The Lotus Eaters | |
---|---|
Background information | |
Origin | Liverpool, England |
Genres | New wave |
Years active | 1981–1985 2002–present |
Labels | Arista, Cherry Red |
Members | Peter Coyle Jeremy "Jem" Kelly Stephen Emmer |
Past members | Ged Quinn Alan Wills Phil Lucking Michael Dempsey Stephen Creese |
Website | thelotuseaters |
The Lotus Eaters are an English new wave band formed in 1981 in Liverpool. Their debut single, "The First Picture of You", became a hit in the UK and in continental Europe, notably France, Italy, Belgium and Spain. [1]
In September 1982, Peter Coyle and Jeremy "Jem" Kelly met for the first time. Kelly had been guitarist in the Dance Party with Michael Head and co-founded the Wild Swans in 1980. [2] Coyle had previously been in the Jass Babies, who had recorded a session for John Peel's BBC Radio 1 show in 1981. [3]
After an invitation to record a Peel session, a number of new songs were created. Joined on keyboards by Kelly's fellow ex-Wild Swans member Ged Quinn, drummer Alan Wills and bassist Phil Lucking, [4] the session was recorded in October 1982 and included "The First Picture of You". [5] This led to the band being signed by Arista Records.
Produced by Nigel Gray, "The First Picture of You" became an iconic song for the Lotus Eaters in 1983, giving them a UK hit single before the band had even played a live gig. The band recorded a second session for Peel in October 1983. [6]
The band's debut studio album, No Sense of Sin , was released in 1984 on Arista subsidiary Sylvan Records, preceded by two further singles, "You Don't Need Someone New" and "Out on Your Own". Both of these songs hit the top 100 of the UK Singles Chart, [1] but owing to difficulties with producers and marketing, the impact of "The First Picture of You" was not repeated in the UK.
After Quinn left, Coyle and Kelly recruited bassist Michael Dempsey (the Cure, Associates), keyboard player Stephen Emmer (formerly of Minny Pops and Associates) and drummer Steve Crease. The Lotus Eaters toured extensively in the UK, France and Italy before going on hiatus in 1985 after parting ways with Arista. [2] "It Hurts", their final single, charted in the Italian Top 5 that year, [7] but the band had already split up, leaving a promotional video featuring footage of Louise Brooks to represent them. [8]
Coyle recorded as a solo artist, releasing the albums A Slap in the Face for Public Taste and I'd Sacrifice Eight Orgasms with Shirley MacLaine Just to Be There, and went on to found dance company 8 Productions and the G-Love nightclub. [9] As a songwriter/producer, he had success with Marina Van-Rooy's 1990 single "Sly One", and worked with a host of emerging artists on Liverpool's dance scene. Coyle later pursued academic interests at the University of Edinburgh. [10]
Meanwhile, Kelly reformed the Wild Swans, releasing the Bringing Home the Ashes album on Sire in 1988. [2] He co-wrote an album, Soul Fire (released in 2001), with Tom Hingley (ex-Inspiral Carpets), before leaving to study for a PhD in memory-themed multimedia theatre at the University of Reading. [11] Since 1989, Kelly has been writing, staging and performing in music-driven theatre, including Phantoms of the Aperture Part 1: Ted (2015) and Phantoms of the Aperture Part 2: Pictures of Me (2016) examining intersections of time, space, memory and music.
A compilation album of the Lotus Eaters' music, First Picture of You, was released in 1998 by Vinyl Japan/BBC Worldwide, consisting of sessions recorded at BBC Radio 1. No Sense of Sin was reissued that same year by Arista Japan. [12]
In 2001, the Lotus Eaters, comprising the duo of Coyle and Kelly, reformed after almost two decades, recording and releasing a new album titled Silentspace on the Vinyl Japan label. [13]
On 13 March 2009, the band announced a one-off concert to be held at the Liverpool Philharmonic Hall on 25 July. [14] The gig, a performance of the album No Sense of Sin, featured Coyle, Kelly and Emmer accompanied by a string quartet from the University of Huddersfield. [15]
In April 2009, Coyle and Kelly collaborated with Emmer, and announced that they were working with producer Steve Power on material for a new album called A Plug-in Called Nostalgia, [15] which has yet to be released. [16] A limited-edition acoustic album, Differance, was issued the following year as a limited release on Sylvan. [17]
The Lotus Eaters played their first London show in 10 years at the Camden Barfly on 11 June 2010, followed by a string of shows in the UK. The band also toured in Japan in October 2010, with gigs in Tokyo and Osaka.
In 2015, the band announced on their Facebook page that they were still working to release A Plug-in Called Nostalgia. [18]
In 2017, Coyle performed solo in a one-night-only show in Manila. [19]
Year | Title | Label | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
UK [1] [20] | |||||||
1984 | No Sense of Sin | Arista Records/Sylvan Records | 96 | ||||
2002 | Silentspace | Vinyl Japan | — | ||||
2010 | Differance | Sylvan Records | — | ||||
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released. |
Year | Title | Label | Peak chart positions | |
---|---|---|---|---|
AUS [21] | UK [20] | |||
1983 | "The First Picture of You" | Arista/Sylvan Records | 63 | 15 |
"You Don't Need Someone New" | — | 53 | ||
1984 | "Set Me Apart" | — | 88 | |
"Out on Your Own" | — | — | ||
"German Girl" | — | — | ||
1985 | "It Hurts" | — | 87 | |
2001 | Stay Free (EP) | Vinyl Japan | — | — |
"—" denotes releases that did not chart or were not released in that territory. |
John Robert Parker Ravenscroft, known professionally as John Peel, was an English disc jockey (DJ) and radio presenter. He was the longest-serving of the original BBC Radio 1 DJs, broadcasting regularly from 1967 until his death in 2004.
