National Velvet (band)

Last updated
National Velvet
Origin Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Genres Goth rock, hard rock
Years active1985–1995
2003 (single performance)
2011–present
Labels Capitol, Iron Music, Intrepid Records
Members Maria Del Mar
Mark Crossley
Tim Welch
Mark Storm
Garry Flint
Darrell Flint
Mark Thwaite

National Velvet are a Canadian goth rock band, popular in the 1980s and 1990s. [1] They took their name from the 1944 movie starring Elizabeth Taylor.

Contents

The band members have included vocalist Maria Del Mar, guitarist Mark Crossley, guitarist Mich Gzowski, drummer Ken Sinclair, guitarist Tim Welch, bassist Mark Storm (born Mark Erickson), saxophonist Chris Reis and drummer Garry Flint. [2]

The band came together after a chance meeting between Del Mar and Storm in an alley during a party in Toronto, Ontario; [2] that initial meeting was actually an argument about musical taste, because Storm was a fan of gothic rock bands such as Bauhaus, while Del Mar was into Spanish classical music, Motown, swing music and punk rock. [3] Mark introduced Maria to some friends that were looking to start a band. Maria Del Mar worked the coat check at Toronto nightclub The Diamond, while Tim Welch was the lighting technician there. [4] They began playing the local Toronto circuit, they used the money they made to record a 4-track demo. They shopped the demos around to record labels, but grew impatient. Six months after forming, they released a self-titled independent EP, [2] which they sold at their shows. Their EP caught the attention of Capitol Records President, Dean Cameron. He was impressed and signed them to Capital affiliate Intrepid Records in 1987. [2] Original members, Sinclair, Gzowski and Reis had left the band prior to the Capitol deal and Gary Flint was added.

Their self-titled debut album was released in 1988, [5] and spawned the radio single "Flesh Under Skin". [2] In 1989, their single and video for "68 Hours" garnered them a CASBY Award. [2] "Pacifist At Risk" and "Change My Mind" were also released as singles but failed to make the charts.

Their follow-up album, Courage was recorded in England with producer Zeus B. Held, [6] and was released in 1990. [7] Guitarist Tim Welch (formerly of Images In Vogue) was added as a full time band member. The album was supported by a cross-Canada tour, [7] and gave the band further radio airplay for the singles "Shine On" and "Sex Gorilla". (The latter title was a band in-joke. The song had actually been written as "Sarsparilla", but the fans kept misunderstanding the lyrics, so the band relented and retitled the song.) [2] "Sex Gorilla" also led to a fan tradition of throwing bananas at the stage during their shows. [1] [8] Sex Gorilla and Shine On were played in heavy rotation on Much Music and MTV. Courage was certified gold. A third single, "A Place Called Hysteria" was released off the album but received little push from the record label. The band continued to tour for the next few years, mainly in smaller clubs around Ontario, Canada.

The band subsequently left Capitol Records, and released their third and final album Wildseed in 1995 on the independent label Iron Music. [1] The album was recorded at eNVy Studio and produced by Gary Flint. Guitarist Darrell Flint was added, replacing Mark Storm. The album received little attention and almost no airplay.

In 1996, Maria Del Mar joined the all female band Hassenpfeffer and recorded an album 'Songs of Convenience' (MaGaDa International).

Despite frequent confusion, Del Mar is not the same person as television actress Maria del Mar. [9] To further confusion, Maria Del Mar (singer) has done some acting, including the 1991 Toronto indie film The Events Leading Up to My Death , directed by Bill Robertson.

Maria continued to work in the Toronto music scene into the early 2000's, including gigs with Classic Albums Live and with the Rolling Stones tribute band Midnight Ramblers. [10]

Storm was reported missing in November 2002. The following June, his body was found in Lake Ontario. [11] The band got together in 2003 for a benefit concert to help Mark's family during the difficult time.

