Norman Westberg | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Also known as | Norman Westberg |
Born | 1958 (age 65) New York City, United States |
Genres | |
Occupation(s) | Musician |
Instrument(s) | Guitar |
Years active | 1982–present |
Norman Westberg (born 1958) is a guitarist from Detroit best known for his work with Swans. Present through almost the entirety of the band's existence, Westberg was brought on for Swans' debut album Filth (1983) and appeared on every album through 1991's White Light from the Mouth of Infinity (he also played on the 1995 album The Great Annihilator ). [1] Westberg became a full-time Swans member once again when Michael Gira reactivated the group in 2010. [2]
Westberg's playing can also be heard on many Swans side projects including The Body Haters and solo albums by Jarboe. Before Swans he was a member of Carnival Crash. Westberg was for a short-time a member of The Heroine Sheiks with Shannon Selberg (ex-The Cows) [3] as well as John Fell (ex-China Shop). Aside from the present incarnation of Swans he currently plays in the NYC bands NeVAh (with Vinnie Signorelli & Algis Kizys) and Five Dollar Priest (formerly Size Queens) (with Ron Ward of Speedball Baby & Bob Bert among others). [4] He also appeared (credited as Norman Westburg) in a short film The Right Side of My Brain directed by Richard Kern and starring Lydia Lunch.
On February 25, 2012, Westberg made two limited edition solo releases available at his webstore. [5] Plough is a four-track EP recorded from 2006 to 2009 and features Westberg coupling guitar with banjo and DX drum machine. [6] Limited Edition of 75 features one fifteen-minute-long ambient piece and is packaged in one-of-a-kind imagery—each disk being decorated with a unique MRI from a CD Westberg was given in hospital. [7] Both CD-Rs are packaged in handmade sleeves: Plough with a signed inner and Limited Edition of 75 signed and numbered on the disk itself.
In February 2014 Westberg released a third limited edition solo CD entitled 13 , which was then reissued through the ROOM40 record label on November 13, 2015. [8]
In 2014, [9] Westberg joined with Mark Shippy (U.S. Maple), Jim Sykes (Invisible Things), Matthew Wascovich (Scarcity Of Tanks), and Mike Watt (Minutemen) to form the art rock project band Hidden Rifles. [10] Their debut album, Across The Neighborhoods, was released in October 2017. [9]
Year | Title |
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1983 | Filth |
1984 | Cop |
1986 | Greed |
1986 | Holy Money |
1987 | Children of God |
1989 | The Burning World |
1991 | White Light from the Mouth of Infinity |
1995 | The Great Annihilator |
2010 | My Father Will Guide Me up a Rope to the Sky |
2012 | The Seer |
2014 | To Be Kind |
2016 | The Glowing Man |
2019 | Leaving Meaning |
Year | Title |
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1998 | Delirium Tremens |
Year | Title |
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2000 | Rape on the Installment Plan |
2002 | Siamese Pipe |
Swans is an American experimental rock band formed in 1982 by singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Michael Gira. One of the few acts to emerge from the New York City-based no wave scene and stay intact into the next decade, Swans have become recognized for an ever-changing sound, exploring genres such as noise rock, post-punk, industrial and post-rock. Initially, their music was known for its sonic brutality and misanthropic lyrics. Following the addition of singer, songwriter and keyboardist Jarboe in 1986, Swans began to incorporate melody and intricacy into their music. Jarboe remained the band's only constant member except Gira and semi-constant guitarist Norman Westberg until their dissolution in 1997.
Michael David Watt is an American bassist, vocalist and songwriter.
Algis Kizys is a New York City bass guitarist most well known for his long-time membership in New York City band Swans. First joining Swans on 1986's Greed LP, he stayed with the group through The Great Annihilator (1995). He is also a founding member Of Cabbages and Kings, an offshoot of Bag People.
Jess Roden is an English rock singer, songwriter and guitarist.
Filth is the debut studio album by American experimental rock band Swans. It was released in 1983 through Neutral Records, following the release of the band's self-titled debut EP in 1982. Though it did not receive much contemporary attention, Filth has since been recognized as ahead of its time and significant to heavy genres of music.
