Fudge Tunnel | |
|---|---|
 L-R: David Ryley, Alex Newport, and Adrian Parkin | |
| Background information | |
| Origin | Nottingham, England |
| Genres | |
| Years active | 1988–1995 |
| Labels | |
| Spinoffs | Nailbomb |
| Past members | Alex Newport David Ryley Adrian Parkin |
Fudge Tunnel were an English band formed in Nottingham by Alex Newport, David Ryley and Adrian Parkin. They were known for straddling noise rock and sludge metal, with their sound being compared to bands such as Melvins and Nirvana. [1]
Fudge Tunnel formed in 1989. [3] After two singles on Pigboy/Vinyl Solution Records ("Fudge Tunnel" in 1989, "The Sweet Sound of Excess" in 1990), they signed to Nottingham's Earache Records. [4] Their debut album was Hate Songs in E Minor , which attracted a large amount of press interest, [4] after the original album artwork was confiscated by the Nottingham Vice Squad. [5]
Fudge Tunnel's reputation was built around their massive guitar sound and ironic sense of humour, and they were popular with the British music press - at least at first. The band's first release was "Single of the Week" in NME magazine in January 1990, [4] with NME declaring "Absolutely and totally the best single ever to be released in 1990. Total nine guitar attack-rock". [6]
The band undertook several European tours in 1991 and 1992 including support slots with Fugazi, Silverfish and The Jesus Lizard, as well as support slots with Swervedriver, Godflesh, [4] and regular performances at popular London venues The Camden Falcon and Camden Underworld.
Two more albums were to follow in 1993 (Creep Diets) and 1994 (The Complicated Futility of Ignorance). [4] Newport also was active with Nailbomb, a collaboration with Max Cavalera (Sepultura), [4] who released one studio album and one live album of their Dynamo Open Air Festival performance. [7] [8] [9] Fudge Tunnel considered The Complicated Futility of Ignorance to be their best album and, satisfied with what they had achieved, quietly disbanded in late 1995. [10] [11]
Following their disbandment, David Ryley ran his label BGR Records for a while. Adrian Parkin played with Tubesurfer until 1996 when they too split up, and then returned to being a quantity surveyor in Bolton. Alex Newport went on to pursue a successful career as a producer/mixer and now lives and runs his own studio in New York. He has produced albums by At the Drive-In, The Mars Volta, Bloc Party, City and Colour, and many others. [12] He also formed the band Theory of Ruin, who released one album, Counter Culture Nosebleed and the Frontline Poster Child EP, both on Escape Artist Records and currently is playing in Red Love with Matt Tong.
In May 2020, Fudge Tunnel released the live compilation Best of the Desk: Volume One, Live In Europe 1993, featuring recordings from various shows on the band's 1993 European tour. [13]
Sleep is an American stoner/doom metal band from San Jose, California. Guitarist Matt Pike and bassist and vocalist Al Cisneros have been the only constant members throughout the band's history. Critic Eduardo Rivadavia describes them as "perhaps the ultimate stoner rock band" and notes they exerted a strong influence on metal in the 1990s.
Sludge metal is an extreme subgenre of heavy metal music that combines elements of doom metal and hardcore punk. The genre generally includes slow tempos, tuned down guitars and nihilistic lyrics discussing poverty, drug addiction and pollution.
Bolt Thrower were a British death metal band from Coventry. They formed in 1986 and released their first album with Vinyl Solution in 1988. The band then shifted to a new record label, Earache Records, soon becoming one of the best selling bands on that label. Their last label was Metal Blade Records. The band had a succession of members, and had toured Europe, the United States, and Australia. Over the course of their 30-year career, Bolt Thrower released eight studio albums, three EPs, one live album, three compilation albums and two demos. Their albums have sold over 100,000 copies in the United States as of 2005.
Terrorizer is an American grindcore band from Los Angeles, California. It was originally formed in 1985 as Unknown Death by vocalist Oscar Garcia and guitarist Jesse Pintado. They would rename themselves Terrorizer after recruiting drummer Pete Sandoval, who remains the band's sole constant member throughout their discography, in 1986. The band's current lineup consists of Sandoval, bassist David Vincent, vocalist Brian Werner and guitarist Richie Brown. They are currently signed to Earache Records.
Brutal Truth was an American grindcore band from New York City, formed by ex-Anthrax, Nuclear Assault, and Stormtroopers of Death bass guitarist Dan Lilker in 1990. The group disbanded in 1999, but reformed in 2006 and continued to release music until 2014.
