Factory Records was a Manchester-based British independent record label founded in 1978 by Tony Wilson and Alan Erasmus. The label collapsed in 1992 and was bought by London Records.
The Durutti Column are an English post-punk band formed in 1978 in Manchester, England. The band is a project of guitarist and occasional pianist Vini Reilly who is often accompanied by Bruce Mitchell on drums and Keir Stewart on bass, keyboards and harmonica. They were among the first acts signed to Factory Records by label founder Tony Wilson.
Bernard Sumner is a British singer and songwriter then record producer.
Vincent Gerard "Vini" Reilly is an English musician and leader of the post-punk group the Durutti Column.
Josef K were a Scottish post-punk band, active between 1979 and 1982, who released singles on the Postcard Records label. The band was named after the protagonist of Franz Kafka's novel The Trial. Although they released just one album while together and achieved only moderate success, they have since proved influential on many bands that followed.
Paul Haig is a Scottish indie musician, singer and songwriter. He was originally a member of post-punk band Josef K, active between 1979 and 1982.
Alan Rankine is a Scottish musician and record producer best known as keyboardist and guitarist for rock band the Associates, which he co-founded with Billy Mackenzie in the late 1970s.
Les Disques du Crépuscule is an independent record label founded in Belgium. The label was founded in 1980 by Michel Duval and Annik Honoré. It also had a prominent associated sublabel, Factory Benelux. Both are now run by former employee James Nice.
The Invisible Girls were a British rock band, formed in Salford, Greater Manchester in 1978, to provide a musical backdrop to the recorded output of Salford punk poet John Cooper Clarke. The band's nucleus was Joy Division and New Order producer Martin Hannett and keyboardist Steve Hopkins, with contributions from, amongst others, Pete Shelley of Buzzcocks and Bill Nelson of Be-Bop Deluxe. The band also played on the first solo album by Pauline Murray, the eponymous Pauline Murray and the Invisible Girls and some singles, and later with Nico for the single "Procession".
"Big Blue World" is the sixth solo single by Paul Haig, and the first single from his second album, The Warp of Pure Fun. It was produced by Haig and former Associates instrumentalist Alan Rankine, and released in the UK and across Europe by Les Disques Du Crepuscule.
Then Again is a collection of rarities, remixes and lost songs by former Josef K frontman Paul Haig recorded between 1982 and 1998, including previously unreleased material. Guests include Alan Rankine, Cabaret Voltaire, Mantronik, Bernard Sumner, Donald Johnson of A Certain Ratio and Finitribe.
"The Only Truth" is the seventh solo single by Paul Haig. It was released in the UK on Island Records and licensed through Les Disques Du Crepuscule.
"Torchomatic" is a 1988 single by Paul Haig. After leaving to seek another major deal in 1986, Haig briefly returned to Crepuscule in September 1987 to record several tracks, though the only new record to emerge was the single "Torchomatic", complete with spy theme and a home-recorded instrumental cycle on the flipside.
Rhythm of Life is the debut studio album by Scottish musician Paul Haig, released in November 1983 by Island Records. It was recorded at Sigma Sound Studios in New York City and RAK Studios in London with renowned producer Alex Sadkin. The album features guest musicians such as Bernie Worrell of Parliament-Funkadelic, Anton Fier of the Feelies and the Golden Palominos, and Tom Bailey of Thompson Twins. Four singles were released from Rhythm of Life: "Heaven Sent", "Never Give Up ", "Justice" and "Blue for You". The track "Adoration" was originally performed while Haig was still a member of post-punk band Josef K. The album spent 2 weeks on the UK Albums Chart, peaking at No. 82.
A snowflake is a single ice crystal that has achieved a sufficient size, and may have amalgamated with others, then falls through the Earth's atmosphere as snow. Each flake nucleates around a dust particle in supersaturated air masses by attracting supercooled cloud water droplets, which freeze and accrete in crystal form. Complex shapes emerge as the flake moves through differing temperature and humidity zones in the atmosphere, such that individual snowflakes differ in detail from one another, but may be categorized in eight broad classifications and at least 80 individual variants. The main constituent shapes for ice crystals, from which combinations may occur, are needle, column, plate, and rime. Snow appears white in color despite being made of clear ice. This is due to diffuse reflection of the whole spectrum of light by the small crystal facets of the snowflakes.
Miranda Stanton, best known for her recordings as Stanton Miranda, Miranda Dali and Thick Pigeon, is a 1980s Factory Records artist from New York City. She achieved some notice for her single "Wheels Over Indian Trails" and her later cover of "Love Will Tear Us Apart" by Joy Division. She also guested on recordings by the Durutti Column. Her first band was CKM in New York with Kim Gordon of Sonic Youth, where she played drums.
Factory Benelux was the Belgian imprint of Factory Records, operated by Les Disques du Crépuscule from August 1980 until March 1988, releasing a large number of exclusive recordings as well as Benelux issues of regular Factory releases. The imprint was founded by Michel Duval and Annik Honoré. A detailed history of both Factory Benelux and Crépuscule can be found in the book Shadowplayers: The Rise & Fall of Factory Records by James Nice.
LC is the second studio album by English band The Durutti Column. It was released in November 1981 through Manchester record label Factory.
Blaine Leslie Reininger is an American post-punk, new-wave and alternative pop singer, songwriter, musician, multi-instrumentalist, writer and performer. He is known for being a member of the group Tuxedomoon since 1977 after co-founding it with Steven Brown and, latterly, for a notable music and theatre career, both as a soloist and contributor to other artists' recordings, including the Durutti Column, Snakefinger, Anna Domino, Savage Republic, Paul Haig, William Lee Self's Montanablue project, Devine & Statton and Brown himself.
Without Mercy is the fourth studio album by English band The Durutti Column, released in October 1984 on Factory Records. After the band and label boss Tony Wilson were unanimous in their dislike of Another Setting (1983), Wilson pushed the band towards progressing to a new, classical-inspired sound. The band went on to record Short Stories for Pauline, which went unreleased when Wilson refused to release it, though one track, "Little Mercy", kept Wilson's attention. He asked the band to use it as the foundation for a different album, ultimately becoming Without Mercy.
