were, by now, at the epicentre of the loosely defined “London math-rock scene.” Centred around relatively small venues such as the Dublin Castle and Upstairs at the Garage, this featured London-based bands such as Billy Mahonie, GuapoGuapo (band)
Guapo is a British experimental rock/art rock band formed in the mid 1990s by drummer/percussionist Dave Smith and guitarist/vocalist Matt Thompson...
, Rothko
Rothko (band)
Rothko were a London-based instrumental ambient group. The group mainly used bass guitars and keyboards to create their soundscapes. They derived their name from the painter Mark Rothko...
, Nub, Delicate AWOL
Delicate AWOL
Delicate AWOL were a British experimental rock band active between 1998 and 2005. The band were notable for their cross-pollination of various musical forms , for their links with British post-rock band Rothko, for their activities in promoting the London underground music scene of the early 2000s,...
, Geiger Counter (later Foe) and The Shrubbies,
plus affiliated acts such as the Oxford-based Nought and developing indie acts such as Seafood
Seafood
Seafood is any form of marine life regarded as food by humans. Seafoods include fish, molluscs , crustaceans , echinoderms . Edible sea plants, such as some seaweeds and microalgae, are also seafood, and are widely eaten around the world, especially in Asia...
.
The band’s first (and only) album, I Dig Your Voodoo, arrived in 1999. Like the singles, it was released on Weird Neighbourhood Records. It received reviews in the mainstream press in publications as disparate as The Guardian
The Guardian
The Guardian, formerly known as The Manchester Guardian , is a British national daily newspaper in the Berliner format...
, Heat
Heat (magazine)
Heat is a British entertainment magazine published by German company Bauer Media Group. it is one of the biggest selling magazines in the UK, with a regular circulation over half a million. Its mix of celebrity news, gossip and fashion is primarily aimed at women, although not as directly as in...
, and NME
NME
The New Musical Express is a popular music publication in the United Kingdom, published weekly since March 1952. It started as a music newspaper, and gradually moved toward a magazine format during the 1980s, changing from newsprint in 1998. It was the first British paper to include a singles...
. The latter, giving the album eight points out of ten, said “it is with longing arms that we clutch The Monsoon Bassoon close to our heavy bosom. They have come with a malicious intent to bludgeon all musical preconceptions into mush. And they will, ultimately, tug hard on your heartstrings in ways that you won't quite understand. It's all in the delivery. I Dig Your Voodoo… is psychedelic pop that has been hung, drawn and quartered only to be dipped into an acid pickle and served with a liberal helping of punk rock
Punk rock
Punk rock is a rock music genre that developed between 1974 and 1976 in the United States, the United Kingdom, and Australia. Rooted in garage rock and other forms of what is now known as protopunk music, punk rock bands eschewed perceived excesses of mainstream 1970s rock...
angst… Every spurt of sonic agitation is brimful of intent.” Comparing the music to Nomeansno
Nomeansno
NoMeansNo is a Canadian progressive punk rock music group originally from Victoria, British Columbia and now located in Vancouver.The band has never had, nor have they seemed to pursue, strong mainstream success, but they do have a devoted underground following in North America and Europe...
, Cocteau Twins
Cocteau Twins
Cocteau Twins were a Scottish alternative rock band active from 1979 to 1997, known for innovative instrumentation and atmospheric, non-lyrical vocals...
’ Liz Fraser
Elizabeth Fraser
Elizabeth Davidson Fraser is a Scottish singer best known as the vocalist for the pioneer alternative rock group Cocteau Twins...
and Cardiacs
Cardiacs
Cardiacs are an English alternative rock/psychedelic pop band formed in 1977 and led by Tim Smith. Noted for their complex, varied and intense compositional style and for their eccentric, theatrical stage shows, they have been hailed as an influence by bands as diverse as Blur, Faith No More and...
, the review concluded that the album was “one fuck-off cosmic rock'n'roll sensation, with scant regard for the songwriting rulebook. Truly, it's a world of unfathomable prog
Progressive rock
Progressive rock is a subgenre of rock music that developed in the late 1960s and early 1970s as part of a "mostly British attempt to elevate rock music to new levels of artistic credibility." John Covach, in Contemporary Music Review, says that many thought it would not just "succeed the pop of...
-new-wave
New Wave music
New Wave is a subgenre of :rock music that emerged in the mid to late 1970s alongside punk rock. The term at first generally was synonymous with punk rock before being considered a genre in its own right that incorporated aspects of electronic and experimental music, mod subculture, disco and 1960s...
wonders. Pop music, then, but not as those in their right mind know it.”
