Cardiacs are an English rock band formed in Kingston upon Thames by Tim Smith and his brother Jim in 1977 under the name Cardiac Arrest. The band's sound fused circus, baroque pop and medieval music with progressive rock and post-punk, adding other elements like nursery rhymes and sea shanties. Tim Smith was the primary lyricist, noted for his complex and innovative compositional style. He and his brother were the only constant members in the band's regularly changing lineup.
Christian David "Bic" Hayes is an English rock guitarist, singer and songwriter. Best known as the frontman of Dark Star and guitarist with Levitation, he has also released solo material as Mikrokosmos, which was produced by Tim Smith.
Jonathan Charles Poole, also known by his stage name Random Jon Poole, is an English musician and songwriter. A multi-instrumentalist, singer and producer, he is best known for his work as guitarist for Cardiacs and as bass player for the Wildhearts and Lifesigns.
Sing to God is the fourth studio album by English rock band Cardiacs. Their first album with drummer Bob Leith and their second as a four-piece, it was recorded throughout 1995, breaking a hiatus by the band that had lasted since the band's previous album Heaven Born and Ever Bright (1992). During writing and recording, Jon Poole took a greater role than before, contributing to many songs written by band leader Tim Smith, and writing some of his own. The band decided to create a double album to encompass the great wealth of material written after their previous album. As with the band's previous albums, it presents a unique sound, and is seen as more eclectic than the band's previous albums, with one reviewer describing the record as "essentially [taking] everything Cardiacs had always been and [ramping] it up to maximum," and another saying the album was where "Smith's ability to express the music inside his head really began to transcend any sort of identifiable genre and turned Cardiacs into something truly unique."
On Land and in the Sea is the second studio album proper by the English rock band Cardiacs. Produced by band leader Tim Smith, it was recorded and mixed in 1988 at The Slaughterhouse studios in Yorkshire and released in May 1989 by the band's label Alphabet Business Concern. The record features a complex sound, with songs moving through rapid shifts in tempo and key, as well as more experimentation with song structures than the group's previous album. Critics have described the record as art rock and pop in style. It was their final album with their "classic" six-piece line-up.
Guns is the fifth studio album by English rock band Cardiacs. It was recorded and mixed at Apollo 8 in London and released in 1999. After a brief period of unavailability, the album was re-pressed in August 2007.
The Seaside is the third demo album from English rock group Cardiacs. The album originally featured the second recording of what would become the band's only hit single, "Is This the Life?". It is the last of the band's releases to feature keyboard player/drummer/singer Mark Cawthra and the first to feature keyboard player William D. Drake.
Archive Cardiacs is a compilation album by English rock band Cardiacs. The album is composed of early tracks by the band recorded from 1977 to 1979. The tracks were compiled from Cardiacs' demo albums The Obvious Identity (1980) and Toy World (1981), as well as three pieces recorded by Tim Smith and Dominic Luckman for a side project that never saw fruition.
Toy World is the second demo album by the English rock band Cardiacs. The cassette is a mixture of older songs by the earlier Cardiac Arrest lineup and newer songs by the then-current Cardiacs lineup. This was the last album to feature keyboard player/backing singer Colvin Mayers, and the first to feature saxophonist/backing singer/occasional keyboard player Sarah Cutts.
Big Ship is the second extended play (EP) by the English band Cardiacs, released in January 1987 by the Alphabet Business Concern. It is an album-sized vinyl record played at the speed of a single (45rpm) and was issued with a lyric insert. It was the first Cardiacs release to exclusively feature the so-called classic 1980s line-up of the band.
Rude Bootleg is a live album by the English rock band Cardiacs. It is the band's first live album, and was originally recorded at the Reading Rock Festival on 24 August 1986.
"Susannah's Still Alive" is a song by Dave Davies, released for his second solo single. The recording featured all of the Kinks' members as his backing band. It was a hit but it did not live up to the expectations of Davies' last single "Death of a Clown", which was a Top 5 hit. It failed to chart in the US, but was a significant success in Europe, reaching #10 in the Netherlands, #27 in Germany, #18 in Belgium and #18 in Sweden. Although it was never featured on an LP, its B-side "Funny Face" was included on the Kinks' 1967 album Something Else by the Kinks.
The Sea Nymphs were an English psychedelic folk band from Kingston upon Thames, England. The group comprised Cardiacs' core members Tim Smith, William D. Drake and Sarah Smith. They are commonly regarded as the quieter side of the parent band. Rooted in folk and chamber music, their sound is much lighter than that of their parent outfit. The songs dispense with the use of loud guitars and drums, in favour of differing vocal rhythms, keyboards and brass instruments. However, the music still contains Cardiacs' trademark off-the-wall chord progressions and sudden time changes, albeit in a slightly gentler fashion.
All That Glitters Is a Mares Nest is a live album and concert film by the English rock band Cardiacs. It is their third live album, and was originally recorded in the afternoon in the Salisbury Arts Centre on 30 June 1990 with Napalm Death. It is the only Cardiacs album to feature guitarist Christian Hayes throughout. The album was released on VHS in 1992 and as a live album on 1 June 1995.
Greatest Hits is a compilation album by the English rock band Cardiacs, released on 22 February 2002.
William Derek 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. He has also been a member of the Sea Nymphs, North Sea Radio Orchestra, Nervous, Wood, Lake of Puppies and The Grown-Ups, as well as pursuing a career as a solo artist. He is a distant cousin of the English singer-songwriter Nick Drake.
"Day Is Gone" is a song by English rock band Cardiacs from their third studio album, Heaven Born and Ever Bright (1992). It was released as a twelve-inch single preceding the album on 28 October 1991 alongside a free 7-inch titled "Appealing to Venus" by side project the Sea Nymphs from their eponymous debut studio album (1992). Both tracks were written by Tim Smith who solely produced the former, while the Sea Nymphs produced the latter. Musically, "Day Is Gone" has been described as a power pop song with a 5
4 time signature and prominent guitars.
The Shrubbies were an English pop group from Wallington, London, active from 1996 to 1998. The band was formed as Shrubby Veronica by Craig Fortnam, Sharron Saddington and the former Cardiacs members Sarah Smith and Dominic Luckman (drums). They gigged enthusiastically in London for several years and then split up as Fortnam was disillusioned with playing the traditional indie rock toilet circuit.
Timothy Graham Quy was a British musician, best known as the percussionist for the rock band Cardiacs from 1981 to 1990. Initially the band's sound engineer, Quy first gigged as reserve bass player in 1980 and joined full-time on percussion in 1981. He became a key part of the band's classic six-piece lineup, performing on all their releases from The Seaside (1983) to On Land and in the Sea (1989), and was a popular face in the UK underground. Quy's last performance with Cardiacs was documented in the live video All That Glitters Is a Mares Nest (1992), where his marimba figures particularly high in the mix.
