Peter Ashby is an English musician and composer, and a founder member of the bands Frenzid Melon, Spasmodic Caress and the insane picnic, [1] as well as co-founder of Falling A Records with Barry Lamb. He was the original bass player and composer in Spasmodic Caress and featured on the track "Hit the Dead", which appeared on the Presage(s) 12' on 4AD Records in 1980, [2] [3] and also on all tracks of Hillside '79 and Fragments of, both of which were released on Falling A Records. After leaving Spasmodic Caress, he became a multi-instrumentalist and composer in the insane picnic, [4] playing on all of their releases.
The English people are a nation and an ethnic group native to England who speak the English language. The English identity is of early medieval origin, when they were known in Old English as the Angelcynn. Their ethnonym is derived from the Angles, one of the Germanic peoples who migrated to Great Britain around the 5th century AD. England is one of the countries of the United Kingdom, and the majority of people living there are British citizens.
Spasmodic Caress were an English post punk/new wave band, formed by Peter Masters, that played many gigs along the East Coast in Essex, Ipswich, Colchester and London between 1979 and 1984. They recorded a track for the 4AD Records 12" compilation Presage(s) in 1980 and performed at 4ad sponsored gigs in London with other 4ad artists including Modern English, In Camera and Bauhaus. Another track "Register of Electors" was recorded at the same time and is now included in the download version of Presages. They also released two albums, Hillside '79 and Fragments Of on Falling A Records. Bassist Peter Ashby went on to form the insane picnic with Barry Lamb.
Falling A Records is an Essex, England based independent record label founded in the late 1970s by Barry Lamb and Peter Ashby. Initially born out of the D.I.Y cassette movement. It owned a shop in Clacton-on-Sea which sold new and second hand records, distributed fanzines such as New Crimes, Vague, Vox, Flipside, Juniper beri-beri, Blam!, and D.I.Y magazines/comics including the very first copies of Viz It also distributed leaflets for various causes such as "anti-apartheid" and "anti-vivisection", music and politics being very much interlinked at the time.
During his time with the insane picnic, and since the group disbanded, Ashby has pursued a solo career exploring many musical styles and genres, including avant-garde, experimental, industrial, psychedelic, jazz-rock, electronic, free jazz and progressive rock, the latter two styles being especially notable on his Disturbances in the Ether (Six Armed Man Records SAM8) release, [5] and has collaborated with such artists as Barry Lamb, Jasun Martz (playing drums, bass guitar, lead guitar and piano on his album The Pillory /The Battle), Hilda Garman, [1] Wavis O'Shave and Tor Cesay. [6]
Jasun Martz is an American record producer, composer, musician, fine artist, creative director and sculptor who has worked on several #1 internationally best selling hit records but is probably best known for his contemporary classical symphonies. He has recorded with Michael Jackson, toured with Frank Zappa and helped arrange one of rock music's best selling hits: "We Built this City" by Starship.
Wavis O'Shave is a surreal English musician and comedian who regularly appeared on Channel 4's music show The Tube (1982–1987).