The band has performed periodically, including shows at Toronto's Bovine Sex Club in 2011 and 2012, and continue to perform at select venues. [12]

Discography

See also

Related Research Articles

<i>The Velvet Underground & Nico</i> 1967 studio album by the Velvet Underground and Nico

The Velvet Underground & Nico is the debut studio album by the American rock band the Velvet Underground and the German singer Nico, released in March 1967 through Verve Records. It was recorded in 1966 while the band were featured on Andy Warhol's Exploding Plastic Inevitable tour. The album features experimental performance sensibilities and explicit lyrical topics, including drug abuse, prostitution, sadomasochism and sexual deviancy.

Gothic rock is a style of rock music that emerged from post-punk in the United Kingdom in the late 1970s. The first post-punk bands which shifted toward dark music with gothic overtones include Siouxsie and the Banshees, Joy Division, Bauhaus, and the Cure.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">April Wine</span> Canadian rock band

April Wine is a Canadian rock band formed in 1969 and based in Halifax, Nova Scotia. Led by singer-guitarist-songwriter Myles Goodwyn from its inception in 1969 until his death in 2023, April Wine first experienced success with their second album, On Record (1972), which reached the top 40 in Canada and yielded two hit singles: a cover of Elton John's "Bad Side of the Moon", a top 20 hit in Canada; and a cover of Hot Chocolate's "You Could Have Been a Lady", a number 2 song in Canada.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Theatre of Tragedy</span> Norwegian band

Theatre of Tragedy was a Norwegian band from Stavanger, active between 1993 and 2010. They are best known for their earlier albums, which influenced the gothic metal genre.

Maria Morales, known professionally as Maria Del Mar, is a Canadian rock singer.

Shimmy Disc is a New York City-based independent record label founded in 1987 by Mark Kramer. Before it was sold to the Knitting Factory, artists like Bongwater, Daniel Johnston, Fly Ashtray, Galaxie 500, King Missile, Boredoms, Ruins, Ween, Gwar, The Semibeings, and Uncle Wiggly recorded on the label. The label also released compilation albums such as Rutles Highway Revisited , 1990, which featured various artists from the label, and also introduced new artists like Paleface.

Leslie Spit Treeo were a Canadian folk-rock band in the 1980s and 1990s. The band took its name from the Leslie Street Spit area of Toronto Harbour.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Greg Leisz</span> American musician

Gregory Brian Leisz is an American musician. He is a songwriter, recording artist, and producer. He plays guitar, dobro, mandolin, banjo, lap steel and pedal steel guitar.

Terry Knight and the Pack was an American garage rock band formed in Flint, Michigan in 1965. The band was signed to the Lucky Eleven label through most of its brief recording career. They produced one national hit with their cover version of the song, "I ". Despite their inability to replicate their success, the band was a frequent attraction in the Michigan rock scene. The Pack was fronted by singer Terry Knight. In 1969 the group disbanded but two members, drummer/vocalist Don Brewer and guitarist Mark Farner, would go on to form another band, Grand Funk Railroad.

Ghoti Hook is an American punk band from Fairfax, Virginia. The band formed in 1991, signed to Tooth & Nail Records in 1996, and disbanded in 2002.

Boys Brigade was a Canadian new wave band formed in 1980 in Toronto, Ontario, Canada. The band consisted of vocalist and keyboardist Malcolm Burn, guitarist and vocalist Tony Lester, bass guitarist Wayne Lorenz, drummer Billie Brock and percussionists David Porter and Jeff Packer. One critic noted, "What made Boys Brigade stand out was their strong use of percussionists in a standard rock/new wave format."

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Canadian blues</span>

Canadian blues is the blues and blues-related music performed by blues bands and performers in Canada. Canadian blues artists include singers, players of the main blues instruments: guitar, harmonica, keyboards, bass and drums, songwriters and music producers. In many cases, blues artists take on multiple roles. For example, the Canadian blues artist Steve Marriner is a singer, harmonica player, guitarist, songwriter and record producer.

This is a timeline documenting the events of heavy metal in the year 2004.

