A Spectre is Haunting Europe
Encyclopedia
A Spectre Is Haunting Europe is a progressive deathrock
band hailing from Vancouver
, Canada
.
.
It was not until 2004 that the band found a niche with its brand of politicized post-punk and subsequently changed its name to A Spectre Is Haunting Europe. Their first album, Astonishing Tales of the Sea, was released that year. Through a succession of different drummers, the band stretched this material in a few different directions at once, culminating in a caustic 2004 appearance at the Drop Dead Festival
in New York City
. In early 2006, former Skinny Puppy
member Phil Western
joined the group as drummer.
With their 2006 album, Flames, the band broadened their audience to include a more general indie rock
audience. Their recordings have been reviewed extensively in music media.
In 2008 the band released its third album (Embers) as a creative commons free digital release.
Deathrock
Deathrock is a term used to identify a sub-genre of punk rock incorporating horror elements and spooky atmospherics, that emerged on the West Coast of the United States in 1979.-Characteristics:...
band hailing from Vancouver
Vancouver
Vancouver is a coastal seaport city on the mainland of British Columbia, Canada. It is the hub of Greater Vancouver, which, with over 2.3 million residents, is the third most populous metropolitan area in the country,...
, Canada
Canada
Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean...
.
History
A Spectre Is Haunting Europe formed in 2002, during the height of Vancouver's post-punk revival, and were initially billed as Decora. The band's activity was intermittent for the first two years, due mainly to lineup changes and the band's cross-membership with electropunk outfit Alunared (usually spelled aLUnARED). The name refers to the first sentence of The Communist ManifestoThe Communist Manifesto
The Communist Manifesto, originally titled Manifesto of the Communist Party is a short 1848 publication written by the German Marxist political theorists Karl Marx and Friedrich Engels. It has since been recognized as one of the world's most influential political manuscripts. Commissioned by the...
.
It was not until 2004 that the band found a niche with its brand of politicized post-punk and subsequently changed its name to A Spectre Is Haunting Europe. Their first album, Astonishing Tales of the Sea, was released that year. Through a succession of different drummers, the band stretched this material in a few different directions at once, culminating in a caustic 2004 appearance at the Drop Dead Festival
Drop Dead Festival
The Drop Dead Festival is the largest DIY festival for art-damaged music. It books as many as sixty five bands per event, and has been known to attract attendees from over 30+ countries...
in New York City
New York City
New York is the most populous city in the United States and the center of the New York Metropolitan Area, one of the most populous metropolitan areas in the world. New York exerts a significant impact upon global commerce, finance, media, art, fashion, research, technology, education, and...
. In early 2006, former Skinny Puppy
Skinny Puppy
Skinny Puppy is a Canadian industrial musical group, formed in Vancouver, British Columbia, Canada in 1982. The group is widely considered to be the founders of the electro-industrial genre....
member Phil Western
Phil Western
Phil Western is a Vancouver-based musician who is a founding member of the bands Download, PlatEAU, Frozen Rabbit, and Off And Gone....
joined the group as drummer.
With their 2006 album, Flames, the band broadened their audience to include a more general indie rock
Indie rock
Indie rock is a genre of alternative rock that originated in the United Kingdom and the United States in the 1980s. Indie rock is extremely diverse, with sub-genres that include lo-fi, post-rock, math rock, indie pop, dream pop, noise rock, space rock, sadcore, riot grrrl and emo, among others...
audience. Their recordings have been reviewed extensively in music media.
In 2008 the band released its third album (Embers) as a creative commons free digital release.
Albums
- Astonishing Tales of the Sea (Simulacre) – 2004
- Flames (Simulacre) – 2006
- EmbersEmbersEmbers is a radio play by Samuel Beckett. It was written in English in 1957 and first broadcast on the BBC Third Programme on 24 June 1959. Donald McWhinnie directed Jack MacGowran – for whom the play was specially written – as “Henry”, Kathleen Michael as “Ada” and Patrick Magee as “Riding Master”...
(Simulacre) - 2008
Singles
- "Servers/Stop" (split 12" single with Entertainme.ntEntertainment (band)Entertainment is an American post-punk band founded in 2002 in Athens, Georgia.- Biography :Entertainment was formed in 2002 by Trey Ehart and Bari Donavan Watts after the two met and played together in the early Atlanta dark music scene...
) (Simulacre/aDistant) – 2006
Compilations
- "New Dark Age 4" (Strobelight Records) – 2006
- "Smoke and Spotlight" (X-Pop Society) – 2006
External links
- A Spectre Is Haunting Europe official website
- A Spectre Is Haunting Europe profile on CBC Radio 3CBC Radio 3CBC Radio 3 is a radio station that consists of two parts devoted to Canadian arts and music: a radio service which is available on Sirius Satellite Radio and streaming audio, and several daily and weekly podcasts from the CBC Radio 3 website...
- Simulacre Media record label
- Strobelight Records
- Scratch Distribution