Thousand Yard Stare (band)

Last updated

Thousand Yard Stare
1000 Yard Stare.jpg
Thousand Yard Stare, 1992
Background information
Origin Slough, Berkshire, England
Genres Alternative rock, indie pop
Years active19891993, 2015–present
LabelsStifled Aardvark Co. Records
Polydor Records
Members
  • Stephen Barnes
  • Dominic Bostock
  • Giles Duffy
  • Floyd Foreman
  • Sean McDonough
Past members
  • Alex Lidgate
  • Kevin Moxon
Website www.thousandyardstare.co.uk

Thousand Yard Stare are an English band from Slough, Berkshire, England, active during the early 1990s, prior to the Britpop explosion. Supporting popular bands on the indie circuit such as James and Carter The Unstoppable Sex Machine, the band also released several EPs. Reformed in 2015, the band played a sold-out show at London's Borderline on 6 June, at the Nottingham Rock City Wake-Up Indie Alldayer on 17 October 2015, and at the Shiiine On Weekender festival at Butlins Minehead on 6 November 2015. More dates were scheduled for 2016 and they released full-length record in 2020 and 2022.

Contents

History

The band's debut effort, the Weatherwatching EP was released in November 1990 on Stifled Aardvark Records, the band's own record label. Both the Easter 89 and Tumbletown EPs were demo tapes made up by the band and sold at gigs prior to their first official release, the 12" vinyl only Weatherwatching. In a response to this record, NME nominated Thousand Yard Stare as "brightest hope for the future".[ citation needed ] Following in June 1991, the Keepsake EP reached the top spot in both the NME and Melody Maker independent charts. That summer the band performed at the Reading Festival, further raising their profile and leading to their stint as support for James in October and November of that year. In the Autumn, the band began the sessions for their first album, Hands On, the first fruit of which was another EP. Seasonstream EP was released on Stifled Aardvark Records in 1991, their last independent release on their own label. The Seasonstream EP began with a track titled "0-0 a.e.t", (which means "No Score After Extra Time"), a football metaphor laden song that featured Martin Bell of The Wonder Stuff on fiddle. 0-0a.e.t appeared as the first track on the Hands On LP. This single again topped the Indie music charts, and reached number 65 in the UK Singles Chart. [1] With the backing of the major label Polydor, Thousand Yard Stare went on to release a further three EPs, and two studio albums. Hands On and Mappamundi were both produced by Stephen Street, who had already produced records for The Smiths and Blur. In the summer of 1992, Thousand Yard Stare played the NME Stage at the Glastonbury Festival.

However, neither of the albums made much of an inroad into the mainstream market, and the band became eclipsed by the burgeoning Britpoppers such as Suede, Blur and Elastica, and Mappamundi proved to be their final release in 1993.

After the band split, Barnes went on form a new band Click with, amongst others, Philip Wigg (Wiggy), a long-time collaborator with Billy Bragg. Click released one single, Julia's Reactor, and two albums, If It Ain't Broke Don't Fix It and 'Til The Cows Come Home. The remaining members of Thousand Yard Stare teamed up with Nick Steele, their engineer and occasional producer, to form Euphoria - they also released one single, Stationary Man. Duffy later went on to feature in another band, Republic of Heaven, in 2005.

Outside of Thousand Yard Stare, Bostock worked as a chiropractor in the Slough area, Barnes worked as a music plugger and band manager in Bristol, Moxon moved to Dunfermline and worked as an accountant, and McDonough became a social worker in Brighton.

However, the band reformed in 2015, and have made further recordings and live appearances, including releasing two albums, The Panglossian Momentum in 2020 and Earthanasia in 2022.

Discography

Albums

EPs

Singles

Band members

Former members

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Extended play</span> Musical recording longer than a single but shorter than a full album

An extended play (EP) is a musical recording that contains more tracks than a single but fewer than an album or LP record. Contemporary EPs generally contain four to five tracks, and are considered "less expensive and time-consuming" for an artist to produce than an album. An EP originally referred to specific types of records other than 78 rpm standard play (SP) and LP, but it is now applied to mid-length CDs and downloads as well. In K-pop they are usually referred to as mini albums. Ricardo Baca of The Denver Post said, "EPs—originally extended-play 'single' releases that are shorter than traditional albums—have long been popular with punk and indie bands." In the United Kingdom, the Official Chart Company defines a boundary between EP and album classification at 25 minutes of maximum length and no more than four tracks.

<i>Nurse</i> (album) 1992 studio album by Therapy?