The Motors were a British pub rock band formed in London in 1977 by former Ducks Deluxe members Nick Garvey and Andy McMaster together with guitarist Rob Hendry and drummer Ricky Slaughter. Their biggest success was with the McMaster-penned song "Airport", a number 4 UK hit single in 1978.
Inspiral Carpets are an English rock band, part of the late-1980s/early-1990s Madchester movement. Formed in Oldham in 1983, the band's most successful lineup featured frontman Tom Hingley, drummer Craig Gill, guitarist Graham Lambert, bassist Martyn Walsh and keyboardist Clint Boon.
Garlands is the debut album by the Scottish alternative rock band Cocteau Twins. It was released on 10 July 1982 by the record label 4AD. It peaked in the top 5 of the UK Independent Albums Chart, and received support from BBC Radio 1 radio host John Peel.
Pete Shelley was an English singer, songwriter and guitarist. He formed early punk band Buzzcocks with Howard Devoto in 1976, and became the lead singer and guitarist in 1977 when Devoto left. The group released their biggest hit "Ever Fallen in Love " in 1978. The band broke up in 1981 and reformed at the end of the decade. Shelley also had a solo career; his song "Homosapien" charted in the US in 1981.
Even As We Speak is an Australian indie band from Sydney. Formed in the mid-1980s, founding members Matthew Love and Mary Wyer were later joined by Rob Irwin (bass) Anita Rayner, Paul Clarke and Julian Knowles.
China Crisis are an English new wave and synth-pop band formed in Kirkby, near Liverpool, Merseyside in 1979 with a core of lead vocalist and keyboardist Gary Daly and guitarist/vocalist Eddie Lundon. Initially a politically charged post-punk band influenced by Brian Eno's ambient soundscapes, China Crisis soon crossed over to a more commercial sound and had success in the United Kingdom in the 1980s with ten top 50 singles and three top 40 albums. The band also achieved commercial success in other parts of Western Europe, Australia and New Zealand, South Africa, and some minor chart successes in North America.
Peter James Wylie is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist, best known as the leader of the band variously known as Wah!, Wah! Heat, Shambeko! Say Wah!, JF Wah!, The Mighty Wah! and Wah! The Mongrel.
Michael Stephen Dempsey is an English musician and composer, who has played bass as a member of several post-punk and new wave bands, including the Cure and the Associates.
The Wild Swans are a post-punk band from Liverpool, England, which originally formed in 1980 shortly after Paul Simpson left The Teardrop Explodes. The band's personnel has been subject to regular turnover, with vocalist Simpson being the only constant member.
The Membranes are an English post-punk band formed in Blackpool, Lancashire in 1977, the initial line-up being John Robb, Mark Tilton (guitar), Martyn Critchley (vocals) and Martin Kelly (drums). Critchley soon left, with Robb and Tilton taking on vocals, and Kelly moving to keyboards, with "Coofy Sid" (Coulthart) taking over on drums.
It's Immaterial are an English indie pop band from Liverpool, England, formed in 1980. They are best known for their 1986 single "Driving Away from Home ", which reached number 18 on the UK Singles Chart.
Mugstar are an English rock band, influenced by kraut/psych/space/noise rock such as Oneida, Sonic Youth, Neu! and Hawkwind. Since 2003 they have issued several full-length albums, a split release with Mudhoney and two live albums performing on stage together with Damo Suzuki. Mugstar recorded one of the last-ever Peel Sessions with the late John Peel on 5 May 2004. Record labels: Rock Action, Important Records (U.S.A.), Cardinal Fuzz, Weird Beard, Agitated, Evil Hoodoo, Rocket Recordings, Trensmat, God Unknown, Chunklet Industries (U.S.A.), Hands In The Dark / All Time Low, Lancashire & Somerset, critical MASS...
"Delicious" is a 1994 song by English Britpop band Sleeper, written by the band's vocalist and guitarist Louise Wener along with band guitarist Jon Stewart, and produced by Ian Broudie of the Lightning Seeds.
"The First Picture of You" is a song by English band the Lotus Eaters. It was released as the group's debut single in July 1983, and was included on their debut album No Sense of Sin released the following year.
Zones were a Scottish power pop and new wave band founded in late 1977, following the demise of PVC2.
Stephen Emmer is a Dutch composer, arranger, producer, sound designer and musician. Best known as a composer for Dutch television and film, Emmer has released four albums as a solo artist, each with a different theme or concept. Vogue Estate released in 1982, is the soundtrack for an imaginary film; 2007’s Recitement is a spoken word album of poetry and prose; International Blue, released in 2014, is a tribute to pop crooners. In 2017 Emmer released Home Ground, a neo-soul album that addresses social issues related to origin.
"King For A Day" is a 1985 song by the British band the Thompson Twins. It was released as the third single from the band's fifth album Here's To Future Days.
No Sense of Sin is the debut studio album of English band the Lotus Eaters. It was released in 1984 by record label Arista. It contains their popular single, "The First Picture of You", released the previous year.
The Sherlocks are an indie rock band from South Yorkshire.