The band gigged persistently in and around London during this year, playing once again with Snow Patrol
Snow Patrol
Snow Patrol are an alternative rock band from Bangor, County Down, Northern Ireland. Formed at the University of Dundee in 1994 as an indie rock band, the band is now based in Glasgow...
in July.
Final years (2000 to mid-2001)
Despite the positive response to their album, The Monsoon Bassoon did not get signed by any major labels to enable them to make the next step in scaling up their career. Undeterred, they continued to perform live, and to record and release on Weird Neighbourhood. 2000 saw the release of two seven-inch vinyl split singles, intended as the first two parts of an ongoing collaborative series, in which the band would cover/adapt one piece by a chosen collaborator in and in return would have one of their own pieces covered or adapted in a similar way. Wall of Suss 1 saw the band working with RothkoRothko (band)
Rothko were a London-based instrumental ambient group. The group mainly used bass guitars and keyboards to create their soundscapes. They derived their name from the painter Mark Rothko...
and Wall Of Suss 2 was a collaboration with Max Tundra
Max Tundra
Ben Jacobs, more commonly known by the stage name Max Tundra, is an English multi-instrumental musician, singer and music producer. His work is predominantly electronic music but incorporates non-electronic styles and instruments...
.
In mid-2001, The Monsoon Bassoon provided three tracks for the “Summer 2001” box-set release in Day Release Records’ “Four Seasons Singles Club” series (alongside Defeat The Young
Stars In Battledress (band)
Stars In Battledress are an English musical duo featuring brothers Richard and James Larcombe. They are notable for their complex but tuneful compositions, their unorthodox fusion of folk music sources and British/American art rock influences, and for their intricate and allusive lyrics.A related...
and The Naysayer). Robots And Electronic Brains commented “Monsoon Bassoon offer up a blast of their patented blueprint of acid-powered sax abuse and corrugated rock. It's Morphine
Morphine (band)
Morphine was an American alternative rock group formed by Mark Sandman and Dana Colley in Cambridge, Massachusetts, in 1989. They disbanded in 1999 after frontman Sandman died of a heart attack....
trying some rather less stuporific narcotics. On “God Bless The Monsoon Bassoon” they reprise the Cardiacs-folk of Sidi Bou Said
Sidi Bou Said (band)
Sidi Bou Said were a London based rock band, who existed during the 1990s. Their music combined an indie rock/folk sound with complex arrangements and literate lyrics. They were often compared to Throwing Muses and the Pixies, with whom they shared a taste for sometimes uncomfortable lyrical themes...
...”
Split (late 2001)
Despite an ongoing show of confidence and a loyal fanbase, The Monsoon Bassoon's resources were flagging, and a second departure by Jamie Keddie spelled the end of the band. Laurie Osbourne recalls “We had no money and we didn’t get signed—there was this big push to approach a label and get signed and it just didn’t happen… After that, (Jamie Keddie) left and after that it was just, well, ‘if one of us leaves…’ We were just such a family unit that we had to split up. We’d been together, and lived together for eight years at that point. He left because he had a kid and a family.”In October 2001, via the Skippy's Cage website, Sarah Measures publicly announced that the band had split up. Her statement said:
"The Monsoon Bassoon has always, over its lifetime had the same dynamic five as the lineup. That could never change. We are, to each other, irreplaceable. So, if one of us couldn't continue to be in the band, it really, really wouldn't be the same. All for one and one... etc... With this situation arising, splitting up was the only option. But it's not just about that... we can't stop change (yeah, the wheels of time are turning...folks) and it’s exciting for us all to experiment with new idea's, be it individually or together. We are committed friends, redoubtable to the last...so there are and will be plenty of projects...just not under the name of The Monsoon Bassoon. We have made some truly tremendous friends, and had hell of a ride... I'm so glad to have been apart of the greatest psychedelic hard-fuck rocking bastard group of recent times."
Many recordings from the band’s last years remain unreleased, including a planned EP called My Kill Hand Never Felt So Good and the initial tracks for a second album provisionally entitled I Am The Master And You Are Coming With Me To Hell.
Miss Helsinki, Authority and Admirals Hard (2003-2007)
Following the break-up of The Monsoon Bassoon, guitarists (and principal composers) Dan Chudley and Kavus Torabi continued to work together. This resulted in two subsequent and short-lived bands sharing much of the sound and spirit of their previous band.The first of these was Miss Helsinki, which surfaced in 2003 (with Richard Larcombe of Stars In Battledress
Stars In Battledress (band)
Stars In Battledress are an English musical duo featuring brothers Richard and James Larcombe. They are notable for their complex but tuneful compositions, their unorthodox fusion of folk music sources and British/American art rock influences, and for their intricate and allusive lyrics.A related...