The Toronto goth scene, the cultural locus of the goth subculture in Toronto, Ontario, Canada and the associated music and fashion scene, has distinct origins from goth scenes of other goth subcultural centres, such as the UK or Germany. Originally known as the "Batcavers", the term "goth" appeared only after 1988, when it was applied to the pre-existent subculture. Distinctive features included internationally recognized gothic and vampiric fashion store 'Siren', a goth-industrial bar named 'Sanctuary: The Vampire Sex Bar', and Forever Knight, a television series about an 800-year-old vampire living in Toronto. In Toronto, the goths did not seek to reject mainstream status, and achieved partial acceptance throughout the mid to late 1990s.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eileen Rose</span> American singer-songwriter (born 1965)

Eileen Rose is an American singer-songwriter who is known for her eclectic Americana music. She has released five solo studio albums and toured Europe and the US extensively with her band The Holy Wreck. She is also a member of the band The Silver Threads.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Velvet Underground</span> American rock band

The Velvet Underground was an American rock band formed in New York City in 1964. It originally comprised singer and guitarist Lou Reed, Welsh multi-instrumentalist John Cale, guitarist Sterling Morrison, and drummer Angus MacLise. In 1965, MacLise was replaced by Moe Tucker, who played on most of the band's recordings. Though their integration of rock and the avant-garde resulted in little commercial success, they became one of the most influential bands in rock, underground, experimental, and alternative music. Their provocative subject matter, musical experiments, and nihilistic attitude was also instrumental in the development of punk rock, new wave and several other genres.

Masochistic Religion was a Canadian goth music group and one of the first goth bands from Toronto, Ontario. The band went through many line-up changes over the years, with the only consistent member being its founder, Mitchell D. Krol.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Mark Thwaite</span> British guitarist

Mark Gemini Thwaite, also known as MGT, is an English musician who has been the guitarist for a number of rock bands and artists, including The Mission, trip hop pioneer Tricky, Peter Murphy of Bauhaus, New Disease, Spear of Destiny & Theatre of Hate, Mob Research, and Canadian band National Velvet plus various live and recorded appearances with Gary Numan, Al Jourgensen of Ministry, Revolting Cocks, Roger Daltrey of the Who, P.J. Harvey, Alanis Morissette, Raymond Watts and PIG, Primitive Race, Ricky Warwick of Thin Lizzy, Ginger of The Wildhearts, Stan Lee of Marvel Comics, Franz Treichler of The Young Gods, Miles Hunt & The Wonder Stuff, Burton C. Bell of Fear Factory, American rapper DMX, Laurence "Lol" Tolhurst and Porl Thompson of The Cure and Ville Valo of Finnish band HIM.

Harry Stinson is an American multi-instrumentalist, noted as a session drummer and vocalist in the Nashville music community. He is also a songwriter and producer.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Healthy Junkies</span>

Healthy Junkies are a punk rock / grunge band based in London, UK. The current line-up consists of French-born singer Nina Courson (vocals), Phil Honey-Jones (guitar/vocals), Dave Whitmore (bass) and David Gaut (drums). The band have achieved press coverage in the music magazines Vive Le Rock and Black Velvet, as well as website Louder Than War.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Ottawa holds out banana for National Velvet". Montreal Gazette , April 16, 1995.
  2. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 National Velvet [usurped] at Jam! Music - Pop Encyclopedia.
  3. ↑ "Dark and emphatic, National Velvet brings rock to Whyte; Any resemblance with the sentimental, old flick is purely coincidental". Edmonton Journal , April 20, 1990.
  4. ↑ at Then And Now: The Diamond Club
  5. ↑ "Bumper crop of Canadian pop blooming this spring". Toronto Star , April 2, 1988.
  6. ↑ "National Velvet: Courage". Toronto Star , March 30, 1990.
  7. 1 2 "National Velvet". Calgary Herald , April 19, 1990.
  8. ↑ "National Velvet singer Del Mar soon goes banana". Ottawa Citizen , April 2, 1990.
  9. ↑ "Street Legal's Maria del Mar dreams of coming back to Ottawa". Ottawa Citizen , May 29, 1993.
  10. ↑ "Hear the Rolling Stones' best album -- live". Ottawa Citizen , June 26, 2003.
  11. ↑ "Memorial for National Velvet Bassist Tomorrow". Chart . 2003-06-09. Archived from the original on 2011-06-06. Retrieved 2009-09-16.{{cite magazine}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  12. ↑ "The top 10 Toronto goth bands of all time". BlogTO, October 25, 2014.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.