The Wolfhounds
Encyclopedia
The Wolfhounds were an indie rock
band formed in Romford
, Havering, England
in 1985 by Dave Callahan, Paul Clark, Andy Golding, Andy Bolton and Frank Stebbing. They began as a slightly askew pop/rock band, and signed to the Pink label in 1986. First EP Cut The Cake was well enough received for the NME
to include them on their C86
compilation album
. After three singles and debut album Unseen Ripples From A Pebble on Pink, they briefly moved to Idea Records
for the "Me" single, then rejoined Pink's boss at his new label September Records. September soon evolved into Midnight Music which was the Wolfhounds' home for all subsequent releases.
With original members Bolton and Clark replaced by David Oliver and Matthew Deighton, the Wolfhounds' sound developed into a denser, less poppy sound. After a compilation of earlier material, second album proper Bright and Guilty was released in 1989, featuring the singles "Son of Nothing", "Rent Act" and "Happy Shopper". The sound progressed further with the albums Blown Away (also 1989) and Attitude (1990), which found them in Sonic Youth
territory, interspersing raging guitars with elegant compositional exercises. This proved to be the final Wolfhounds release - the band splitting in early 1990.
Golding and Stebbing formed Crawl, while Callahan hooked up with former Ultra Vivid Scene
member Margaret Fiedler in Moonshake
.
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
band formed in Romford
Romford
Romford is a large suburban town in north east London, England and the administrative headquarters of the London Borough of Havering. It is located northeast of Charing Cross and is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan...
, Havering, England
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...
in 1985 by Dave Callahan, Paul Clark, Andy Golding, Andy Bolton and Frank Stebbing. They began as a slightly askew pop/rock band, and signed to the Pink label in 1986. First EP Cut The Cake was well enough received for the 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...
to include them on their C86
C86 (music)
C86 is a cassette compilation released by the British music magazine NME in 1986, featuring new bands licensed from independent labels of the time. As a phrase, C86 quickly evolved into shorthand for a guitar-based musical genre characterised by "jangly" guitars and fey melodies, although other...
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...
. After three singles and debut album Unseen Ripples From A Pebble on Pink, they briefly moved to Idea Records
Idea Records
Idea Records is a British independent record label. It was established in the late 1990s by Andy Partridge and Colin Moulding, the two main members of the British rock band XTC, and was set up to release the band's own recordings...
for the "Me" single, then rejoined Pink's boss at his new label September Records. September soon evolved into Midnight Music which was the Wolfhounds' home for all subsequent releases.
With original members Bolton and Clark replaced by David Oliver and Matthew Deighton, the Wolfhounds' sound developed into a denser, less poppy sound. After a compilation of earlier material, second album proper Bright and Guilty was released in 1989, featuring the singles "Son of Nothing", "Rent Act" and "Happy Shopper". The sound progressed further with the albums Blown Away (also 1989) and Attitude (1990), which found them in Sonic Youth
Sonic Youth
Sonic Youth is an American alternative rock band from New York City, formed in 1981. The current lineup consists of Thurston Moore , Kim Gordon , Lee Ranaldo , Steve Shelley , and Mark Ibold .In their early career, Sonic Youth was associated with the No Wave art and music scene in New York City...
territory, interspersing raging guitars with elegant compositional exercises. This proved to be the final Wolfhounds release - the band splitting in early 1990.
Golding and Stebbing formed Crawl, while Callahan hooked up with former Ultra Vivid Scene
Ultra Vivid Scene
Ultra Vivid Scene was an American alternative rock band, started by Kurt Ralske.Former Nothing But Happiness and Crash guitarist Ralske started Ultra Vivid Scene in 1987, was signed to 4AD Records in 1988, and released his first UVS EP, She Screamed, in 1988...
member Margaret Fiedler in Moonshake
Moonshake
Moonshake was a UK-based experimental rock/post-rock band existing between 1991 and 1997. The only consistent member was singer/sampler player/occasional guitarist David Callahan, who initially co-led the project with Margaret Fiedler...
.
Singles
- "Cut The Cake" (March 1986, Pink, PINKY8 [12"]) (#19)
- "The Anti-Midas Touch" (September 1986, Pink, PINKY14 [7"]/PINKY14T [12"]) (#6)
- "Cruelty" (April 1987, Pink, PINKY18 [7"]/PINKY18T [12"]) (#15)
- "Me" (November 1987, Idea, IDEA10 [7"]/ISEACI10 [CS]/IDEAT10 [12"]) (#18)
- "Son of Nothing" (May 1988, September, SEPT07T [12"])
- "Rent Act" (November 1988, Midnight Music, DONG043 [12"])
- "Happy Shopper" (March 1989, Midnight Music, DING046 [7"]/DONG046 [12"])
Studio Albums
- Unseen Ripples From A Pebble (May 1987, Pink, PINKY19 [LP]) (#6)
- Bright and Guilty (February 1989, Midnight Music, CHIME048 [LP]/CHIME048C [C]/CHIME048CD [CD])
- Blown Away (October 1989, Midnight Music, CHIME057F [LP]/CHIME057C [C]/CHIME057CD [CD])
- Attitude (May 1990, Midnight Music, CHIME1.07 [LP]/CHIME1.07CC [C]/CHIME1.07CD [CD])
Compilations
- The Essential Wolfhounds (compilation) (November 1988, Midnight Music, CHIME0032S [LP]/COLIN1CD [CD])
- Lost But Happy (1986-1990) (compilation) (April 1996, Cherry Red, CDMRED126 [CD])