) playing bass and Keddie providing drums when available). The sound of the group was similar to that of The Monsoon Bassoon, but minus the woodwind/reeds and with considerably simpler song structures. The group only ever released one track ("I Felt Your Arms Around Me", which appeared on the Useless In Bed Volume 1 released by the tiny independent label House of Stairs) and only played one short gig.
In 2005, Chudley and Torabi reunited with Jamie Keddie again, as a new rock band called Authority. The lineup was completed by bass player Craig Fortnam
Craig Fortnam
Craig Fortnam is an English composer, conductor and musician. Fortnam is a skilled guitarist and bass guitarist, specialising in nylon-string acoustic guitar and also sings...
(a former member of The Shrubbies and Lake Of Puppies
William D. Drake
William D. Drake is an English musician, keyboardist, pianist, composer and singer-songwriter. He is best known as a former member of the cult English rock band Cardiacs, whom he played with for nine years between 1983 and 1992...
, but by then better known as the leader of contemporary chamber ensemble North Sea Radio Orchestra
North Sea Radio Orchestra
North Sea Radio Orchestra is an English contemporary music ensemble and cross-disciplinary chamber orchestra ....
). The band played several London concerts over the next two years and recorded several songs (available on their MySpace page), but folded in 2007 due to the members’ other commitments.
From the mid-2000s Torabi, Chudley and Sarah Measures also reunited as members of the occasional folk group Admirals Hard. This band is made up of members of the London math rock and alt.folk scenes and mostly play re-workings of sea shanties
Sea shanty
A shanty is a type of work song that was once commonly sung to accompany labor on board large merchant sailing vessels. Shanties became ubiquitous in the 19th century era of the wind-driven packet and clipper ships...
(although their sense of humour and outside musical interests are evident in their sea-shantified cover of Iron Maiden's Stranger In A Strange Land). The full line-up is Andy Carne (lead vocals), Kavus Torabi (mandolin
Mandolin
A mandolin is a musical instrument in the lute family . It descends from the mandore, a soprano member of the lute family. The mandolin soundboard comes in many shapes—but generally round or teardrop-shaped, sometimes with scrolls or other projections. A mandolin may have f-holes, or a single...
, guitar and vocals), Dan Chudley (bass and vocals), Sarah Measures (flute and vocals), Stars In Battledress
Stars In Battledress (band)
Stars In Battledress are an English musical duo featuring brothers Richard and James Larcombe. They are notable for their complex but tuneful compositions, their unorthodox fusion of folk music sources and British/American art rock influences, and for their intricate and allusive lyrics.A related...
members Richard Larcombe (guitar, harmonium
Harmonium
A harmonium is a free-standing keyboard instrument similar to a reed organ. Sound is produced by air being blown through sets of free reeds, resulting in a sound similar to that of an accordion...
, vocals) and James Larcombe (harmonium
Harmonium
A harmonium is a free-standing keyboard instrument similar to a reed organ. Sound is produced by air being blown through sets of free reeds, resulting in a sound similar to that of an accordion...
, melodeon
Melodeon (organ)
A melodeon is a type of 19th century reed organ with a foot-operated vacuum bellows, and a piano keyboard. It differs from the related harmonium, which uses a pressure bellows. Melodeons were manufactured in the United States sometime after 1812 until the Civil War era...
, hurdy-gurdy, vocals), Paul Westwood (ex-Geiger Counter and Foe, hammered dulcimer
Hammered dulcimer
The hammered dulcimer is a stringed musical instrument with the strings stretched over a trapezoidal sounding board. Typically, the hammered dulcimer is set on a stand, at an angle, before the musician, who holds small mallet hammers in each hand to strike the strings...
, harmonium
Harmonium
A harmonium is a free-standing keyboard instrument similar to a reed organ. Sound is produced by air being blown through sets of free reeds, resulting in a sound similar to that of an accordion...
, vocals) and Becky Jacobs (vocals, also in Tunng
Tunng
Tunng are an experimental folk band from the United Kingdom.The band is often associated with the folktronica genre due to the electronic influences evident in some of their work.-Biography:...
). The group is currently in hiatus due to the other commitments and geographical separation of the various members.
Separate and solo work
Kavus Torabi is the busiest ex-member of The Monsoon Bassoon, most notably as current guitarist for CardiacsCardiacs
Cardiacs are an English alternative rock/psychedelic pop band formed in 1977 and led by Tim Smith. Noted for their complex, varied and intense compositional style and for their eccentric, theatrical stage shows, they have been hailed as an influence by bands as diverse as Blur, Faith No More and...