Earache Records is a British independent record label, music publisher and management company founded by Digby Pearson in 1985, based in Nottingham, England, with offices in London and New York. The label helped to pioneer extreme metal by releasing early grindcore and death metal records between the late 1980s and mid-1990s. Its roster has since diversified into more mainstream guitar music, working with bands such as Rival Sons, the Temperance Movement, Blackberry Smoke, Scarlet Rebels and the White Buffalo. The company also hosted the 'Earache Express' stage at Glastonbury Festival in 2017 and 'The Earache Factory' at Boomtown 2018. The label's logo is a homage to Thrasher magazine, as Pearson was a skateboard culture enthusiast.
Nailbomb is a heavy metal band formed in 1993 as a side project by Brazilian musician Max Cavalera of Sepultura, Cavalera Conspiracy and Soulfly, and British musician Alex Newport of Fudge Tunnel. They played a combination of primarily industrial metal and thrash metal. The band recorded one studio album, Point Blank, and played a warmup live performance and their only official gig for 29 years at the 1995 Dynamo Open Air Festival two days later, after which the band disbanded. The band will reunite for a one-off show in Tempe, Arizona in November 2024.
Point Blank is the only studio album by heavy metal band Nailbomb, released on March 8, 1994, by Roadrunner Records. The side project was started by Max Cavalera and Alex Newport in the mid-1990s. Part of the first track, "Wasting Away", plays in the 1995 film To Die For.
Proud To Commit Commercial Suicide is a live album by industrial metal band Nailbomb and captures the band's only live appearance at the 1995 Dynamo Open Air Festival. The album cover is a picture of the aftermath of the infamous Jonestown suicides. The album's title is in reference to the fact that the band promised that they would only ever release one album.
Left Hand Path is the debut studio album by Swedish death metal band Entombed, released on 4 June 1990 by Earache Records.
Pure is the second studio album by English industrial metal band Godflesh. It was released on 13 April 1992 through Earache Records. Though originally labeled only as industrial metal, the album has since been recognised as one of the earliest post-metal releases. Musically, Pure is rhythmically mechanical and features harsh guitars, with protracted songs and an abundance of deliberate repetition. Like much of Godflesh's music, it is regarded as particularly heavy and aggressive, and these elements helped it gain critical acclaim.
Organic Hallucinosis is the fourth studio album by Polish death metal band Decapitated. The album was released on 7 February 2006 in the United States, on 13 February in Europe and on 22 February in Japan. The release was followed by European and North American tours.
Somewhere Along the Highway is the fourth studio album by Swedish post-metal band Cult of Luna, released in 2006 by Earache Records. A concept album, it revolves around the motif of male loneliness. It was warmly received by critics and accordingly claimed several awards.
Mistress were a British extreme metal band from Birmingham, England. The members of this five-piece band adopted pseudonyms as stage-names including: Drunken and Misery on guitars, Dirty Von Arse on bass, Dave Cunt on vocals and Migg on drums. Dave Cunt is also a member of Anaal Nathrakh and Migg is in several other bands, including Anaal Nathrakh, Exploder, Fukpig and Frost. Misery, also plays in Fukpig and Kroh. Mistress announced their split in 2008.
The English industrial metal band Godflesh have released eight studio albums and six extended plays along with a number of singles, compilations and remix and live albums. The group formed in 1982 under the name Fall of Because, but they did not release any music until 1988 when Justin Broadrick and B. C. Green changed the project's name to Godflesh and recorded a self-titled debut EP. That EP, released through the independent label Swordfish, was met with underground success and has since been recognised as one of the first industrial metal releases, if not the first.
Hate Songs in E Minor is the debut studio album by British rock band Fudge Tunnel. It was released in May 1991 through Earache Records, and issued in the United States on 20 August 1991 through Relativity Records. It followed in the wake of two critically acclaimed singles, after which the group were signed to Earache. The album consists of 11 songs, 9 of which were written by the band and 2 covers: "Sunshine of Your Love", originally recorded by the band Cream, while the last track on the disc, "Cat Scratch Fever" was originally recorded by Ted Nugent. The album is also dedicated to Nugent.
To Walk a Middle Course is the second studio album by American heavy metal band Kylesa. Released on March 22, 2005, by Prosthetic Records, it was produced by English record producer Alex Newport, who is known for his projects Fudge Tunnel and Nailbomb.
Conan are a British doom/sludge metal band from Liverpool whose style is characterised by a heavily distorted and downtuned sound. It has been described as "caveman battle doom".
The Complicated Futility of Ignorance is the third and final studio album by English rock band Fudge Tunnel, released in September 1994 by Earache Records. The album is notable for being the band's heaviest.
Creep Diets is the second studio album by British rock band Fudge Tunnel, released on 26 April 1993 by Earache Records. It was distributed by Columbia Records in the United States as part of Earache's deal with Columbia, where it sold less than 15,000 copies.
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