Nurse is the first major label album released by the rock band Therapy? It was released in 1992 on A&M Records.

Snog is a band that was formed by Australian musician Dee Thrussell, along with fellow art school friends Tim McGrath and Julia Bourke in 1989. The band's music is a fusion of many different styles, including industrial, techno, ambient, experimental, funk and country music. The band name is a reference to "kissing and cuddling".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Sebadoh</span> American indie rock band

Sebadoh is an American indie rock band formed in 1986 in Northampton, Massachusetts, by Eric Gaffney and Lou Barlow, with multi-instrumentalist Jason Loewenstein completing the line-up in 1989. Barlow co-created Sebadoh as an outlet for his songwriting when J. Mascis gradually took over creative control of Dinosaur Jr., in which Barlow plays bass guitar.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Poison Idea</span> American punk rock band

Poison Idea was an American punk rock band formed in Portland, Oregon, in 1980.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eric's Trip</span> Canadian indie rock band

Eric's Trip is a Canadian indie rock band from Moncton, New Brunswick. Eric's Trip achieved prominence as the first Canadian band to be signed to Seattle's flagship grunge label Sub Pop in the early 1990s. The band had a minor hit in alternative circles with the single "View Master", from the 1994 album Forever Again.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Even as We Speak</span> Australian indie band

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.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Pale Saints</span> English alternative rock band

Pale Saints were an English alternative rock/shoegazing band formed in 1987 in Leeds by singer-bassist Ian Masters, guitarist Graeme Naysmith and drummer Chris Cooper.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The God Machine (band)</span> American rock band

The God Machine was an alternative rock band, active in the first half of the 1990s. Its members were all from San Diego, California, but they all lived and performed mainly in the United Kingdom and across Europe.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Chris Brokaw</span> American musician

Chris Brokaw is an American musician, best known for his work with the bands Come and Codeine.

Rosetta Stone are an English gothic rock band formed in the 1980s by Porl King (guitar/vocals/keyboards) and Karl North (bass), plus their drum machine and synthesizer rack nicknamed "Madame Razor".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Bobby Steele</span> American punk rock musician (born 1956)

Bobby Steele is an American punk rock musician. He is the current guitar player, songwriter, and sole original member of the punk band The Undead. He has been a member of multiple other bands, most notably, as the second guitarist of The Misfits. He was replaced by Doyle Wolfgang von Frankenstein. He married Diana Viar who joined The Undead in November 2014.

<i>Nowhere</i> (album) 1990 studio album by Ride

Nowhere is the debut album by British shoegaze band Ride, released 15 October 1990. Rolling Stone called the album "a masterpiece", and online magazine Pitchfork called it "one of shoegazing's enduring moments".

<span class="mw-page-title-main">M.O.T.O.</span> Garage punk band from New Hampshire, USA

M.O.T.O. is an American garage punk band currently based in New Hampshire. Formed in New Orleans in 1981 by Paul Caporino, the lineup of the band has seen many changes over the years, with Caporino being the only consistent member. The band has recorded many albums, singles and CDs, including several albums for the Chicago-based record label Criminal IQ Records.

Non-aggression Pact was an urban-electro-industrial music group from Tampa, Florida formed by Jeff Hillard and Jason Whitcomb.

My Favorite are an indie pop band formed in Long Island, New York in 1991, later of Brooklyn and Queens. After releasing two full-length albums, the original band split in 2005, but reformed in 2014.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Figgs</span>

The Figgs are a rock ‘n’ roll band formed in Saratoga Springs, New York in 1987. Originally known as The Sonic Undertones, their output includes thirteen studio albums and multiple EPs and singles. They’ve served as the backing band for rock and roll legend Graham Parker on and off since 1996 and also toured with Tommy Stinson of The Replacements fame.

Straw was an English post-Britpop band that released one album, Shoplifting, in 1999.

BOB were an indie pop band from North London, England, formed in 1986.

Astriaal are an Australian black metal band that formed in 1998, and are one of Australia's highest-profile black metal bands. The band have so far released 2 full-length albums and 3 EPs, and have supported well-known international acts such as Mayhem, Arcturus, Suffocation, Nile, Deeds of Flesh, Opeth and Pungent Stench. Astriaal's lyrics deal with Abyssal Theology, Nature and Misanthropy.

References

  1. Roberts, David (2006). British Hit Singles & Albums (19th ed.). London: Guinness World Records Limited. p. 558. ISBN   1-904994-10-5.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "THOUSAND YARD STARE | full Official Chart History | Official Charts Company". Officialcharts.com. Retrieved 4 June 2020.