(whom he joined in 2004). He joined avant-rock group Guapo
Guapó
Guapó is a small town and municipality in central Goiás state, Brazil. The population was 13,586 and the total area of the municipality was 517.0 km² .Guapó is part of the Goiânia Microregion...
in 2006 and has toured extensively with the band, although he is yet to feature on any recordings. He also sings for the chorus of North Sea Radio Orchestra
North Sea Radio Orchestra
North Sea Radio Orchestra is an English contemporary music ensemble and cross-disciplinary chamber orchestra ....
and has played with Mediaeval Baebes and Spider Stacy (The Pogues
The Pogues
The Pogues are a Celtic punk band, formed in 1982 and fronted by Shane MacGowan. The band reached international prominence in the 1980s and early 1990s. MacGowan left the band in 1991 due to drinking problems but the band continued first with Joe Strummer and then with Spider Stacy on vocals before...
). He has a solo project, Knifeworld, which released a debut album called Buried Alone: Tales Of Crushing Defeat on CD, vinyl and download via Believers Roast Records in August 2009.
Dan Chudley has relocated to Cornwall with his family and now produces electronic music under the project name of The Don And Only.
Chudley and Torabi have continued their musical collaboration via the psychedelic mainly-acoustic project Hatchjaw and Bassett, although they have not yet released any of the material.
Laurie Osbourne now writes, records and performs within the dubstep
Dubstep
Dubstep is a genre of electronic dance music that originated in south London, England. Its overall sound has been described as "tightly coiled productions with overwhelming bass lines and reverberant drum patterns, clipped samples, and occasional vocals"....
dance-music genre under the name Appleblim.
Band members
- Kavus TorabiKavus TorabiKavus Torabi is a British musician and composer . A multi-instrumentalist, he is known for his work in the avant-garde rock field...
- Guitar, vocals - Dan Chudley - Guitar, vocals
- Sarah Measures - Saxophone, clarinet, flute, vocals
- Laurie Osborne - Bass
- Jamie Frazer Keddie - Drums
Singles/EP’s
- Redoubtable cassette EP (1995, Org Records) ORG007
- Wise Guy 7" (1998, Weird Neighbourhood) WNRS1
- In the Iceman's Back Garden 7" (1998, Weird Neighbourhood) WNRS2
- The King of Evil 7" (1999, Weird Neighbourhood) WNRS3
- Wall of Suss 1 7" split single with Rothko (2000, Weird Neighbourhood) WNRS5
- Wall of Suss 2 7" split single with Max Tundra (2000, Weird Neighbourhood) WNRS6
- My Kill Hand Never Felt So Good EP (unreleased)
Compilations
- Summer 2001: 4 Seasons Singles Club 3 x CD (2001, Day Release Records) DRSUM01 (featuring the tracks “The Noosemaker”, “God Bless The Monsoon Bassoon” and “Brickfields”)
- Useless in Bed Volume 1 Compilation CD (2002, House Of Stairs) HOS001CD (featuring “Stag” from the unreleased In Bold Gardens EP)
Artwork
All Monsoon Bassoon single and album artwork was designed by David Barclay, a tattooist in Old Street, London.Related bands
- Die Laughing - Plymouth metal band, featuring Kavus and Dan before forming the Monsoon Bassoon
- Squid Squad - Plymouth based band, featuring Dan, Sarah and Jamie before the Monsoon Bassoon
- Knifeworld - Solo project by Kavus Torabi
- The Don and Only - An electronic solo project by Dan Chudley
- Hatchjaw and Bassett - Dan Chudley and Kavus Torabi's largely experimental recordings
- Admirals Hard - Sea shanty band, led by Andy Carne and featuring ex-Monsoon Bassoon members
- Max TundraMax TundraBen Jacobs, more commonly known by the stage name Max Tundra, is an English multi-instrumental musician, singer and music producer. His work is predominantly electronic music but incorporates non-electronic styles and instruments...
- Members have acted as backing musicians for this electronic composer, and his song 'Acorns' is a posthumous tribute to the band. - Miss Helsinki - Rock band briefly formed by Kavus, Dan and Jamie circa 2003
- Authority - New band formed by Kavus, Dan and Jamie in 2005
- CardiacsCardiacsCardiacs are an English alternative rock/psychedelic pop band formed in 1977 and led by Tim Smith. Noted for their complex, varied and intense compositional style and for their eccentric, theatrical stage shows, they have been hailed as an influence by bands as diverse as Blur, Faith No More and...
- leader Tim Smith produced many of The Monsoon Bassoon's recordings, and Kavus Torabi now plays guitar in this seminal underground band. - GuapoGuapóGuapó is a small town and municipality in central Goiás state, Brazil. The population was 13,586 and the total area of the municipality was 517.0 km² .Guapó is part of the Goiânia Microregion...
- Kavus Torabi also plays guitar in this UK avant-progressive act