Cop is the second studio album by American experimental rock band Swans. It was released in 1984, through record label K.422.
Greed is the third studio album by American experimental rock band Swans. It was released in 1986, through record label K.422. Greed marks the slow turning point for Swans away from the harsh, brutal noise rock of prior releases, and is also the first Swans album to contain contributions from Jarboe.
The Heroine Sheiks was a New York-based Noise Rock band until early 2006. It began in 1999, as a collaboration of Shannon Selberg, George Porfiris, Norman Westberg and John Fell. Selberg emerged as a major songwriter in the complete history of the band whose sound was darker and more sinister than his previous work in The Cows. With several references to the writer Louis-Ferdinand Céline, the band explored a thematic quality of black comedy.
John Fell is an American drummer. Born in New York City in 1961 to academic parents, he came into prominence in the early 1980s playing with rock/reggae/Latin band from Miami named "Watchdog". He is the co-owner of Main Drag Music located in Williamsburg. There, he creates custom snares, and repairs and sells drums. He has been listed on a number of lists of great drummers.
The Burning World is the sixth studio album by American experimental rock band Swans. It was released in 1989, through record label Uni Records, the band's only major-label release. Co-produced by Bill Laswell and band leader Michael Gira, the album features a major stylistic shift from their past releases, being very tuneful and accessible compared to the bleak, industrialized sound from their past records. It received a mixed reception and was a commercial disappointment; the band was dropped from the record label following its poor performance.
Rape on the Installment Plan is the first album by The Heroine Sheiks. It was released on September 20, 2000, by Reptilian Records.
Public Castration Is a Good Idea is the first live album by American experimental rock band Swans. It was originally released as a semi-officially approved bootleg through Some Bizzare Records in 1986, consisting of performances recorded from shows in London and Nottingham on the tour for the albums Greed and Holy Money. The performances were recorded from London's ICA, The Garage in Nottingham and London's ULU.
Bad Moon Rising was a rock band that rose to superstar status in Japan with a series of hard rock albums led by Scottish born vocalist Kal Swan and guitarist Doug Aldrich.
Yesterdays is a Hungarian symphonic progressive rock band based in Carei, Romania.
Tytan is a British rock band that lasted about two years during the early 1980s by former Angel Witch bassist Kev Riddles. The album Rough Justice was released after their split. They formed out of the New Wave of British Heavy Metal movement and are best known for their strong melodies. The band reformed in 2012 to play Keep It True in Germany and have been touring since. In 2016 the band recorded a follow-up album Justice Served with Chris Tsangarides for High Roller Records. It was released in May 2017.
The Gate is a 2015 limited-edition live album by American experimental rock band Swans. The album was released on October 1, 2015 on band leader Michael Gira's Young God Records. Limited to 2500 copies, the album served as a fundraiser for The Glowing Man.
13 is a solo album by American musician and Swans guitarist Norman Westberg. Originally released as a handmade limited edition disc, the album officially released on November 13, 2015 through Lawrence English's Room40 record label.
Deliquescence is a 2017 limited-edition, and the overall ninth, live album by American experimental rock band Swans. The album, limited to 3,000 CD-only copies, contains three tracks that have previously only been played live. The packaging for the CD release includes the details of location of each show, band photos, and alternative artwork.
What Is This? is a 2019 limited-edition fundraiser album by American experimental rock band Swans. The album was released in March 2019 on band leader Michael Gira's Young God Records. Limited to 2,500 copies, the album served as a fundraiser for the fifteenth Swans album, Leaving Meaning, which was released in October 2019.
Leaving Meaning is the fifteenth studio album by American experimental band Swans. It was released October 25, 2019 on Young God and Mute. A double album, Leaving Meaning's songs have been mixed separately for vinyl and CD releases, with the CD version of the album containing the original mixes of the songs, as well as an additional track, "Some New Things". As with all Swans' releases of the 2010s, Leaving Meaning was financed by a fundraiser album – in this case, What Is This? in March 2019.